ethics midterm

Antoine is considering adopting the ethical theory of cultural relativism, so he is in the process of evaluating it. One of the features of cultural relativism that concerns him is the view that what's morally right for a culture is simply whatever that culture approves of or believes is morally right. Which of the following conclusions should Antoine draw about this view, basing his judgment on the moral criteria of adequacy discussed in the text?

This theory is inconsistent with our moral experience because it means that cultures cannot approve of an action that is morally wrong—but we know that sometimes cultures do indeed approve of morally wrong actions.

The fact that natural law theory is absolutist (that is, that it holds that some actions are always wrong or right regardless of circumstances) would not worry

Thomas Aquinas.

According to social contract theory, morality comprises the social rules that are in everyone's best interests to heed.

True

Utilitarianism is a moral theory for promoting human welfare.

True

Which of these questions belongs to metaethics?

What does it mean for an action to be right?

What is the implicit premise in the following moral argument? "Same-sex marriage is contrary to tradition. Therefore, it should never be allowed."

Whatever is contrary to tradition should not be allowed.

Suppose that the right to life is a negative right. Which of the following would be a duty that corresponded to this right?

a duty not to kill another person

Kant believes that every action implies

a general rule, or maxim.

A moral theory is supposed to be ________ on issues such as euthanasia.

a guide for moral reasoning

A person who reasons that the morally right action is the one that produces the most favorable balance of good over evil, everyone considered, is

a utilitarian.

Consider a scenario involving the possible killing of an innocent person for the good of others. Such an action could conceivably be sanctioned by

act-utilitarianism.

A moral statement is a statement

affirming that an action is right or wrong or that a person (or one's motive or character) is good or bad.

A serious criticism of Kant's theory is that it

allows too much subjectivity in moral decision making.

Subjective relativism is the doctrine that

an action is morally right if one approves of it.

Which fallacy appears in the following passage? "No one can prove that a fetus is not a person from the moment of conception. So, a fetus must be accorded full moral rights as soon as it is conceived."

appeal to ignorance

Which fallacy appears in the following passage? "John argues that active euthanasia is sometimes morally acceptable. But we can reject out of hand anything he has to say because he's an ultraconservative."

appeal to the person

Applied ethics is the

application of moral norms to specific moral issues or cases

Which field concerns questions such as "Was this abortion morally permissible?" or "Was this instance of mercy killing immoral?"

applied ethics

Why have critics charged rule-utilitarianism with being internally inconsistent—that is, as failing the minimum requirement of coherence?

because the best rules, under this theory, seem to be those with amendments that make them as specific as possible to particular cases, and this leads to a collapse into act-utilitarianism

The principle of impartiality, which says that from the moral point of view all persons are considered equal and should be treated accordingly, is

called into question by feminist ethicists.

Cognitivism is the view that moral statements

can be true or false.

Cultural relativism implies that the abolition of slavery in the United States

cannot be regarded as moral progress.

Annette C. Baier argues that in moral theory there is a place for both

care and justice.

Which of the following types of "caring" would the ethics of care primarily concern itself with?

caring for one's child

A strong inductive argument with true premises is said to be

cogent

Suppose a utilitarian judge decides to rule against a plaintiff in a lawsuit just because people in general would be happier if the plaintiff lost the case. Such a utilitarian move would conflict with

commonsense views about justice.

Aquinas says that judging the rightness of actions is a matter of

consulting reason and considering rational grounds for moral beliefs.

Which field or topic would include tasks such as accurately describing the moral codes and ethical standards of colonial America?

descriptive ethics

When religious adherents claim that murder is wrong because God says that it is, they are implicitly espousing the

divine command theory

Suppose a moral theory is inconsistent with two of your most trustworthy and important moral judgments (and other considerations do not counterbalance this fact). You should then regard the theory as

dubious and possibly false.

Alison M. Jaggar writes that Western moral theory is said to

embody "masculine" values.

John Stuart Mill says, "It is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a pig satisfied; better to be Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied." This sentiment is an indictment of the glutton but also a pat on the back for those who

enjoy higher pleasures.

Kant's idea is that people not only have intrinsic worth but also have __________ intrinsic worth.

equal

The fallacy of assigning two different meanings to the same term in an argument is known as

equivocation.

A traditional natural law theorist would say that lying is immoral because it

goes against human nature.

According to Aquinas, the first precept of natural law theory is

good is to be done and promoted, and evil is to be avoided.

An argument in the logical sense is a

group of statements, one of which is supposed to be supported by the rest.

Aristotle says that moral virtue comes about as a result of

habit

According to Aristotle, the greatest good for humans is

happiness or flourishing.

The fallacy of drawing a conclusion about an entire group of people or things based on an undersized sample of the group is known as

hasty generalization.

Franco has decided he wants to adopt the ethics of care. He is now deliberating about whether to voice a controversial view during a get-together with his family. In order to apply the ethics of care, he should focus most on how

his opinion might negatively affect family members he cares about.

The difference between hypothetical and categorical imperatives is that

hypothetical imperatives are conditional, whereas categorical imperatives are unconditional.

Name the form of the following argument: If p, then q. If q, then r. Therefore, if p, then r.

hypothetical syllogism

In arguing against the divine command theory, many critics insist that

if an action is right only because God wills it, then many evil actions would be right if God willed them.

The primary focus of virtue systems, according to the philosopher Louis Pojman, is on discovering the proper moral example and __________ that person or ideal type.

imitating

The ethics of care is a perspective on ethics that highlights the

importance of personal relationships and virtues such as compassion and kindness.

Subjective relativism implies that when a person states their moral beliefs, that person is

incapable of being in error.

Some things, like happiness, pleasure, virtue, and beauty, are considered by some people to be valuable for their own sakes, simply because they are what they are, without being a means to something else. The kind of value described here is called

intrinsic value

Joel Feinberg argues that someone who directly pursues happiness

is unlikely to find it.

A moral theory would fail to meet the minimum requirement of coherence if

it stated that the same action in the same conditions is both right and wrong.

Virtue ethicists try to achieve the moral ideal by

looking to moral exemplars.

Defenders of act-utilitarianism insist that the scenarios put forth by critics that seem to show utilitarianism in conflict with commonsense morality are

misleading and implausible.

Name the form of the following argument: If p, then q. p. Therefore, q.

modus ponens

Both objectivists and cultural relativists agree that

moral judgments differ from culture to culture.

The sentence "Abortion is morally permissible" is a(n)

moral statement.

A moral theory is

more useful than a moral code.

Many philosophers insist that the teleological character of nature has never been supported by logical argument or empirical science because

nature is not teleological at all, but rather random and purposeless.

According to the main argument for cultural relativism, if culture X and culture Y disagree about which actions are morally right and which actions are morally wrong, this shows that

no view can be objectively correct.

Jack believes that he can avoid doing ethics by simply endorsing the view that all ethical concepts are irrelevant or empty. Has Jack actually avoided doing ethics?

no, since his conclusion about the nature of ethical concepts is a product of his doing ethics

A statement asserting that a state of affairs is actual (true or false) without assigning a moral value to it is a __________ statement.

nonmoral

Subjective relativism implies that when Sofia says, "I think abortion is wrong," and Emma replies, "I think abortion is permissible," Sofia and Emma are

not having a moral disagreement.

Suppose a culture approves of beheading a young man for merely holding hands with a woman. According to cultural relativism, the beheading is

objectively justified.

Emotivists can admit that the serial killer Ted Bundy killed more than thirty women, but they cannot say that Bundy's actions were

objectively wrong.

A major reason for devising a moral theory is to

obtain practical guidance.

Contemporary virtue ethicists argue that if virtues were eliminated entirely from morality, leaving only principles or rules of justice, the moral life would appear

one-dimensional.

Consider this comment from the philosopher C. D. Broad regarding Kant's means-ends principle: "If we isolate a man who is a carrier of typhoid, we are treating him merely as a cause of infection to others. But, if we refuse to isolate him, we are treating other people merely as means to his comfort and culture." This example suggests that

our duties not to use people merely as a means can conflict, and Kant provides no counsel on how to resolve such dilemmas.

The preeminence of reason refers to the

overriding importance of critical reasoning in ethics

Applying the second version of the categorical imperative to the act of lying to a friend on important matters would show that the action is impermissible because

performing the action would treat the friend merely as a means to an end.

The phrases because, given that, due to the fact that, and for the reason that are

premise indicators.

In an argument, the supporting statements are known as __________; the statement being supported is known as the __________.

premises; conclusion

Like many moral theories, Kant's system fails to

provide an effective means for resolving major conflicts of duties.

According to emotivism, to offer reasons for a moral judgment is to

provide moral facts that can influence someone's attitude.

Suppose that someone has only two possible actions: (1) read and think about philosophy, or (2) spend the entire weekend engaged in intensely pleasurable debauchery. Under these circumstances, John Stuart Mill would likely recommend

reading and thinking about philosophy.

Moral deliberation requires balancing moral principles derived from our moral theory with our considered moral judgments. The ultimate goal in this give-and-take of theory and judgment is

reflective equilibrium.

In natural law theory, the emphasis on reason makes morality independent of

religion and belief in God.

Morality refers to beliefs about

right and wrong, good and bad.

The theory asserting that the morally right action is the one covered by a rule that if generally followed would produce the most favorable balance of good over evil, everyone considered, is

rule-utilitarianism.

One hard fact that feminist ethicists are responding to is that even today, most women in the world are viewed as

second-class citizens.

Which fallacy appears in the following passage? "If marijuana is legalized, young people will assume that smoking marijuana is socially acceptable. That will lead them to give into the temptation to smoke marijuana themselves, and smoking marijuana can ruin their lives. Therefore, marijuana should not be legalized."

slippery slope

Our commonsense moral experiences suggest that

some things are morally good and some things are morally bad.

A valid deductive argument with true premises is said to be

sound

Which fallacy appears in the following passage? "Liberals believe in abortion on demand, which means that killing a baby is permissible any time at all—at conception, in the second trimester, at infancy. Any of these would be appropriate times to kill a baby, says the liberal."

straw man

Julie considers herself an advocate of feminist ethics. Therefore, she should

support the moral equality of men and women.

Deductive arguments are

supposed to give logically conclusive support to their conclusions.

Inductive arguments are

supposed to offer only probable support for their conclusions.

Cultural relativists contend that the diversity of moral judgments across cultures indicates the nonexistence of objective moral principles. Objectivists point out, however, that this diversity of moral judgments indicates something else entirely, namely,

that different cultures have divergent nonmoral beliefs, which explains the diversity of moral judgments.

Suppose that both honesty and kindness are genuine virtues. One day, Frank asks Mary what she thinks of a hat he has recently purchased. Her sincere opinion is that the hat looks ridiculous, but she's hesitant to say so to Frank, fearing it will cause him to feel awful. If Mary acts from her virtue of honesty, she will cause Frank great pain; if she acts from her virtue of kindness, she will have to conceal her true opinion of the hat. Which criticism raised against virtue ethics does Mary's situation illustrate?

that there can be irresolvable conflicts of virtues

Applying the first version of the categorical imperative to the act of lying to a friend on important matters would show that the action is impermissible because

the action's maxim cannot be universalized.

If, as according to Jeremy Bentham, only the total quantity of happiness produced by an action mattered, then the person closest to the moral ideal would be

the glutton.

What does normative ethics study?

the principles, rules, or theories that guide our actions and judgments

It seems that a person can be benevolent, honest, and loyal but still treat a stranger unjustly. According to critics of virtue ethics, this shows that

the rightness of actions does not necessarily depend on the content of one's character.

Principlism is a moral theory that is intended, in part, to solve the problem of conflicting rules or principles. Which of the following features of principlism is most relevant to solving this problem?

the theory's inclusion of prima facie, rather than absolute, principles

Emotivism is an example of noncognitivism, which is the view that moral judgments are not statements that can be true or false. Which of the following is also a component of emotivism that would distinguish it from other noncognitivist views?

the view that moral judgments express attitudes and influence others to share those attitudes

Kant would say that using a person to achieve some end, such as hiring someone to paint your house, is not necessarily wrong because

there is a moral difference between treating people as a means and treating them merely, or only, as a means.

Not thinking too deeply or too systematically about ethical concerns

undermines your personal freedom.

Kant's theory emphasizes three of morality's most important features,

universality, impartiality, and respect for persons.

Commonsense morality distinguishes between doing our duty and doing more than duty requires, what are called supererogatory actions. This distinction seems to disappear in

utilitarianism

In response to the criticism that very few people have given any form of consent to any social contracts, contractarians have contended that the social contract is hypothetical but nevertheless binding. That is, social contracts are best seen as

very useful fictions.

Rosalind Hursthouse responds to the criticism that virtue ethics cannot provide moral guidance by pointing out that

we can discover our moral duties by examining terms that refer to virtues and vices because moral guidance is implicit in these terms.

For a cultural relativist, when two people in the same culture disagree on a moral issue, what they are really disagreeing about is

whether their society endorses a particular view.

According to critics of virtue ethics, one may be virtuous (kind, just, and honest) and still not know

which actions are right and which are wrong.

Vinnie's foot is caught in a railway track and a runaway train is bearing down on him. He doesn't have time to free his foot to avoid being killed by the train, but he is near a switch that, if engaged, would divert the train over to an alternate track, thereby saving his life. On the alternate track, however, Kenny is in a similar situation, and if the train is diverted he won't be able to free himself in time to avoid being killed. According to the doctrine of double effect, would Vinnie be morally permitted to engage the switch and divert the train to the alternate track?

yes, because the action of engaging the switch, which Vinnie knows will result in Kenny's death, satisfies all the conditions required by the doctrine

According to emotivism, when someone says, Lying is wrong," what are they really saying?

"Lying—I hate it!"

If we think of the first and second versions of Kant's categorical imperative as two distinct tests for maxims, we run into the possibility that a maxim may pass one version but fail the other. An approach that avoids this possibility is to view the two versions not as alternative tests, but rather as a single two-part test that an action must pass to be judged morally permissible. If we adopt this approach, which of the following conclusions could we justifiably draw?

Before we can declare a maxim to be a bona fide categorical imperative, we must be able to consistently will it to become a universal law and also know that it would have us treat persons as ends as well as means.

Which of the following is the correct order of steps for evaluating the adequacy of a moral theory?

First, evaluate the theory for coherence. Then evaluate whether it meets the three moral criteria of adequacy.

A moral theory is inconsistent with our considered moral judgments if

it allows us to cause pain to infants for fun.

Carol Gilligan calls the approach to morality that emphasizes rights and rules an ethic of

justice

Ethical egoism seems to conflict with

our considered moral judgments and our moral experience.

A consequentialist theory may define "good" as

pleasure, happiness, well-being, or flourishing.

Believing that you can establish all your moral beliefs by consulting your feelings is an example of

subjectivism

A categorical imperative tells us

that we should do something in all situations regardless of our wants and needs.

For Aristotle, a person living a life of reason is living a life of

virtue

Say you are a devoutly religious person. You would need to deploy moral reasoning when applying your religion's moral codes if

your religious moral code includes a general rule not to kill but sometimes killing might be the only way to defend yourself.

Which of the following illustrates the claim that we can never be morally obligated to perform an action that we cannot possibly do?

A person who does not know how to swim is not morally obligated to jump into a pond to save a drowning boy.

Which statement best describes the relationship between religion and morality?

Because we live with people who have different religious views or no religious views at all, we need standards for moral reasoning that do not depend on any particular religious views.

Which of the following is true of consequentialist theories?

Consequentialist theories consider actions to be right insofar as they produce good consequences. Consequentialist theories differ from one another insofar as they specify different kinds of consequences as being good.

Which of the following statements about the practice of "doing ethics" is true?

Doing ethics is difficult, but not doing ethics is likely to lead to error and confusion about those things we hold most dear.

Which statement best summarizes why, according to the author, cultural relativism is nearly impossible to use?

Each of us belongs to multiple societies or social groups, but cultural relativism does not specify which society or group we should look to as a moral authority.

The philosopher who said that the greatest good is pleasure and the greatest evil is pain was

Epicurus

Tahani complains to Chidi that ethical egoism is a horrendous theory since ethical egoists will always choose the options that are the most monstrous and harmful to others. Which of the following would be the correct response for Chidi to give Tahani?

Ethical egoism may be a horrendous theory, but Tahani is mistaken about what ethical egoists will choose since they will often choose to avoid actions that antagonize people in their community or society.

Which of the following is an accurate description of the principle of impartiality?

Everyone deserves the same treatment, unless there is a morally relevant reason to favor someone.

Psychological egoism is a moral theory.

False

Rule-egoism says that to determine the right action, you must apply the egoistic principle to individual acts.

False

What does cultural relativism imply about the civil rights leader and social reformer Martin Luther King Jr., considered in the context of the 1950s-1960s U.S. culture in which he lived?

He was wrong about his moral reforms.

What is the implicit premise in the following moral argument? "The war did not increase the amount of happiness in the world. So, the war was morally wrong."

If a war does not increase the amount of happiness in the world, it must be considered morally wrong.

Which of the following is a consequence of the principle of universalizability?

If harming someone is wrong in a particular situation, then harming someone would be wrong for anyone in a relevantly similar situation.

Which feature of emotivism makes it different from subjective relativism?

In emotivism, our beliefs about right and wrong are not automatically true.

Sanjay is Sikh and Joanne is Christian. They are discussing the morality of abortion in situations when a pregnancy threatens the life of the mother. Given Sanjay and Joanne's different religious beliefs, however, is it possible for their discussion to be fruitful at all?

It is possible, since people who have divergent religious beliefs can still have shared values, such as justice, fairness, equality, and tolerance.

How is Robert Nozick's famous thought experiment, "the experience machine," said to present a challenge to classic utilitarianism?

It suggests that happiness may be an important part of a good life, but it's not the only important part.

To a(n) ________, breaking promises is wrong because if everyone were to follow the rule implied by this action, then no promise anywhere could be trusted and the whole convention of promise making would be obliterated. Thus, no one would be willing to live in such a society.

Kantian

Eric, a Kantian, and Diane, an ethicist of care, are debating whether lying is ever morally permissible. Eric insists that lying is never permissible since it always violates the categorical imperative. What is Diane's perspective on lying most likely to be?

Lying would be permissible in cases where telling the truth would make someone suffer unnecessarily.

Maryam says, "Abortion is always wrong," while Fatima says, "Sometimes abortion is not wrong." Which statement best summarizes how emotivists view this kind of disagreement?

Maryam and Fatima are expressing different attitudes, but neither of them says something that could be true or false.

Choose the statement that best summarizes the purposes of moral theories.

Moral theories explain moral rightness and give us practical guidance on how to act, even in difficult cases where moral codes do not apply.

Natasha uses the Golden Rule ("Do unto others as you would have them do unto you") for all her moral decisions. One day, she loans $100 to her friend Alexei and has him swear that he will pay her back in one week's time. In a week, Natasha comes knocking on Alexei's door, expecting him to pay her back. Alexei asks her the following question: "If you had borrowed money from someone and promised to pay it back a week later, wouldn't you be thrilled if they came to you after that week and said that there was no need to pay the loan back?" Natasha agreed that if she were in that situation, that outcome would greatly please her. Alexei then replies, "Good. That means I don't have to pay the money back to you." What is the most likely explanation for the conclusion that Alexei has drawn?

Natasha's embrace of the Golden Rule obliges her to excuse Alexei's debt—after all, she must do unto Alexei what she would have done unto herself.

In which of the following ways are consequentialist and nonconsequentialist theories similar?

Neither is primarily about evaluating persons as good or bad.

__________ theories hold that the rightness of an action can never be measured by such a variable, contingent standard as the quantity of goodness brought into the world—that is, rightness derives from an action's nature, its right-making characteristics.

Nonconsequentialist

What is a major difference between descriptive ethics and normative ethics?

Normative ethics implies that people's moral beliefs can be false, whereas descriptive ethics does not.

Which of the following best describes how evidence gathered from our considered moral judgments and our moral experiences helps us evaluate moral theories?

Our moral experience provides general background knowledge about morality, while our considered moral judgments provide evaluations of specific actions as right or wrong.

Analisa is faced with a moral decision. Last night, she went out to dinner with her ex-boyfriend—strictly as friends—but she didn't tell her current boyfriend, Michael, about the dinner beforehand. The next morning, Michael asks her what she did the night before, and she considers lying to him. If Analisa tells Michael the truth, she is almost certain he will jump to the conclusion that she was unfaithful to him. Until recently, Analisa was an act-utilitarian, but she has now switched to rule-utilitarianism. She has a clear idea of how she should make this decision as an act-utilitarian. Since she has two options—lie to Michael or tell him the truth—she should consider how much collective good would be created by each option and then choose the one that creates the most good. In her situation, the option that creates the most good would be to lie to her boyfriend. Now that she is a rule-utilitarian, however, how should she reason in making this decision?

She should consider which rules apply to her situation and, of those, which of them produces the most good. In her situation, the applicable rule that creates the most good would be "Do not lie." Therefore, she should tell her boyfriend the truth.

Cultural relativists may believe that their theory promotes tolerance of other cultures, but this belief has been challenged. What are the grounds on which this challenge has been made?

The view that tolerance is objectively good contradicts the central principle of cultural relativism.