PHI 220 Final

Normative Ethics

Ask things of Norms and Values

NONDescriptivism

Ethical terms DO NOT describe properties

Plato and Philippa Foot agree that the virtues are important for humans to be well-balanced. A) True B) False

A) True

Foot says that virtues are "correctives." Which of the following best describes what she means? A) We need virtues to correct the various vices we all have. B) When we correct other people, we need to speak of virtue. C) All virtues are correct

A) We need virtues to correct the various vices we all have.

Who were the two non descriptive philosophers

A.J Ayer and Charles Lesley

Charles Lesley Stevenson

American Philosopher who was a nondescriptivist

Contemporary virtue ethics most closely resembles the position of which of these ethical systems? Mill's utilitarianism Kant's deontologism Ancient Greek ethics

Ancient Greek ethics

Tautologies

True by definition (Factual)

Which of the following philosophers is usually associated with metaethics? Mill; Aristotle; Kant; Ayer.

Ayer

Descriptivists are philosophers who believe that ethical terms such as "good": A) describe nothing at all; B) describe ethical properties possessed by something; C) express feelings and nothing more.

B) describe ethical properties possessed by something;

Philippa Foot was: British American Ancient Greek

British

AJ Ayers

British Philosopher known for metaethics

Ayer believes that utterances which are neither empirical nor analytic are; A) scientific; B) false; C) "literal nonsense" and therefore neither true nor false.

C) "literal nonsense" and therefore neither true nor false.

For Stevenson, the main kind of disagreement found in ethics is: A) disagreement in belief; B) disagreement about definitions; C) disagreement in attitude.

C) disagreement in attitude.

Example of disagreement about beliefs

Checking to see what day our meeting was on to see who was right

Descriptivism

Ethical terms describing properties

Philippa Foot is an ancient Greek philosopher. True False

False

Stevenson believes that someday we will definitely have a scientific solution to all ethical disagreements. True False

False

Who was a descriptivist

G.E Moore

Which of these lists of philosophers is given in the correct order in which they lived? Kant, Mill, Moore, Ayer; Stevenson, Mill, Moore, Kant; Kant, Ayer, Mill, Moore

Kant, Mill, Moore, Ayer;

David Hume was british Scottish american

Scottish

Moore believes that we can just know what goodness is. True False

True

Empirical Claims

Verifiable (Life is in outer space)

Example of disagreement about attitudes

When I thought we had a good meeting, but you did not. (non verifiable)

According to A.J.Ayer, the expression, "You were wrong in stealing that money," has the same meaning as which of the following? That money is now yours; You did not steal that money; You stole that money.

You stole that money

G.E. Moore says that goodness is: just a word that expresses a feeling; the same thing as pleasure; a simple, unanalyzable property.

a simple, unanalyzable property.

Two kinds of Disagreements

disagreement about belief -facts (verifiable principle) and disagreement about attitude (NON verifiable)

Stevenson's "disagreements in belief" have to do with: facts which can be checked; feelings which are subjective; nothing at all.

facts which can be checked;

The approach to ethics known as "Metaethics" is: primarily a 20th century movement. an ancient Greek approach largely discarded today. simply another name for deontologism.

primarily a 20th century movement.