Take a front row seat at one of the most popular courses in Harvard University’s history. In this captivating 12-part series of lectures, the legendary Professor Michael Sandel embarks on a critical investigation into justice, equality, democracy and citizenship, and brings new clarity to our thinking about the moral dilemmas we face in everyday life.

Most Recent Episode

Episode Five: “Hired Guns? / For Sale: Motherhood”
Wednesday May 2

Part One: During the American Civil War, men were conscripted to fight – but draftees were allowed to pay hired substitutes to fight in their place. Was this an example of free-market exchange? Or a form of coercion, given that the lower classes had more of a financial incentive to serve? Professor Sandel leads a classroom debate about the contemporary questions surrounding war and conscription. Is today’s army really voluntary, given that so many recruits come from lower economic backgrounds? What role does patriotism play? And what are the obligations of citizenship? Is there a civic duty to serve one’s country?

Part Two: Professor Sandel applies the issue of free-market exchange to a controversial new area: reproductive rights. He presents examples of the modern-day “business” of sperm and egg donation, and then takes the debate a step further, using the famous legal case of “Baby M.” In the mid-1980s, Mary Beth Whitehead signed a contract with a New Jersey couple, agreeing to be their surrogate mother in exchange for a fee. But 24 hours after giving birth, Whitehead decided she wanted to keep the child, and the case ended up in court. So who owns a baby, anyway? Students discuss the morality of selling human life, the legal issues surrounding consent and contracts, and the power of maternal rights.