Read these instructions with great care and attention to detail. Failure to abide by any of them
will affect your grade negatively.
I. General Description, Point Value, and Due Date
This paper assignment covers Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, John Stuart Mill’s Utilitarianism,
and Friedrich Nietzsche’s On the Genealogy of Morals. All assigned readings and all lectures are
applicable to this assignment.
This is an assignment to be completed on your own time. You are to write a complete and
properly constructed essay response to one of the questions provided. Follow all of the
guidelines in the following sections in order to achieve the highest score.
Per the syllabus, this paper is worth 19 points. In Section II below, you will find two questions.
You must answer one question.
See the “Assessment and Grading” section of the syllabus for descriptions of performance
expectations vis-à-vis the grades I will assign.
An electronic copy of this paper is due via the Blackboard submission portal by Monday, 9
November at 12:00 PM (noon). No late papers will be accepted.
II. Content
Write an essay answer, 900–1,200 words in length (approx. 3–4 double-spaced pages), to one of
the following questions:
(1.) Toward the end of the first essay in On the Genealogy of Morals, Nietzsche writes,
“The two opposing values ‘good and bad,’ ‘good and evil’ have been engaged in a
fearful struggle on earth for thousands of years.”1 First, explain the difference
between these two value systems, using the text to support your claims. Second,
briefly explain Aristotle’s ethical system (again using the text to support your claims)
and make an argument as to whether it is more in line with the value system “good
and bad” or with the value system “good and evil.” First, you must demonstrate that
you understand Aristotle’s and Nietzsche’s positions and arguments accurately and
fully. Then, you must carefully construct your own argument based on textual
evidence as well as sound logical reasoning.
(2.) In Chapter V of Utilitarianism, John Stuart Mill discusses the feeling of resentment
and proclaims that it lies at the origin of sentiment of justice. In the first essay of On
the Genealogy of Morals, Friedrich Nietzsche presents his own account of the feeling
of ressentiment and proclaims that it lies at the origin of the “good and evil” system
1 Friedrich Nietzsche, On the Genealogy of Morals, in On the Genealogy of Morals and Ecce Homo, ed. Walter
Kaufmann, trans. Walter Kaufmann and R.J. Hollingdale (New York: Vintage Books, 1967), 52.
2/4
of values. Briefly explain how each thinker describes the feeling of resentment (or
ressentiment), being sure to articulate clearly how they differ. Then, provide an
argument for whose account of the feeling of resentment (ressentiment) is more
accurate. First, you must demonstrate that you understand Mill’s and Nietzsche’s
positions and arguments accurately and fully. Then, you must carefully construct
your own argument based on textual and empirical evidence as well as sound logical
reasoning. (You may also use Aristotle, but only if you find him helpful for and
relevant to the argument you are making.)
Answers should be thorough and detailed, employing and demonstrating understanding of the
technical terms and concepts covered in class. Your essays must make arguments that are
supported directly by textual evidence and that use sound logical reasoning.
Remember, I am not asking for your opinions. “Opinion” is a dirty word in philosophy. I am
asking you to provide clear and learned explanations and arguments utilizing the philosophical
resources we have studied thus far. Your essays should demonstrate advanced critical reasoning
skills and should showcase your ability (1) to provide the best possible explanations (which
includes supporting your explanations with textual evidence, reconstructing Aristotle’s, Mill’s,
and Nietzsche’s arguments, and providing your own arguments for why your explanations are
correct), (2) to compare and/or contrast Aristotle’s, Mill’s, and Nietzsche’s positions reasonably
and accurately, given what we have read and covered in class, and (3) to make a reasonable and
sound argument of your own.. It is expected that you will not overlook any relevant arguments
that you have read or that we have talked about together in clas
