Module 3 TestBank
"According to Aristotle, what defines man more than anything else? (A) Reason, (B) Happiness, (C) Virtuous, (D) Sinful."
A
"According to Kant, imperatives are either categorical or (A) hypothetical, (B) conjunctive, (C) theoretical, (D) none of the above."
A
"According to Kant, rational beings are called (A) humans, (B) animals, (C) men, (D) none of the above."
A
"According to Ross, the self-evident duties are analogous to (A) mathematical/logical truths, (B) scientific truths, (C) historical truths, (D) none of the above."
A
"Any theory of morality asserting that the rightness of an action is determined by one's character is (A) aretaic, (B) teleological, (C) deontological, (D) all of the above."
A
"If a proposition is self-evident this means (A) it is not inferred, (B) it is known to be selfevident, (C) it is known by all, (D) all of the above."
A
"Kant appears to treat universalizability as a (A) sufficient condition for morality, (B) necessary condition for morality, (C) deficient condition for morality, (D) none of the above."
A
"Of the following, who embraces a broad interpretation of natural law? (A) Lewis, (B) Aristotle, (C) Aquinas, (D) None of the above."
A
"The Categorical Imperative is a philosophical expression of (A) the Golden Rule, (B) the Ten Commandments, (C) the Hedonistic Calculus, (D) none of the above."
A
"The determining factor of morality for aretaic theories is the (A) agent, (B) act, (C) consequences, (D) none of the above."
A
The determining factor of morality for deontological theories.
Act
Determining factor of morality for aretaic theories.
Agent
Give a general description of deontological theories of morality. Explain in detail Kant's Categorical Imperative. Explain an internal difficulty and an external difficulty that Kant's Categorical Imperative faces. How convincing do you find Kant's approach?
Any theory of morality asserting that the rightness of an action is determined by its conformity to duty (moral values are never determined by consequence). The good will is the only intrinsic and unqualified good (gifts of nature <intelligence, courage> or fortune <power, wealth> and qualities which serve the good will <moderation, self-control> can be good or bad). The good will is the will that acts according to the categorical imperative: "Act only according to that maxim by which you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law." - Id Maxim, Universalize, Result; contradiction - immoral, no contradiction - permissible, inverse maxim contradiction - obligatory. Internal Difficulty: Which Maxim to universalize, What constitutes contradiction/stultification, conflicting obligations. External: Justifies actions intuitively immoral, Prohibits actions considered moral or nonmoral. General: Confuses universalizability as sufficient, instead of necessary but not alone sufficient, condition of morality.
Give a general description of aretaic theories. Explain in detail Aristotle's moral theory. Explain two objections that can be raised against pure-aretaic theories. How convincing do you find this approach?
Any theory of morality asserting that the rightness of an action is determined by one's character; AKA Virtue-based theories. Factor: Agent. Purpose: Promote human flourishing. Type: Naturalistic. What should I be, instead of What should I do. Forms: a) Pure-aretaic - virtues are intrinsic and dominant, moral principles are derived from the virtues b) Complementary ethics - combination action/virtue, principles and virtues complement each other c) Nonaretaic - moral principles are dominant, virtues are derived from moral principles. Aristotle - pure aretaic; Happiness is the greatest good (among health, wealth, friendship, happiness...). Though many other things are required (health, whole of limb, comely...) the primary requirement to obtain happiness is virtuousness. Two types of virtue; 1) Nonmoral aka intellectual - contributes to moral life but may be compatible with an immoral life. Learned by teachers. Examples - rationality, patience, courage... 2) Moral - necessary for moral life and incompatible with an immoral life. Dispositions to act well. Acquired by repetition (lived to learn) and become habitual. Examples - honesty, kindness, fairness, gratitude... Determined by the golden mean or by examples (Jesus, Buddha, Gandhi...). Objections: a) The virtues are not universal, they are relative to time and place. b) Difficulty in determining the virtues; no reason given why the mean is considered the desirable goal and no objective way to determine the mean. c) Issues choosing models to emulate: how do you know who is virtuous unless you already know the virtues and, if you do know who is a model then how would you know what they would do? Even scholars cannot agree on what common role models would do (Buddha, Jesus...)
Proponent of a virtue-based theory (person).
Aristotle
"According to Aristotle, being virtuous is a (A) sufficient condition for happiness, (B) necessary condition for happiness, (C) unnecessary condition for happiness, (D) none of the above."
B
"According to Kant, breaking a promise is (A) sometimes morally necessary, (B) never permissible, (C) always permissible, (D) none of the above."
B
"According to Kant, if a maxim can be universalized without contradiction it is (A) immoral, (B) permissible, (C) obligatory, (D) none of the above."
B
"One of the problems with virtue-based theories is that (A) it is impossible to know all the consequences of one's actions, (B) the virtues are not universal, (C) there are difficulties surrounding which maxim to universalize, (D) all of the above."
B
"The determining factor of morality for the deontologist is the (A) agent, (B) act, (C) consequences, (D) none of the above."
B
"The phrase primafacie means (A) primary fact, (B) first face, (C) primary duty, (D) none of the above."
B
"A moral theory asserting that moral principles are dominant and make up the core of morality and claim that the virtues are derived from moral principles is (A) pure-aretaic, (B) a complementary ethic, (C) nonaretaic, (D) none of the above."
C
"According to Aristotle, who has the greatest potential to be the happiest? (A) The priest, (B) The king, (C) The wise man, (D) All of the above."
C
"Aristotle believed that morality was determined by (A) the hedonistic calculus, (B) the Categorical Imperative, (C) the Golden Mean, (D) none of the above."
C
"Asking the question, ""What would Jesus do?"" is most compatible with which ethical theory? (A) Deontological, (B) Teleological, (C) Aretaic, (D) None of the above."
C
"Nonmoral virtues are (A) acquired by repetition, (B) are incompatible with an immoral life, (C) are learned from teachers, (D) all of the above."
C
"Which of the following is not an internal difficulty faced by Kant's Categorical Imperative? (A) Which maxim to universalize, (B) Resolving conflicting obligations, (C) Greatest happiness, (D) All of the above."
C
"According to Rashdall, which of the following is a potential problem with intuitionism? (A) Different people have different intuitions, (B) All moral rules-grounded in intuitions-have exceptions, (C) The existence of contradictory moral intuitions requires an appeal to consequences, (D) All of the above."
D
"Virtue-based theories (A) ask ""what should I be?"", (B) emphasize being, (C) emphasize moral examples and/or models, (D) all of the above."
D
"Which of the following is a moral virtue? (A) Honesty, (B) Kindness, (C) Fairness, (D) All of the above."
D
"Which of the following was an Intuitionist? (A) Mill, (B) Bentham, (C) Kant, (D) None of the above."
D (Butler - "Let your conscience be your guide"; Ross - Objectivist rule deontology)
"Act only according to that maxim by which you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law is the (A) hypothetical imperative, (B) categorical explanation, (C) hypothetical explanation, (D) none of the above."
D (Categorical Imperative)
"Any theory of morality asserting that the rightness of an action is determined by its conformity to duty is (A) teleological, (B) consequential, (C) virtue-based, (D) none of the above."
D (Deontological)
"According to Aristotle, the ultimate good in life is (A) virtue, (B) rationality, (C) health, (D) none of the above."
D (Happiness)
"According to Kant, acting according to duty is based on (A) feelings, (B) impulses, (C) inclinations, (D) none of the above."
D (Reason)
"According to Kant, what is the only thing that is good without qualification? (A) A gift of fortune, (B) A gift of nature, (C) A quality which serves the good will, (D) None of the above."
D (The good will)
Any theory of morality asserting that the rightness of an action is determined by its conformity to duty.
Deontological
True or False: According to Kant, although the moral principles are self-evident upon reflection, they are not absolute.
F
True or False: According to Kant, empirical principles (principles based on experience) serve as the foundation for moral laws.
F
True or False: According to Kant, sometimes it is permissible to lie.
F
True or False: According to Rashdall, intuitionists must believe that their moral judgments are infallible (i.e., are always correct).
F
True or False: According to Rashdall, self-evident truths are truths that are evident to all.
F
True or False: Action-based theories reject the virtues.
F
True or False: One of the problems for virtue-based theories is that in order to determine the virtues one must know the future.
F
True or False: Self-evident propositions are incapable of proof
F
True or False: Self-evident propositions are known immediately.
F
True or False: Self-evident propositions cannot be denied.
F
True or False: Aretaic theories are never naturalistic.
F (Are naturalistic)
True or False: According to Kant, one can determine morality by imitating examples.
F (Aristotle)
True or False: According to Kant, the supreme principle of morality is the heteronomy of the will.
F (Autonomy of the will)
True or False: Ross's duties appear to be the principles of a narrow understanding of natural law.
F (Broad understanding)
True or False: The virtues are determined by identifying that which results in the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number of people.
F (By the Golden Mean or by example)
True or False: An internal difficulty with Kant's theory of morality is that there is no objective way to evaluate and rank happiness or pleasure.
F (Does not concern itself with happiness)
True or False: Courage is the opposite extreme from cowardice.
F (Foolhardiness; courage is the mean)
True or False: According to Aristotle, the ultimate good in life is virtue.
F (Happiness)
True or False: According to Kant, if a maxim cannot be universalized without contradiction then it is obligatory.
F (Immoral)
True or False: The traditional view of morality is that universalizability is a sufficient condition for morality.
F (Necessary but not sufficient; Kant said sufficient)
True or False: According to Ross, duties of fidelity (keeping promises) always override all other duties.
F (No set ranking; duties become actual when not in conflict with or overridden by other duties)
True or False: According to Aristotle, happiness is the sole (only) good in life.
F (Not only, just greatest)
True or False: Whereas action-based theories stress "being", virtue-based theories stress "doing".
F (Reversed: action = doing, virtue = being)
True or False: The determining factor of morality for the deontologist is the consequence of an action.
F (The Act, itself)
True or False: The traditional view of morality is that if a maxim is universalizable, then it is a moral principle.
F (This is Kantian. Traditional says the reverse: If it's a moral principle then it can be universalized)
True or False: Categorical means "conditional".
F (Unconditional, universal)
True or False: Aretaic theories are also known as Imperative theories.
F (Virtue-based theories)
True or False: According to Rashdall, intuitionism asserts that actions are right or wrong by referencing their consequences.
F (without reference to their consequences; and questions the sense of that)
The proponent of the Categorical Imperative (person).
Kant
Purpose of morality emphasized by aretaic theories.
Promote Human Flourishing
Objectivist-rule ethicist asserting that the moral principles (duties) are known intuitively (person).
Ross
True or False: A potential problem with pure-aretaic theories is that determining the virtues by the Golden Mean or ideal individual appears difficult if not impossible.
T
True or False: According to Aristotle, the mean is praiseworthy and the extremes are blameworthy.
T
True or False: According to Aristotle, the most important factor for being happy is being virtuous.
T
True or False: According to Aristotle, with regard to honor and dishonor the mean is "high mindedness."
T
True or False: According to rule-deontologists, rules are never determined by their consequences.
T
True or False: An act-deontologist claims that one's duty is determined apart from appealing to rules/principles.
T
True or False: Deontological and teleological theories are both action-based theories.
T
True or False: It is possible for act-utilitarians and act-deontologists to agree as to the morality of an action (though for different reasons).
T
True or False: Kant was an absolutist.
T
True or False: Kant's theory of morality is non-naturalistic.
T
True or False: Nonaretaic theories claim that virtues are derived from moral principles.
T
True or False: One of the problems with natural law theory is that there is no agreement as to what constitutes human nature.
T
True or False: The determining factor of morality for an aretaic theorist is the agent.
T
True or False: The term aretaic comes from the Greek word arete meaning "excellence".
T
True or False: According to Ross, moral principles are conditional.
T ('Prima Facie' - "first glance")
True or False: Rationality is a virtue.
T (A nonmoral/intellectucal virtue)
True or False: An immoral person can exhibit nonmoral virtues.
T (Contribute to the moral life, but may be compatible with an immoral life)
True or False: Kant's theory justifies actions intuitively considered immoral.
T (External Difficulty)
True or False: Kant's theory prohibits actions intuitively considered moral or nonmoral.
T (External Difficulty)
True or False: Kant is not clear as to what constitutes an instance of contradiction or stultification.
T (Internal Difficulty)
True or False: According to Kant, every rational being exists as an end in himself.
T (Speaks to autonomy)
True or False: The moral virtues are those virtues which are incompatible with an immoral life.
T (Such as; honesty, kindness, fairness, gratitude...)
True or False: The Categorical Imperative is good only as a means to something else.
T (To determining the 'good will')
True or False: Virtue-based theories stress moral examples and/or models.
T (WWJD - 'What would Jesus do?")
What is the nature of the moral principles according to Ross? Explain in detail what is and is not meant by a self-evident principle. How does his deontological approach differ from Butler's and Kant's? Do you find Ross's approach persuasive? Why or why not?
The moral principles (duties), known intuitionally, may be legitimately overridden when in conflict with another superseding moral principle. Duties are 'prima facie;' meaning that duties are only 'conditional' duties, at first glance. Duties are intuitive and only become actual duties if they do not conflict with and/or are not overridden by a superseding moral principal. There is no set ranking for the duties (ex: fidelity, reparation, gratitude, justice, beneficence, self-improvement, non-maleficence). Self-evidenced means the proposition grounds itself and is not inferred. It does not mean known by all, known to be self-evident, known immediately, incapable of proof, or undeniable. Overridability is the fundamental difference, and the distinction that I appreciate re: Kant's perspective; the concept of no exceptions or caveats to moral prescription seems to me to horribly lack foresight. Otherwise, I find Ross's interpretation to be a little too broad; though similar openings are presented in many of these theories, this one seem to particularly allow for anyone to assign whatever 'intuited' behavior they like to that of a moral act.
Another term for "categorical".
Unconditional
Another name for aretaic theories.
Virtue-based theories
Excellences of character (may be either moral or nonmoral).
Virtues
"Which of the following claims that the moral principles are never overridable? (A) Act deontology, (B) Objectivist rule-deontology, (C) Absolutist rule-deontology, (D) None of the above."
c
