Philosophy 106 UNL midterm exam

according to Kant's principle of Universalizability, we should

act only on those maxims which are such that were everyone else acting on them, it would still be possible to achieve the purpose of the maxim

ethical egoists think that

actions are morally right when they best promote your self interest

which of the following statements best characterizes the relationship between consequentialism and utilitarianism

all utilitarians are consequentialists

John Stuart Mill claimed that we can distinguish a "higher" from a "lower" pleasure by

considering which of the two pleasures are preferred by the majority of those people who have experienced both

defenders of psychological egoism claim that

every human action is ultimately motivated by self interest

classical utilitarians, including jeremy bentham and john stuart mill held that actions which best promoted overall well-being were morally right. they understood well-being in terms of

happiness (or pleasure) and the avoidance of unhappiness (or pain)

Jean Kazez presents an objective list theory which of the following does she think are necessary components of a good life

happiness, autonomy, morality

Kant thinks that non-human animals

have no intrinsic moral importance since they lack rationality

Richard Taylor argues that although Sisyphus has a meaningless life, his life could have meaning for him if the following were true

he had a strange and irrational desire to roll stones up the mountain

natural law theorists believe

immoral acts are immoral because they are contrary to human nature

which of the following are common objections to lex talionis

it cannot account for the moral differences between premeditated killing and killing due to recklessness it would require the state to engage in brutal behavior in response to brutal crimes, such as rape and torture it doesn't apply to victimless crimes

divine command theory is the view that

its wrong to murder, steal, ect. because god forbids it, and it's right to help others, be charitable, ect. because god commands it

in claiming that we are morally required to preform the act that does more to improve overall well-being than any other possible act, utilitarianism rules out the possibility of

supererogatory actions

some ethicists believe there's a moral difference between foreseen side-effects and intended effects. they think a bomber might be permitted to destroy a civilian house, so long as this is a consequence he anticipates, but does not aim for. this view is known as

the doctrine of double effect

Thomas Hobbes argues for the legitimacy of political authority by considering what rational people would contract to in a pre-political state which he calls

the state of nature

hedonists believe that

there is only one thing that is intrinsically valuable: pleasure

John Rawls argues for his two principles of justice by considering what self-interested participants in the "original position" would choose

under the veil of ignorance

Kant would deny the existence of "moral luck" because he thinks that

we are morally responsible only for what is under our control

Robert Nozick's thought experiment of the "experience machine" aims to show that

we want to actually do certain things and not just have the pleasurable experience of doing them, and so hedonism is incorrect

the desire satisfaction theory of well-being holds that

your life goes well for you to the extent that you get what you want