Ethics MidTerm Exam

moral judgments differ from culture to culture.

Both objectivists and cultural relativists agree that

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

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

a slippery slope.

Consider this rule-utilitarian argument against legalizing euthanasia: Passing a law to permit active voluntary euthanasia would inevitably lead to abuses such as more frequent use of nonvoluntary euthanasia and unnecessary killing; therefore, no such law should be passed. Such an argument is characterized as

False

"Is abortion right?" is primarily a legal question.

True

According to the doctrine of double effect, it is permissible for a doctor to give a dying, pain-racked patient a large dose of morphine with the intention of easing the patient's pain (while knowing the act has the side effect of expediting death).

one-dimensional.

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

the usefulness of the theory in guidance.

Critics have taken virtue ethics to task for alleged problems in

misleading and implausible.

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

She should retreat since she has accurately determined that staying to fight would not advance her side's cause and would be foolhardy.

Eleanore is a soldier engaged in war, and she finds herself facing an entire squadron of enemy fighters with none of her fellow comrades present to assist her. She has two choices: stay and fight, which will result in her being killed in combat almost instantly, or retreat, which will allow her to rejoin her own squadron and continue to fight. She wants to conform to the Golden Mean, which in this case involves the virtue of courage. Which of the following would be an accurate description of what she should do?

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

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?

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

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?

too general and unwieldy to be of much use in the complicated, multifaceted arena of the domestic, social, and personal.

Feminist ethicists have argued that principles such as autonomy, justice, and utility are

False

Feminist ethics is a moral theory.

True

All divisions of ethics concern both values and obligations. These two topics are similar in that they both concern things that we care about—things that we can favor or oppose.

False

All feminist ethicists reject the traditional role played by principles in moral reasoning.

False

An act-utilitarian would say that an abortion is morally wrong whenever the fetus is a person.

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.

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?

False

In 2005 the Netherlands passed a law that allows parents to choose to intentionally end the life of their newborn, provided that five criteria, including the presence of unbearable suffering, are met. If we assume that newborns are persons, such a law has its basis in natural law theory.

conclusion absolutely has to be true.

In a valid argument, if the premises are true, then the

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

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

False

In ethics, the central question asked by a virtue ethicist is, "What should I do?"

very useful fictions.

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

True

In the American health care system, those who don't have the money to pay for health care, even those with serious illnesses or injuries, often get no medical care at all because of escalating costs.

False

Involuntary euthanasia is mercy killing at the patient's request.

True

When act- and rule-utilitarianism are applied to the same moral issue, they may yield different answers.

appeal to the person

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."

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

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

Traditional theories often assume that the world consists of atomistic individuals with perfect rationality.

Which of the following is a characteristic of traditional theories of ethics that feminist thinkers have criticized?

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

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

interdependence, community, connection, sharing, emotion, body, trust, absence of hierarchy, peace, and life

Which of the following sets of values is feminist ethics most likely to embrace and make central to morality?

caring for one's child

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

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

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

Passive euthanasia

__________ is allowing someone to die by NOT doing something (i.e., by withholding or withdrawing measures necessary for sustaining life).

True

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

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

A categorical imperative tells us

False

A conscientious practitioner of Aristotelian virtue ethics would have to appeal to a moral rule such as "Do not lie" in order to know that she should not lie to a friend in order to avoid paying a debt.

our moral experience.

A moral theory that suggests that our moral judgments cannot be rationally supported is inconsistent with

a utilitarian.

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

allows too much subjectivity in moral decision making.

A serious criticism of Kant's theory is that it

nonmoral

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

sound.

A valid deductive argument with true premises is said to be

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

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

"Lying—I hate it!"

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

intellectual virtues and moral virtues.

Aristotle distinguishes between

a decent minimum

As an alternative to defining an "equal right to health care" as one that requires universal equal access to all available health care resources, some people have suggested that every person has only a weaker right to __________ of health care, in which basic, necessary care is provided to everyone.

the glutton.

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

True

For virtue ethicists, accounting for motivations is essential to any full-blown ethics.

his opinion might negatively affect family members he cares about.

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

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

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

an ethical egoist.

If John believes he is always morally obligated to act to produce the most favorable balance of good over evil for himself, he is probably

False

If one's religious moral code gives conflicting advice on whether it is permissible to drink alcohol, then moral philosophy cannot provide any guidance because the conflict can only be resolved by interpreting religious texts.

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.

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?

False

If you were an American physician who accepted the distinction between active and passive euthanasia, you would also likely believe that whereas euthanasia is always wrong, in some cases physician-assisted suicide may be permissible.

enjoy higher pleasures.

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

support the moral equality of men and women.

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

a general rule, or maxim.

Kant believes that every action implies

False

Kant says that some duties generated by the categorical imperative are absolute. They are perfect duties. So, regarding the perfect duty not to lie, Kant would insist that lying is permitted if the only way to prevent the deaths of several innocent people is to lie.

True

Libertarians believe that, while people have a right not to be interfered with in their pursuit of health care, no member of society has a right to demand any share of health care from that society, no matter how rich that society may be.

provide an effective means for resolving major conflicts of duties.

Like many moral theories, Kant's system fails to

True

Many duty-based theorists believe that motivation for moral action cannot be derived entirely from considerations of duty, just as appropriate motivation cannot be based solely on virtuous character.

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

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

normative ethics.

Mariana has written a paper for her philosophy class wherein she argues that utilitarianism is not a realistic or helpful moral theory. The topic of her paper is best described as falling under

False

Mary Anne Warren suggests that being genetically human is the same thing as being a person in the moral sense.

right and wrong, good and bad.

Morality refers to beliefs about

first twelve weeks of gestation.

Most abortions are performed in the

managed care

Much of the health care in the United States is delivered through __________, a type of health insurance in which providers contract with an HMO, PPO, or POS to offer health care to a group of patients at discounted costs.

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.

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?

some moral principles are valid for everyone.

Objectivism is the view that

cases of pregnancy due to rape

One objection raised against Judith Jarvis Thomson's argument regarding abortion is that, in the violinist example, the woman connected to the violinist was clearly not at all responsible for being connected to him, which makes the analogy to abortion more narrow than she alleges. If this objection is sound, which of the following cases could Thomson's argument still apply to?

True

One of the concerns raised by critics of social contract theory is that vulnerable individuals, such as the severely disabled, the very poor, nonhuman animals, children, and infants, have no moral status and no rights according to the theory.

whether aborting the pregnancy would be a justifiable instance of overriding a person's right to life

Robert is a Kantian theorist and also believes that fetuses are persons from conception. Suppose Robert is trying to determine whether abortions are morally permissible in situations where continuing a pregnancy would put the woman's life in danger. Which of the following should be the focus of Robert's deliberations?

False

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

incapable of being in error.

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

morally justified.

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

dubious and possibly false.

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

that there can be irresolvable conflicts of virtues

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?

False

Suppose you are seriously ill and laid up in the hospital. If a friend came to visit you only because it was her duty to do so (that is, duty was her only motivation), you would likely view her action as heartfelt and genuine.

cannot be mistaken about the morality of war.

Suppose your culture endorses the view that all wars are wrong. It follows from cultural relativism that your culture

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.

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?

True

The Affordable Care Act includes a requirement that health insurance plans cover certain preventive care, such as immunizations, preventive care for children, and specified health screening tests for adults.

abortion, or induced abortion.

The deliberate termination of a pregnancy by surgical or medical (with drugs) means is known generally as

hypothetical imperatives are conditional, whereas categorical imperatives are unconditional.

The difference between hypothetical and categorical imperatives is that

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

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

Thomas Aquinas.

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

virtue and character are important elements of the moral life.

The fact that we regularly judge the moral permissibility of actions as well as assess the goodness of character suggests that

hasty generalization.

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

distributive justice

The idea behind __________ is that in any society, morality demands that people receive what they are due (what is fair).

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

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

beneficence.

The obligation to ease the agony of another when we can do so without excessive cost to ourselves is called the duty of

premise indicators.

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

libertarian theories hold that there are only negative rights, while egalitarian theories hold that positive rights exist.

The primary difference between libertarian and egalitarian theories of justice is that

beneficence

The principle of ________ is about the good and bad effects of actions, the nonmoral consequences of what we do or don't do.

active euthanasia.

The principle of autonomy can be used to argue for

False

The psychologist Carol Gilligan upended the belief that men and women think in radically different ways when making moral decisions when she argued that men and women think in exactly the same ways about morality.

0.3 deaths per 100,000 abortions.

The risk of death for women who have an abortion at eight weeks or earlier is

libertarian

Theories of justice that hold that people are entitled only to what they can freely acquire through their own legitimate efforts in a free market are called __________ theories.

physician-assisted suicide.

Thomas has a terminal illness with a prognosis of only six months. He has decided that he wants to end his life sooner than that on his own terms. He asks his doctor to prescribe him a lethal dose of drugs, which she does. He gets the prescription filled, takes the lethal dose, and dies in his home, surrounded by family and friends. This is an example of

False

Virginia Held insists that moralities built on the image of the independent, autonomous, rational individual are clear and powerful ways of thinking about ethics.

looking to moral exemplars.

Virtue ethicists try to achieve the moral ideal by

pay much less attention to virtuous character and living a good life.

Virtue ethics puts primary emphasis on being a good person and living a good life, whereas duty-based moral systems