NEMCC intro to philosophy midterm

Aristotle believes that simply studying philosophy will make on virtuous.

False

If inductive arguments succeed in lending very probable support to their conclusions, they are said to be weak.

False

Mill says that the ultimate end of utilitarianism is an existence as free of pain as possible and as rich as possible in

enjoyments

Some design arguments are framed as

inferences to the best explanation

Virtues are

moral states

Aristotle believes that moral virtues can best be acquired through

practice and habit

Pascal believes that when it comes to the question of God's existence

reason can decide nothing

If you assume that a set of statements is true, and yet you can deduce a false or absurd statement from it, then the original set of statements as a whole must be false. This kind of argument is known as

reductio ad absurdum

The fallacy of misrepresenting a person's views so they can be more easily attacked or dismissed is called the

straw man fallacy

Cultural relativism implies that moral progress is possible.

False

The point of Pascal's wager is to prove that God exists.

False

according to cultural relativism, some culture's moral codes are better than others.

False

Hick concludes that this world is well adapted to the purpose of soul-making.

True

Rowe asserts that it is reasonable to believe that God does not exist.

True

According to Craig, the kalam cosmological argument establishes that _____.

the universe has a cause

Hick believes that such evils as poverty, oppression, persecution, and war are

manifestations of human sin

According to James, a live option is a

a real possibility to someone

According to Socrates, a clear sign that a person has _____ is her exclusive pursuit of social status, wealth, power, and pleasure.

an unhealthy soul

To Kant, making a lying promise would be wrong because

you could not consistently will that everyone should make lying promises

Pascal says that if you bet that God exists, and he does in fact exist

you win infinite happiness and lose nothing

Alan Dershowitz believes that torture can never be morally justified.

False

An argument is synonymous with persuasion

False

Anslem thinks God is a being that exists in the understanding alone.

False

Philosophy, being an ancient art, cannot be applied to modern social problems such as racism

False

A moral theory explains not why one event causes another but why an action is right or wrong or why a person or a person's character is good or bad.

True

According surveys, every decade less Americans express belief in God of the Bible.

True

According to David Humes's character, Philo, since the universe is not perfectly ordered, the existence of a deity is unlikely.

True

According to Socrates, if one goes through life with many false fundamental beliefs, it can lead to misspent of misdirected life.

True

For Hick, soul-making is an essential part of a plausible theodicy.

True

From the fact that cultures have divergent moral beliefs on an issue, it does not logically follow that there is no objective moral truth.

True

Many fields of study evolved out of philosophy

True

This classic argument, "The Bible says that God exists; the Bible is true because God wrote it; therefore, God exists", is an example of begging the question.

True

According to Aquinas, an infinite regress of causes is

impossible

Believing that God exists increases the probability that God does in fact exist.

False

By the lights of cultural relativism, cross-cultural moral disagreement is possible.

False

Craig thinks that the cause of the universe must be an accident.

False

Cultural relativism logically entails tolerance for other cultures.

False

In Hick's view, because God is good and loving, the environment that he has created for human life is naturally as pleasant and comfortable as possible.

False

James thinks that, in the search for truth, above all else we must avoid being in error.

False

Kant argues that the moral law is conditional.

False

Kant asserts that happiness is the sole end of human action.

False

Mill believes that the moral worth of an action depends on one's motives.

False

Most scientists agree with Behe.

False

Paley's argument, if cogent, proves the existence of the Christian God.

False

Behe says that an irreducibly complex biological system would be a powerful challenge to

Darwinian evolution

Philo declares that this world is the perfect product of a perfect deity.

False

Philo demonstrated that Anselm's argument was sound.

False

Philosophy means "love of science"

False

Rule-utilitarianism is the idea that the rightness of actions depends solely on the relative good produced by individual actions.

False

Swinburne argues that theism is a very complex hypothesis

False

Strengths/weaknesses of divine command theory

Divine command theory: God is creator of morality; weakness: any action could be morally right if God says it is, God's commands can be seen as arbitrary; strengths: it's objective. We have the 10 commandments

When you read a philosophical essay, you are simply trying to glean some facts from it as you might if you were reading a science text or technical report.

False

cultural relativism implies that moral progress is possible

False

______ is the fallacy of assigning two different meanings to the same significant word in an argument

Equivocation

Critics of the divine command theory say that if the theory is true, and God thus lacks reasons for his commands, then

God's decisions are arbitrary

Anslem assumes that a being that exists in reality is greater than a being that

Exists only in the understanding

A question and answer dialogue in which propositions are methodically scrutinized to uncover the truth is known as

The Socratic method

Hick says the idea of a person who can be infallibly guaranteed always to act rightly is

self-contradictory

Universal ethical egoism is the theory that everyone ought always to

serve her own self-interest

According to Paley, we must conclude that a watch had an intelligent designer if the watch

shows purposefulness

The fallacy of _____ is arguing erroneously that a particular action should not be taken because it will lead inevitably to other actions resulting in some dire outcome

slippery slope

Act-utilitarianism is the view that the rightness of actions depends

solely on the relative good produced by individual actions

For Socrates, an unexamined life is a tragedy because it results in grievous harm to

soul

Critics say that to avoid portraying God as arbitrary, we must assume that God issues commands based on

the best possible reasons

The systematic use of critical reasoning to try to find answers to fundamental questions about reality, morality, and knowledge is called

the philosophical method

Mill argues that the Greatest Happiness Principle is

the standard of morality

A good argument must have (1) solid logic and (2)

true premises

Kant says that when trying to decide whether an action is morally permissible, we must ask if we can consistently will that the maxim of our action should become _____.

universal law

Cultural relativism and ethical subjectivism imply that nothing is intrinsically

valuable

For Socrates the good of the soul is attained only through an uncompromising search for _____.

what's true and real

A moral theory explains

why an action is right or wrong

Aristotle says that virtue is a mean lying between two vices.

True

Hick asserts that it is no limitation on God's power that he cannot accomplish the logically impossible.

True

In philosophy—and in any other kind of rational inquiry—accepting a conclusion (statement) without good reasons is an elementary mistake in reasoning.

True

Paley says that if we found a watch and examined it closely, we would naturally infer that it had a maker -- even if we had never seen a watch made.

True

Pascal advises those who are unable to believe in God to control their passions and act as if they believed

True

Pascal believes that belief in God is a rational act.

True

Scientists and philosophers do not have a strong nor complete explanation for the existence of the universe.

True

Socrates preferred death to exile.

True

The Oracle of Delphi said that Socrates was the wisest man, and he tried to prove the Oracle wrong.

True

Utilitarianism is the view that right actions are those that maximize the overall well-being of everyone involved.

True

according to ethical egoism people always act out of self interest

True

Mill declares that it is better to be Socrates dissatisfied than

a fool satisfied

Rowe argues that we can allow someone to define God anyway she wants, yet it will not follow from that definition that such a being

actually exists

Utilitarianism says that right actions are those that produce the greatest happiness for

all concerned

The fallacy of arguing that a claim must be true simply because many people believe it is known as _____.

appeal to popularity

Philosophers provide reasons for thinking their ideas are plausible—that is, they give us

arguments

According to Behe, the gradual accumulation of mutations

cannot evolve a biological system

Craig says an actually infinite number of things

cannot exist

Moral theories that say that the rightness of actions depends solely on their consequences are _____.

consequentalist

An important moral criterion of adequacy is known as

consistency with our considered moral judgments

According to Mill, to determine whether one pleasure is more valuable than another, we must

determine which pleasure most experienced people prefer

Questions like "What is knowledge?" and "What is truth?" are mainstays in the branch of philosophy known as _____.

epistemelogy

For subjectivists, everyone's moral views are

equally plausible

In the moral life, feelings are

essential and inevitable

James says that a genuine option is

forced, live, and momentous

Mackie says that religious experiences are

generally indistinguishable from experienes with a known psychological or physical cause

Aquinas says that the first efficient cause of everything is

god

Paley maintains that the key difference between the "contrivance" of a watch and that of nature is that the latter is _____.

greater and grander

Arguments that are supposed to give probable support to their conclusions are

inductive

According to Hick, a certain amount of evil in the world is

necessary

Set out problem of evil in the form of an argument

1 god is perfectly good 2 god is all knowing 3 god is all powerful 4 evil exists 5 if god has these characteristics then there would be no evil 6 god doesn't exist

3 parts of organized skepticism and why is it important in todays current situation

1 scientific method 2 modeling 3 empirical observations; it directly contributes to the research process for scientists

Difference between moral/ natural evil, greater goods defense and strengths/weaknesses, free will defense and strengths/weaknesses

Greater goods defense is the justification of god's permitting evil; strengths: struggle with evil makes us grow weaknesses: some evil is soul crushing instead of soul building, could God not see that in the world and create a better one?; free will defense shows we have freedom instead of being robots; strength: having a universe with free will is better than having one without; weaknesses are we more responsible than God? Could be not step in and prevent evil?

Psychological egoism is the doctrine that the only thing anyone is capable of desiring or pursuing ultimately is

His or her own self interest