They were fierce competitors. They prepared tirelessly for the gruelling national competition. They arrived as underdogs and snatched the title from the reigning West Point team. And they never broke a sweat. It was quite a coup for the UW’s team in . . . ethics.

That’s right—ethics. The University of Washington was one of 28 schools to compete in the Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl in Washington, D.C., held by the Association for Practical and Professional Ethics. This was the UW’s second year competing in the event.

Ethics Bowl team members and coaches include (from lower left) Kristen Intemann, Noah Purcell, David Shapiro, Joe Cutler, and Jeanine Lewis. Jasmin Weaver is not pictured. Photo by Kathy Sauber..

“We didn’t go there to win, we just went there to do our best and be as prepared as possible,” says Jeanine Lewis, a sophomore majoring in philosophy and political science. “Every time we won a round, we were amazed.”

Preparation for the ethics bowl began six weeks earlier, when the UW’s four-member team — Jeanine Lewis and juniors Jasmin Weaver, Joe Cutler, and Noah Purcell — were sent 11 ethics cases to review. Each case presented a contemporary moral dilemma, in areas ranging from fishing rights to sexual discrimination to health care. The team knew it would be asked to argue several cases during the competition, taken from this group of examples.

“We talked at length about each case, identifying the ethical issues raised and how one might answer them,” says Kristen Intemann, a graduate student in philosophy, who advised the team with colleague David Shapiro. Each student was assigned as lead respondent for several of the cases, based on personal interest.

The day of the competition, teams were paired up for the preliminary rounds. One team argued an ethical question posed by a moderator; the other team had a chance to question those arguments. The teams reversed roles for a second case.

After the moderator read the case and asked a broad question about it, the team had one minute to confer,” says Intemann. “Then one team member had ten minutes to respond. The students couldn’t use notes, but they could use scrap paper, so people were frantically passing notes back and forth.” The judges then had an opportunity to ask questions, followed by a response from the opposing team. The original team had five minutes to present a final rebuttal.

Three judges scored the teams immediately following each round. “It was like ice skating,” says Intemann. “The judges would hold up a card with a score on it, so you knew exactly how you were doing.”

As it turned out, the UW team was doing quite well. After the two preliminary rounds, they were among the four highest scoring teams. They continued on to the semifinals and then the finals, where they faced the three-time defending champions from the U.S. Military Academy from West Point.

“More than 200 people watched the finals,” recalls Lewis. “It was neat, because the other teams stayed to watch. And even the teams we beat in earlier rounds rooted for us.”

"It was exciting to see so many people in the audience genuinely excited about philosophy."

Jasmin Weaver, a philosophy and community and environmental planning major, remembers looking out at the crowd as she spoke as respondent in the final round. “The other team had scored well, and I knew I had to do well for us to win,” she recalls. “In the first row, I saw Kristen close to tears and David with his head in his hands. They both looked completely tortured. I think it was actually less tense for us at that point than it was for them.”

Intemann agrees. “The students were so composed,” she says. “We were so proud of them. And it was exciting to see so many people in the audience genuinely excited about philosophy. They had all come together to think about philosophical issues just because they loved it.”

Weaver and Lewis wish more students would share their love of philosophy. “It teaches you how to think critically and not just believe what you’re reading,” says Weaver. “I think everyone should be required to take a philosophy course.”

Adds Lewis, “My first philosophy class is still my worst grade, but I learned so much. I remember thinking, ‘This is it. This is what I want to major in.’”

[Summer 2000 - Table of Contents]