PHI 220 – Flashcard

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T/F Immanuel Kant believed that some rules may be broken as long as the results will not justify breaking the rule
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false
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T/F Kant based his ethical views on theological considerations
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false
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An "ought" statement of the form, "if you want X, then you ought to do Y" is called a
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hypothetical imperative
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T/F For Kant, moral obligations do not depend on us having particular desires
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True
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For Kant, categorical "oughts" have force because we have
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Reason
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The rule or principle a person is following when they do an act is called
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the maxim of the act
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Kant believed which of the following about lying
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it is wrong under all circumstances
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Elizabeth Anscombe criticizes the Categorical Imperative on the basis that
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it is useless without some guidance on how to form moral rules
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What Rachel's calls the "case of the inquiring murderer" is offered to do which of the following
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show that categorical imperative is too absolute
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T/F Peter Geech believed that genuine conflicts between moral rules never actually occur
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True
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Rachel's believes that the basic insight of Kant's ethics is
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valid moral reasonings are not binding on all people at all times
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T/F O'Neill agrees with those who characterize Kant's ethics as being difficult to understand and excessively demanding
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False
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T/F Kant gives more than one different version of his Supreme Principle of Morality
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True
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T/F For Kant, the maxim of an act is the principle or policy one follows when deciding on an action
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True
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T/F For Kant, what makes an action moral or immoral are the consequences of our action, not what we intend
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False
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T/F Kant believed that it is wrong to use someone as a means to our ends
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False
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Which of the following makes a false promise wrong, according to Kant
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it treats the person who believes the false promise as a thing and not as a person
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For Kant, the special moral status of people (i.e. their dignity) is based on their
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rationality
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T/F When I ask a friend to lend me some money, I am treating that person as a means in violation of the categorical imperative
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false
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T/F Bentham was a proponent of the retrubitivist justification of punishment
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false
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T/F Deceiving someone in order to get them to do what you want would not violate the Categorical Imperative because they will have acted voluntarily and not under coercion
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false
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T/F Treating someone as an end in themselves requires that we make our purpose one of their purpose
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false
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T/F Kant objects to treating other people as a means
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false
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In the example of the plumber on Rachels page 138-139, hiring a plumber would be
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morally okay because you are not treating the plumber as simply a means
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T/F Jeremy Bentham believed that some punishments were well deserved and therefore good things
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False
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Bentham was opposed to the retributivist justification because
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he thought retributivism advocated inflicted suffering without any gain
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What are the utilitarian justifications of punishment
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1. gratification to victims 2. separating criminals from society 3. deterring would-be criminals 4. rehabilitation
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Which of the following is a retributivist justification for punishment
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the criminal deserves the punishment
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Kant advocated retributivism because
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even though punishing increased suffering in the world, it was alright because the suffering was borne by those who deserved it
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T/F According to Rachel's, the utilitarian view of punishment is the dominant view in America today
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False
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Kant objected to the utilitarian justification of punishment, because he thought it
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is incompatible with human dignity
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Kant thought that punishment should be governed by which of the following principles
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1. people should be punished simply because they have committed crimes 2. criminals should be punished in proportion to the crime they have committed
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Kant supported the death penalty for which of the following reasons
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for murder, the death penalty is the only proportionate treatment
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Kant thought that punishing a guilty person showed respect for that person because
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it treated them as a rational being who could be responsible for their own behavior
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Under Kantian retributivist theory of punishment, which of the following would not deserve to be punished
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someone who is insane and therefore not able to control their actions
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T/F Judith Thomson beleives that a fetus is not a person until after it is born
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False
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Which of the following best describes Judith Thomson's position in her article
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she assumes for the sake of argument that a fetus is a person from the moment of conception
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The purpose of Judith Thomson's violonist analogy, p. 168-169, is to
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show that a right to life does not mean the right to have other people preserve one's life when the cost would be great
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T/F Judith Thomson's view is that people have a right to do anything whatever to save their lives
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false
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Which of the following best states Judith Thomson's position on right to life
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it consists in the right not to be killed unjustly
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The purpose of Judith Thomson's "people seeds" story on p. 177 is to do which of the following
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undermine the argument that a fetus has a right to its mother's body
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T/F Judith Thomson's argument supports abortion in some cases but does not support securing the death of the unborn child
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true
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As discussed in Mary Anne Warren's article, John Noonan's view is which of the following
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a fetus is a full human being at conception
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T/F Mary Anne Warren believes that out moral rights are based on our being genetically human
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false
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Mary Anne Warren believes which of the following
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the fetus is not a full person at any stage of the pregnancy
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The purpose of the story Mary Anne Warren tells of a young woman encountering aliens on p. 198-199 is to do which of the following
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undermine the claim that, because a fetus is a potential person, it has a right to life that must be respected
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The reason Mary Anne Warren discusses infanticide is that
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she needs to defend herself against the objection that her argument in support of abortion also supports infanticide
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Which of the following is Don Marquis' view
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abortion is usually morally wrong
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According to Don Marquis, what makes the killing of another person wrong
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it inflicts a great loss on that person
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Which of the following does Don Marquis offer as considerations that support his view of what makes killing wrong
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1. his theory explains why killing is regarded as one of the worst crimes 2. his theory explains why people who know they are dying believe that dying is a bad thing for them 3. his theory does not entail that active euthanasia is always wrong
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Which of the following best describes Don Marquis' view regarding the morality of abortion
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he believes that fetuses have valuable futures and so killing them is as wrong as killing an adult human being
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As presented in the Rachel's essay, the traditional view of the AMA is that
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passive euthanasia is morally permitted but active euthanasia is not morally permitted
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The point of the discussion of the Down's Syndrome baby and intestinal blockage on p. 214 is to argue that
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treating active euthanasia as morally different from passive euthanasia leads to making life and death decisions on morally irrelevant grounds
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According to Rachel's, the basis for the belief that there is an important moral difference between active and passive euthanasia is
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the belief that killing someone is morally worse than simply letting them die
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The purpose of the discussion of the Smith and Jones cases on p. 215 is to do which of the following
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to undermine the claim that there is a morally important difference between killing and letting die
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Rachel's asserts that the important similarity between Smith and Jones cases and the euthanasia case is that
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the bare difference between killing and letting die does not, in fact, make a moral difference
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Which of the following does Rachel's offer as an explanation for why people tend to think that killing is worse than simply letting die
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people often hear of terrible cases of killing but rarely hear about cases of letting die
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The point of the block quotation on p. 217 is to do which of the following
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support the moral distinction between active euthanasia and passive euthanasia
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Rachel's responds to the argument on p. 217 by asserting which of the following
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he denies letting someone die is the same as doing nothing
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Rachel's believes which of the following about legal prohibition of active euthanasia
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it cannot be used to support a moral difference between active and passive euthanasia
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T/F Sullivan points out that one of the downsides of improved medical technology is that it allows preserving lives that will be painful
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True
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Which of the following is part of the "traditional view" of the physician's role, as presented in the Sullivan essay
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it is impermissible to terminate intentionally the life of a patient
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T/F Sullivan agrees with Rachel's that it makes little difference from a moral point of view to kill by action or malevolent inaction
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True
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Which of the following is part of the distinction between extraordinary measures and ordinary measures
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the amount of pain the measure will cause
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The purpose of the example Sullivan offers regarding foregoing exercise on p. 223 is to do which of the following
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to exemplify the difference between foreseeing an occurence and intending to bring it about
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Which of the following expresses Sullivan's view regarding the withdrawal of ordinary measures
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the refusal to use ordinary measures is morall wrong because that refulsa indicates a desire to bring about the death of the patient
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Sullivan asserts that the basis of the traditional view is
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the intention of the action or inaction
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Peter Singer believes which of the following about the situation in Bengal that he describes
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there is nothing unique about it, except it's magnitude
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Singer argues which of the following about the way people in wealthy countries react to a situation like the one in Bengal
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it was not morally just
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The purpose of Singer's story of the drowning child in the pond is which of the following
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to support his claim that if we can prevent something bad from happening without sacrificing something of comparable moral worth, then we should do it
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Singer beleives which of the following about the moral principle demonstrated by his pond example
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following this example would fundamentally change our lives
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Singer believes which of the following about our moral obligations regarding distance
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we have the same moral obligation to those near us and those far away
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Singer believes which of the following about our moral obligations
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even when there are other people available to help others, we still have a moral obligation to help
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How does Singer respond to the objection that people don't ordinarily make mral judgments the way he is advocating
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he argues that the way people in fact make moral judgments has nothing to do with the truth of his moral principle
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How does Singer respond to the objection that advocating his very stringent moral standard will lead to a breakdown in moral behavior
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he argues that the likelihood of that breakdown occurring is very small
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What is Singer's purpose in quoting St. Thomas Aquinas on p. 234-235
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to support his claim that his (Singer's) proposed moral principle is not excessively out of line with our Western moral principles
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Which of the following does Singer consider as a practical objection to his proposed moral principle
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without population control, famine relief merely postpones starvation
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Which of the following expresses the "strong version" of Singer's proposed moral principle
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we should prevent bad things from happening unless in doing so we would be sacrificing something of comparable moral significance
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T/F Singer himself favors the strong over the moderate version
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true
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Why does Singer argue that world hunger is an issue about which philosophers are competent to speak
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the important facts are not in dispute
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The purpose of John Arthur's discussion of donating a kidney or eye on p. 242 is to do which of the following
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support the moral distinction between a moral obligation and a morally heroic act
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What are 2 examples of a negative right
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1. the right to liberty 2. the right to free speech
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John Arthur believes which of the following
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we are entitled to invoke our rights as a justification for not giving to others
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In what ways should a moral code be practical
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1. it must not assume people are more unselfish than they are 2. it must not assume people are more objective than they are 3. it must not assume people have perfect knowledge
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Which of the following cases would Arthur believe we have a moral obligation to help others in need
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getting our clothes dirty in order to save a drowning person
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Define hypothetical imperative
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an ought statement. If you want X, then you should do Y.
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Define categorical imperative
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...
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What is the Supreme Principle of Morality
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...
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What are 3 examples of treating someone as a means, according to Kant
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...
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Give 2 examples that show treating someone as merely a means, in violation of the categorical imperative
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...
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Psychological egoism asserts that
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people in fact pursue their own interests alone
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T/F Psychological egoism is saying the same thing as ethical egoism
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false
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What is true regarding the relationship between psychological egoism and ethics, according to Rachel's
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if psychological egoism is true then that ethics would be pointless
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The story about Raoul Wallenberg is offered to do what
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challenge psychological egoism
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T/F Rachel's believes that the argument that we "always do what we want to do" is a sound premise - i.e.. its premise is true and the conclusion follows from that premise
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false
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T/F Abraham Lincoln believed that people always do what makes them feel good
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true
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The ""strategy of reinterpreting motives" is used to do what
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support psychological egoism by showing that our motives are really self-interested
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Ethical egoism asserts what
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people ought to pursue their own interests exclusively
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T/F Ethical egoism advocates that people should pursue their long-term interests, not their short-term interests
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true
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T/F Ethical egoism does not say that a person should avoid actions that help other people
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true
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T/F Ayn Rand was a prominent ethical egoist
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true
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T/F According to Ayn Rand, the ethics of altruism denies the value of the individual by promoting self-sacrifice
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true
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Rachel's criticizes the argument in support of ethical egoism on p. 72 on the basis that
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it asserts that we have only 2 options and ignores a middle ground between them
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T/F Thomas Hobbes argued that ethical egoism actually supports a moral principle just like the Golden Rule
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...true
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T/F Rachel's believes that Kurt Baier's argument that ethical egoism is logically inconsistent is not as convincing as it first seems
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true
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What Rachels calls "the principle of equal treatment" is put forth to do what
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undermine ethical egoism by showing that there's no basis for giving ourselves special treatment
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T/F According to Rachels, treating people in the same way means making sure that everyone end up with the same outcome
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false
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The name of Hobbes' most famous work in political and moral philosophy is
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Leviathan
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Hobbes lived in which century
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17th
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T/F Hobbes believes that people are, when all is reckoned together, basically equal in strength and intellectual ability
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true
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The reason Hobbes notes that with regard to their intellectual ability "every man is contented with his share" is to
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support his claim that people are basically equal in intellectual ability
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T/F An important consequence of people's relative equality for Hobbe's is that they have an equality of hope that they will be able to attain their ends in competition with others who might desire the same things
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true
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Hobbes believed what about human beings
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they are capable of only very limited altruism
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Hobbes believed which of the following about the state of nature
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there is not enough of what we need to go around
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Diffidence means
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not trusting
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For Hobbes, the natural condition of human beings, when they live without a common power to keep them in awe, is a condition of
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war
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Hobbes sees the state of nature as
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very unpleasant
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The point of Hobbes comparison of how people take precautions when going on a journey or locking their doors at night is to
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provide evidence in support of his claim that people are at war
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T/F For Hobbes there is no justice or injustice when there is no "common power" (i.e. government)
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true
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The liberty that each man has to use his own power to preserve his own life is
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the right of nature
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T/F According to Hobbes, the First Law of Nature is to seek peace and follow it
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true
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The social contract conception of morality can be summed up as
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morality consists in a set of rules that people agree to on the condition that others agree to them as well
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T/F Hobbes believes that, without a "civil power" (i.e. government) to compel people to keep the social contract, then there is no justice or propriety
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true
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What does Rachels offer as an advantage of the social contract theory of ethics
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it explains why it is rational for us to follow the moral rules
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What is an example of a supererogatory action
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sacrificing yourself to save a drowning person
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T/F Aristotle believed that it is very easy for people to become virtuous
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false
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Aristotle uses the example of a patient who listens attentively to his doctor but then doesn't actually do what the doctor ordered him to do. The purpose of this story is
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to stress the point that acquiring a virtue requires acting virtuously, not just thoerizing about it
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To be virtuous, the virtuous person must not merely do that right/virtuous action but must also do so
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with knowledge, from the right choice, and out of the right character
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The virtuous behavior between cowardice and rashness is
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courage
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The virtuous behavior is associated with
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the mean between 2 extremes
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In his writings on ethics, Aristotle is concerned mainly with theortical ethics
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by practicing or exercising the virtuous behavior
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T/F According to Aristotle, we develop or acquire a virtue
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false
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T/F According to Aristotle, virtues exist in us by nature
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false
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For Aristotle, the 2 kinds of virtue are intellectual and
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moral
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According to Aristotle, the function of a human being is
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to live an active life of the element in him
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UItilitarianism in a nutshell
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the concept that, "the ends justify the means", at least when it comes to pleasure
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Socrates definition of morality
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how we ought to live and why
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minimum conception of morality
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a core that every moral theory should accept, at least as a starting point
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T/F every moral theory accepts the minimum conception of morality
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false
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T/F Most moral theories use a form of minimum conception of morality
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true
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Cultural Relativism means
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different cultures have different moral codes
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Examples of Universal Values
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truth telling, caring for children, prohibition against murder
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Ethical Subjectivism is
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the idea that our moral opinions are based on our feelings and nothing more
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Emotivism is different from Simple Subjectivism because
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in Emotivism, moral statements are not judgments but merely expressions of attitude while in Simple Subjectivism moral statements are always considered true, even if they are personal opinions
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What 2 reasons do Emotivists have for statements
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to express ones attitude and to try to influence others behavior
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Divine Command Theory in a nutshell
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morally right is a matter of being commanded by God and morally wrong is a matter of being forbidden by God
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T/F Socrates was Plato's teacher
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True
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In Euthyphro, Socrates asks
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"is conduct right because the gods command it or do the gods command it because it is right?"
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T/F In the history of Christian thought, the dominant theory of ethics is the Theory of Natural Law
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true
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Theory of Natural Law in a nutshell
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the world has a rational order, with values and purposes built into its very nature/everything has a purpose
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What is an example of Theory of Natural Law
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the rain falls so plants can grow
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As Rachels puts it, right and wrong are not to be understood in terms of God's will; morality is a matter of
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reason and conscience
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Ethical Egoism in a nutshell
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each person OUGHT to pursue his or her own self-interest exclusively
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Psychological Egoism in a nutshell
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each person DOES IN FACT pursue his or her own self-interest exclusively
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Which Egoism makes a claim about morality, the way things should be?
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Ethical Egoism
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Which Egoism makes a claim about human nature, or the way things are
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Psychological Egoism
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Social Contract Theory in a nutshell
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morality consists in the set of rukes, governing behavior, that rational people will accept, on the condition that others will accept them as well
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T/F Social Contract Theory is not based on religion, assumed natural purposes, and assums that people are naturally selfish
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true
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What makes an imperative hypothetical?
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it tells us what to do provided that we have the relevant desires
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What makes an imperative categorical?
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it tells us what to do, period! The moral obligations are absolute
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What is a categorical imperative
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Lying is always wrong
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hypothetical "oughts" require what
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us to do what is necessary to achieve our goals
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categorical "oughts" are possible because we have
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reason
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Kant expresses the Categorical Imperative as
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Act only according to that maxim by which you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law
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Retributivism in a nutshell
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if a person does something wrong then they should be punished
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