Test 2 - phil130
What is Hobbes intake on the Thrud and Ogg example?
Because there is no enforcement for them to keep their promise, they need a common authority with the power to enforce the contract between them.
Not mentioned in the book, but what is a way that the prisoers dilemma can be changed?
By doing it more than one. if you betray someone first then they will probably do it to you after. so best bet is to both cooperate. which is known as the tit-for-tat theory
What is the ogg and thrud example?
They may both promise each other after being sick of the state of war, that they will not steal from one another. but in the state of nature, there is no enforecement, so after one of them finds it easy to steal from one another, they may still do so.
what does it mean to be a form of consequentialism
a form of consequentialism. a consequentialist ehtical theory is one in which the sonsequences of action are what matter morally.
Elizabeth anscombe wrote a camphlet explaining that Truman was
a murderer beause he ordered the bombings
in the context of the categorical imperative principle:
a sound acceptable act - occurs when one allows his or her maxim to become a univeral law a forbidden act - occurs if one does not allow his or her maxim to become a universal law
an example of a moral obligation:
a student respecting his teahcer
why is happiness and pleasure the ultimate good?
because when you explain why you want something, the last thing should be because i gives me happiness or pleasure. you cant go farther than that
the sct is criticized for
being based on a historcal fiction
a feature of the utilitarian doctrine is that it
believes that right actions are the ones that produce the most happiness
according to the advisors of Franklin D Roosevelt, using the atomic bomb on one or two Japanese cities might
bring the war to a speedy end
in the context of the dilemma of choosing between acting selfishly and acting benevolently, cooperation will not yield the optimum outcome for each individual,
but it will lead to a better result than non-cooperation
critics of utilitarianism says that it:
cannot make sense of some of peoples most important values
according to Immanuel kant, moral requirements are
categorical
Immanuel kant says that categorical oughts are derived from a principle that every rational person must accept this principle is called:
categorical imperative principle
the utilitarian argument on the system of meat production is that it :
causes enormous suffering for the animcals with no compensaing benefits
according to the SCT, when the social contract in a society is not being honored, ______________ is the most natural and reasonable means of expressing protest
civil disobedience
the American civil rights movement and the indian independence movement are modern examples of __________
civil disobedience
kant called the oughts that govern the conduct of people _________________ because they tell us what to do provided that we have the relevant desires
hypothical imperatives
What Is the tit-for-tat theory?
if the player cooperates the first time, then this will most likely repeat itself. example is the neighbors asking to borrow stuff example
Jeremy bentham urged that morality is about
making the world as happy as possible
in the context of condemning the act of using the atomic bomb, Elizabeth anscombes stand was that some things:
may not be done, no matter what
according to the social contract theory, rational people will not agree to rules ______________ as there is a natural limit to the amount of self-sacrifice that the social contract can require.
so demanding that others will not follow them
arguments against utilitarianism say that it supports vile actions. these arguments succeed only if
the actions they describe really do have the best consequences in a situation
by releasing people from _______, the social contract frees them to take head of others to be alturistic
the continual fear of violent death
what is lockes view on the social contract theory?
the gov exisites purely for the sake of the people who created it and invested it with their liberties and authoriy. and belive that everything the government does needs to be justified by the good of those who formed the contract
How does hobbes think we can leave the state of nature?
the people get together and invest a soversign with the authority to use force/coercion to enforce his will. each person voluntarily gives her liberty, and has no legitmate complaint at this coerion.
identify an instance when a problem arises with rule-utilitarianism
when an individual asks whether the ideal rules have exceptions
what is a criticism to the hedon measuring theory
when you have to measure quickly it is not as accurate
What were the reasons MLK jr. gave to justify his movements strategy of civil disobedience?
1. conniving methods had been used to prevent blacks from becoming reistered voters 2. racial regregation had been enforced by laws that black citizens were denied a voice in formlating 3. all attemps to use democratic processes to fight unjust laws had failed
what are the top 3 objections of utilitarianism?
1. it is not demanding enough 2. too demanding 3. should not treat everybody equally. some people have special obligations
identify the vulnerable groups that are not considered while writing mutually beneficial rules of society, according to the SCT, because they cannot benefit other people
1. oppressed populations 2. future generations 3. nonhuman animals
what are the two objection to the social contact theory mentioned in the book?
1. social contract theory is based on historical fiction 2. some morally important groups are left out of the contract
what are Mill's version of utilitarianism rules?
1. the consequences are the only thing that matters morally - when calculating whether or not it is moral to perform an action the theory says that we out to only consider the effects which that action will likely have in the future. 2. it is completely forward/future looking in terms of justifying the morality of decisions/actions 3. always act to cause the maximum amount of happiness 4. the pleasure of every person counts equally. it is imporant to maximize the happiness of the world not urslef
rank the situation in which a person and others choose between acting selfishly and acting benevolently based on how well-off the person is in each situation. begin with the situation in which the person is best off
1. the person is selfish while others are benevolent 2. everyone is benevolent 3. eveyone is selfish 4. the person is benevolent while others are selfish
According to Kant, what tempts people to make exceptions to the rule against lying in some cases?
1. the thought that the consequences of lying will be good 2. the thought that the consequences of honesty will be bad
identify the basic facts about human life that makes the state of nature awful according to Hobbes:
1. there is scarcity 2. there is equality of need 3. there is limited altrusism 4. there is the essential equality of human power
according to the SCT, what are the conditions under which people agree to obey moral rules?
1. they will benefit from the overall arrangement 2. other people will do their part
What do you need to think about when it comes to the theory of nature? why would some be in danger?
Everyone is at a equality of need things are scarce people are roughly equal in power the alturism of others is limited
according to Immanuel kant, match the types of oughts to the factors that make them possible:
Hypothetical - possible beause people have desires Categorical - possible because people have reason
in the context of a criticism of rule-utilitarianism that says that forbidden acts could sometimes greatly increase the greater good, match the responses rule-utilitarianism could offer as a defense to this criticism:
In instances specific to the criticism, rules may be violated - the assessment of actions on a case-by-case basis is act-utilitarianism, not rule-utilitarianism rles might be formulated so that violating the will never increase happiness - if all rules are changed so that they always chaieve the greater good, then rule-utiliarianism will be exactly like act utilitarianism in practice rules should never be broken even to promote happiness - this promotes an irrational form of 'rule-wrhsup'. this version of rule-utiliarianism is not really a utiliarian theory
What was the difference from Hobbes's and Locke's view on the State of Nature?
Locke believed that it wouldnt be as bad. He believes that people would end up working together and week out justice for themselves and maybe others. He thought that some culture and technology would exist. But hobbes's basically thought that all hell would break lose and that there is no morality if there is no authority.
in 1970, british psychologist Richard d ryder coined the term speciesism to refer to the idea that:
animals interrests matter less than human interests. utilitarians believe that speciesism is discrimination against other species
in the context of nonhuman animals, western philosophers have said that animals____
are not national
in the context of classical utilitarianism, the morality of an action depends solely on the
consequences of the action
classical utilitarians are most likely to:
consider pleasure as being inclusive of all mental states that feel good. they also believe that happiness is pleasure they assess the consequences of actions such that each individuals happiness gets equal consideration they believe that an actions consequences matter as long as they involve the greater or lesser happiness of individuals
one of the issues with the utilitarian school of thought is that it
considers the past to be irrelevent when determining a persons obligations
marijuana does not:
crave and use harder drugs
what are consequentialist ethical theories?
determine whether an act was good or bad by the consequences of the action
what does it mean that the SCT is based on historical fiction?
did they actually ever have a meeting laying down these terms and conditions? or people are just forced to give up some of their liberities for there not be a state of nature. it is obligated to do whatever it is most rational to do
according to Christians, unlike man, nonhuman animals
do not have souls
in the context of the SCT, morally binding rules are the ones that
facilitate harmony and cooperation
classical utilitarians believe that laws against euthanasia are justified restrictions even if no one else's life is harmed from euthanasia
false
the kantain twist points out that if one accepts any considerations as reasons in one case, then he or she must refrain from accepting them as reasons in other cases
false
the voice of duty that takes the place of physical impulses when people pass out of the state of nature requires people to ____________according to jean-Jacques rousseau
favor rules that benefit everyone
According to Thomas Hobbes, morality should be understood as the solution to a practical problem that arises _____________.
for self interested human beings
in the context of the beliefs of the classical utilitarins, Jeremy bentham thought that the faithful would endorse the utilitarian standpoint if only they viewed
god as benevolent
hobbes did no believe that his concept of the state of nature was mere speculation and pointed out that this is what actually happens when _____________
governments collapse during civil uprising
the concept of the good in utilitarianism is ___________
happiness
what is hedonistic act utilitarianism
happiness is the good that is to be maximized. actions are right so long as they maximize happiness and minimize the opposite.
a feature of utilitarianism is that it
has been accused of supporting the tyranny of the majority
A characterisitic of Thoman Hobbes's state of natural is that it ______________.
has no goverment institutions, no laws, no police etc.
according to kant, the binding force of the word ought depends on
having a relevant desire
what happens when a man breaks the agreed-upon moral rules?
he releases others from their obligations toward him
what were mills different types of pleasure
he thought no amount of a lower pleasure could = a higher one because there ws just two different types of pleaure, not diff magnitudes.
what are the units to measure pleasure and pain
hedons and dolors
while arguing that lying is wrong under any circumstances, Immanuel kant ____________
held the view that lying is forbidden by reason itself
identify a view of kant on human beings
human beings have considered themselves to be essentially different from all other creatures he thought that human beings are irreplaceable
in the context of treatment of nonhuman animals, identify the line of reasoning that was conclusive to bentham and mill
humans and nonhumans are rqually entitled to moral concern
kants view on animals
humans have no direct duties towards animcals
to summarize the churchs doctrine, theologians formulated the rule that the
intentional killing of innocent human beings is always wrong
a counter to a criticism of the SCT's apparently fictional basis says that the social contract
is implicit in nature
a counter to a criticism of the SCT apparently fictional basis says that the social contract
is implicit to nature
Harry S Truman sensed that the use of atomic bombs made the
issue of noncombatant deaths more acute
some groups are left out of the SCT
it cannot take into account those who do not serve the interest of those in the contact.
which of the following is an accurate statement about itilitarianism
it may requir the unfair and unjust treatment of an individual for the greated good of the majority
in the context of Immanuel kants beliefs about human beings, identify a true statement about the categorical imperative
it suggests that all the durites of human beings can be derived from one ultimate principle
kant believed that
moral rules are absolute
the SCT justifies the punishment of criminals and the enforcement of the law by the government because
moral rules only apply to it as long as people follow these rules
according to the SCT, people are obligated to obey the law because they each participate in a social system that promises
more benefits than burdens
according to peter singer, morality is
not a system of puritanical prohibitons
according to the principle of utility, morality is no longer understood as
obedience to some divenely given code
according to kant, lying under any circumstances is the
obliteration of ones dignity as a human being
identify the form of moral obligation that does not depend on having particular desires
one ought to do such and such period
kant observed that the word __________ is often used nonmorally
ought
accordidng to Immanuel kant, the rule that it is okay to lie cannot be accepted universally becaue
people would stop beliving one another, and then it would be impossible to lie
philosophers who adhere to utilitarian principles believe that
peoples gut reactions cannot be trusted when cases of injustice are exceptional
identify the obvious intrinsic goods suggested by g. e. moore
pleasure, friendship and aesthetic enjoyment
what does happiness in utilitarian mean
pleasure, the opposite is pain. and pain is the only evil under the theory. anything that is unpleasant counts as pain
Jeremy bentham believed in one ultimate moral principle, namely, the
princple of utility
according to the SCT, moral rules that condemn _____________ cannot be justified on the grounds of morality as these are activities that do not hamper social living
prostitution, sodeomy and secual promiscuity
the movements of both Mohandas k Gandhi and MLK, who were the two greatest proponents of nonviolence in the 20th century, were characterized by ___________
public, conscientious, nonviolent refusal to comply with the law
the SCT is grounded in
self-interest and reciprocity
kant and crime/punishment
the punishment should be as equal as the seriousness of the crime. prunishment for wrongdoers must fit the crime.
match the purposes explained by the SCT
the purpose of morality - it is to make social living possible the purpose of government - it is to enforce vital moral rules
identify the statement given by William Bennett in the context of enforcing drug laws in the us
the simple fact is that drug use is wrong
What is the state of nature?
the state of things before society/culture. no organized government, no authority figures etc
Immanuel kant despised the serpent-windings of utilitarianism because he believed that
the theory is incompatible with human dignity
according to utilitarianism what will happen if punishments are threatened?
there will be less misconduct
in the context of the responses to the criticisms on utilitarianism, philosophers such as Smart suggest that one should
think about commonsesnes values one at a time and consider why they are important
In the context of the cost of maintaining current drug laws, match the laws with the effect on society:
weed legal - sociaty makes money by taking the drug illegal - society spends money on enforcing the laws
identify the rules that Elizabeth anscombe believed in:
under no circumstances may we intentionally kill innocent people, worship idols, make a false profession of faith, engage in sodomy or adultery, punish one person for acts of another, or commit treachery (obtaining a mans confidence in a grave manner)
how would you measure a hedon
using reasoning, empathy and experience and consider pleasures and pain relative to one another
what are the big three ethical theories?
utilarianism, kents deontology and vintue ethics
the euthanasia example:
utiliarianism would allow it to be performed. Christianity would not allow it
john stuart mill was the leading advocate of
utilitarian moral theory
what is the most famous type of consquentialism?
utilitarianiam
which of the following ststatement supports the charge that utilitarianism disrupts an individuals personal relationships
utilitarianism requires one to be impartial and treat everyone equally
advocates of utilitarianism believe that
utilitarianism will seem more plausible if one focusees on all the effects of an act
