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