The Teaching of Ethics in Undergraduate Nonethics Courses

Abstract

In his first paper for me in an upper-level literature course, a graduating college senior argued that Meursault, the protagonist of Camus’ The Stranger, should be seen as heroic. As he explained it, “Even though Meursault murdered someone, he is still a hero because he did it only in passing.” In a conference the next day, the student verified that he had expressed himself accurately. The problem was not, as I had hoped, his writing.