LifeLong Learning-San Marcos
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Course Description

We all face personal moral questions that don’t fit neatly into right or wrong answers: Am I a responsible person? How much compassion can I sustain? What do I owe to others now and in the future? How should I engage with unethical systems?

 

This philosophy series invites you to slow down and explore these questions with other participants through real-life examples, careful reflection, and attentive listening. These engaging 90-minute discussions are designed to sharpen moral clarity, deepen understanding, and leave you with better questions and new perspective long after the conversation ends.

 

Feb. 12 – Session 1: Is Being a Good Person About Intentions, Actions, or Outcomes?

How do we really judge right and wrong in everyday life?

We often disagree about what makes an action morally good: the intention behind it, the action itself, or the results it produces. This session explores these familiar disagreements using everyday examples rather than abstract theory. Participants will reflect on how they judge themselves and others, and why moral disagreements persist even among thoughtful people.

 

Feb. 19 – No Class: Please attend the Library’s Book Sale instead!

 

Feb. 26 – Session 2: Are We Responsible for Harms We Benefit from but Did Not Cause?

Responsibility in a world of complex systems

Modern life connects us to economic, social, and technological systems with harms that are often indirect, distant, or unintended. This session explores moral responsibility in situations where no single person is clearly at fault but benefits and burdens are unevenly shared. The discussion emphasizes reflection and moral clarity without blame or moral grandstanding.

 

Mar. 5 – Session 3: Should Compassion Have Limits?

Can caring too much become a moral problem?

Compassion is widely praised, yet many people experience burnout, moral fatigue, or uncertainty about where care should reasonably stop. This session examines whether compassion requires limits to remain ethical, effective, and sustainable. Participants will explore how care, judgment, and responsibility can support rather than compete with one another.

 

Mar. 12 – Session 4: Do We Owe Anything to Future Generations?

Responsibility beyond the present moment

Our choices shape a future we will never personally experience. This session asks whether moral responsibility extends beyond the present and near future, and what such responsibility might reasonably demand of us today. The discussion provides a thoughtful foundation for later conversations about environmental care, social inheritance, and long-term responsibility.

 

Presenter: Ron Stockdreher, Lecturer, Dept. of Philosophy, Texas State University

Ron teaches courses in ethics, applied philosophy, environmental ethics, and a developing field known as engaged ecology. His academic work focuses on helping students apply philosophical insight to real-world challenges, with special attention to our ethical responsibilities to each other, to non-human life, and to the planet. Ron also co-founded the Engaged Ecology Initiative, which fosters dialogue between philosophical traditions and contemporary environmental practice. (Note: LifeLong Learning will host monthly dialogues through the Initiative starting in September). Ron has a Master of Arts in Applied Philosophy and Ethics from Texas State.