Ethics Midterm

3. In addition to the above three hallmarks, all sciences have a fourth thing which identifies them as a particular science; i.e., a science of this rather than that. What is this fourth thing, and give at least two examples of it.

4. Must have a proper object. Studies some unique aspect of reality. Defines each science.

13. What was the definition of "subjective judgment" as given in class?.

Account of something as it relates to me, a subject

14. What was the definition of "objective judgment" as given in class?.

Account of something not as it relates to me, as a subject

What is the good for the Utilitarian? Who are the three major Utilitarians mentioned in class?

Greatest amount of pleasure for greatest number of people for the greatest amount of time.

How does Augustine define evil?

He defines evil as a privation of a perfection natural to that thing.

27. What did Hedonism hold to be synonymous with the good?

Hedonism held physical pleasure to be the good.

28. How is Hedonism similar to Epicureanism? How is it different from Epicureanism?

Hedonism is similar to epicureanism because they both correlate pleasure to something physical. They are different because for hedonist, the good is pleasure while for epicurists, the good is freedom from pain

40. If Epicurus was right, what sort of things would become moral?

If he was right, then all things that

29. Three theoretical difficulties with Hedonism were discussed in class. List and briefly discuss them.

If true no action is bad, hedonistic paradox,

What are the eight major variations of Utilitarianism?

Positive, Negative, Corporate, personal, rule, act, ontological, methodological.

17. Name the first member of this school we discussed and outline his position.

Pyrrho of Elis. Your senses change and so does your knowledge.

I. Primacy of Reason (Realism)

-Aristotle/Aquinas -Worldview = Way of life -Do the right thing for the right reason. -Rational Man

II. Separation of reason (Rationalism)

-Decartes -Worldview =?= Way of life -It doesn't mater what you believe as long as you're a good person. -Enligheten skeptic

III. Irrelevance of Reason (Transcendental Idealism)

-Kant - ? =?= Way of life - I don't believe, but that's okay because I'm a good person. -Apathetic Man

IV. Primacy of Will (Post Modernism)

-Nietzsche - Way of life = Myth -At the heart of liberty is the right to define one's own concept of existence, of meaning. -The Ideologue

1. Four hallmarks of a science were identified in class. Name and define the first three hallmarks.

1. Begin from Observation 2. Use Logic, inductive and deductive (Inductive is how you reach premise you deduce from) 3. Arrive at necessary conclusions. If premise and logic is valid, must reach true conclusion. 4. Must have a proper object. Studies some unique aspect of reality. Defines each science.

20. Who were the second member(s) of this school and what did he/they hold? Does their position open up the possibility for any sort of science? For a moral science?

Antiochus.

Does Augustine agree with the Stoics that God is all good/knowing/powerful and that man is free?

Augustine goes agree in a all powerful god.

35. What does this school consider to be the ultimate good? How does the phrase "all things in moderation" relate to the ultimate good?

Avoid extremes and do all things in moderation.

5. Does this "fourth thing" have to be something physically distinct? What is the Latin word used in class to identify the "fourth thing" of a science. Give an example.

Can but doesn't have to have a physically distinct object. .Es Qua: Being as_____ as can be. Life=Biology, psyche=psychology.

Two problems were identified with this school's position. What are they?

Moderation is not good in every sense. And also claims the best life is the passive life.

Given Augustine's definition, what are the two types of evil and what are their definitions?

Natural and moral. Moral evil is a cause of a privation for the sake of a privation.

Does Augustine agree with the Stoics about the existence of evil?

No, he agrees that evil is real but it's not a real thing.

4. Consider this "fourth thing" which identifies a science as a particular science; is it something really distinct, or is it a distinction in the mind only (i.e., conceptually distinct)? If the latter, what consequences follow?

It has to be distinct, not just in the mind. If it sonly in the mind, then that science can collapse into the other sciences.

10.Is it possible, then, for intelligent people to disagree regarding a particular conclusion asserted within a science? But is this disagreement ultimately intelligently resolvable? Is this also true for ethics, assuming it to be a science?

Yes, it is possible for them to theoretically

Did the early members of this school deny the existence of evil as evil?

Yes, they denied it because if the logos is all good and created everything, then there is no evil in the world.

Will this "ultimate good" be the same for everyone, or different? Explain.

Yes.

8.Given the above four hallmarks, is science something that can be taught? Can something lacking one or more of the hallmarks be taught? Assuming that ethics possesses all four of these hallmarks, is it a science? And if so, can it be taught?

Yes. And no, it cannot. Assuming it does, it is a science and can be taught.

15. Are objective and subjective judgements both judgements of fact?

Yes. They are both judgements of fact because objective rests on subjective

What is the definition of "liberalism" that was given in class and used by Talisse? What is the name given to this specific type of liberalism?

claims the purpose of government is to protect the liberty of its people to chose between different good lives available.

19. If the above position is true, two possible alternatives to a moral science were outlined in class. What were they?

Toleration and Tyranny.

16. Name the epistemological theory that claims that no certain knowledge at all is possible.

Skepticism.

32. Name the school that holds to the dictum "all things in moderation." Name this school's founder.

Epicureanism. Epicurus.

Can you outline Aquinas' response to their two reasons?

His response is that there can be sorrow in the virtuous man, only it has to be a moderate sorrow.

9.For any science, what are the two (and only two) methods for intelligently disputing an asserted conclusion?

Inference or premise can be incorrect

18. If the above position is true, then what is the major consequence for all science?

Is true, then all sciences are false, since everyone's senses and knowledge changes, no one knows what is real and not real. All sciences go out the window.

In lecture liberalism was connected to which version of skepticism? Explain the connection.

Middle skepticism.

Did Epicurus think that death was a bad thing for the person who died? Why or why not?

No, they thought it wasn't bad because the person that experiences death was not there to experience it.

What two ancient positions are linked to Utilitarianism, and how?

Pluralism and Liberalism

26. Assume that liberalism is a good thing. Can liberalism be defended if the only possible justification for liberalism is pluralism? Why or why not?

Pluralism claims to know nothing for sure, but must claim freedom is certain- any group must agree on commonage. If pluralism is true, no way to figure what way of life is better. When you have to make a choice, if you don't like the choice, you are forced to follow choice

6. If two alleged sciences turn out to really have the same "fourth thing," we say that the one science is ________________ to the other; i.e., that the one "science" is in reality merely a subset of the other science. Give a hypothetical example of this.

Reduced to the other. One example is alchemy and chemistry.

2. There is a general school of thought that would reject at least one of these hallmarks as indicative of a true science. What is the name of the school, which hallmark would they reject, and why?

Skeptics. They would reject both the proper object and the inductive reasoning

What school held that the good life, and hence the moral life consisted in the endurance of pain? Name some members of this school.

Stoicism. Zeno, Spock, anf Epicitus

7.What might the "fourth thing" of ethics be?

The human good, or the good.

What are the three "good passions" according to the stoics? What three "disturbances" do they replace?

The three good passions are desire, joy and caution. The three bad disturbances are covetentous, mirth and fear.

50. What were the two main reasons for the stoics saying that sorrow was incompatible with virtue?

The two main reasons are that sorrow is an evil and there is no evil in a virtuous man. The other is that sorrow is the disease of the mind.

What was their argument for their position?

Their argument is that the logos, an all powerful and all knowing force created the universe. So any evil is in the world is just misunderstood because there is no evil.

What is the definition of pluralism that was given in class and used by Talisse

There are many conceptions of the good, exclusive of each other but internally consistent and incommensurable.

45. Is there a contradiction within this school of thought? If so, what is it?

There is a contradiction because you as a person have free will but the logos has a deciding force in what you will do.

What do the three "good passions" have in common? Is there a form of sorrow that has this trait, too? Would such a sorrow then be considered good?

They are all moderated by reason. And there is a form of sorrow that has a good passion too that is moderate. That is considered good.

Did Epicurus think that death was a bad thing? Why or why not?

They thought it was a bad things because its taking away a perfection that is naturally supposed to be there

How did the later members of this school amend the theory, and why? Does the amendment work?

They tried to amend it by saying that the logos created everything out of chaos in the void. And that the chaos is uncontrollable. This doesn't work because this means that the logos isn't all powerful.

How does Augustine's definition of evil allow him to avoid the contradictions found in Stoicism?

You can still have an all good god who creates evil.