PHIL 160- FINAL EXAM STUDY GUIDE
consequentialism (singer) - Answers - whether an act is morally correct depends only
on consequences as opposed to the circumstances of the act or anything that happens
before the act
utilitarianism (singer)
singer's argument - Answers - - 1.Suffering is bad (suffering as in dying)- may lead to
bad things, but also may lead to good things. Singer believes this is uncontroversial
- 2. If it is in our power to prevent something bad from happening, without thereby
sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance, we ought, morally, to do it. This
requires us only to prevent what is bad, and to promote what is good, and it requires
this of us only when we can do it without sacrificing anything that is, from the moral
point of view. Singer believes this is obvious and we all already do it. You can still buy
yourself the t-shirt you want, but donate a t-shirt.
- 3. The loss of non-essential goods is not comparably important to suffering- the things
you WANT but don't NEED
- 4. Hence, if you give up non-essential goods to prevent suffering, you ought to do so -
if you accept conclusions 1, 2, 3, then you have to accept this one
- 5. You can give up non-essential goods to prevent suffering
- 6. Hence, you are required to give up non-essential goods for the purposes of
preventing suffering - supported by claims 1-5, doesn't beg the question or any of the
common fallacies.
fair share (singer) - Answers - if everyone were to share, then we wouldn't have to give
up our non-essential goods
kantian principle - Answers - it is always wrong to use a person as a means to end
kant - Answers - rights trump utlity
distributive exemption (thomson) - Answers - it is okay to re-direct a harm that is going
to kill one instead of five
moral relativism (Harman) - Answers - there is not a single true morality. There are a
variety of possible moralities or moral frameworks of reference and whether something
is morally right or wrong, good or bad, just or unjust is a relative matter - relative to one
another morality or moral framework of reference.
moral absolutist (harman) - Answers - there is a single true moral framework
philipia foot - Answers - own solution was based on a distinction between killing and
letting die
, Hedonism - Answers - the ethical theory that pleasure (in the sense of the satisfaction of
desires) is the highest good and proper aim of human life
hedonism - Answers - quality of experience that ultimately matters for well-being or
prudential value
three common mistakes of moral reasoning - Answers - begging the question,
inconsistency, and tu quoique
companionship, shelter, helping others, health, and food - Answers - what a good life
consists of
desire satisfaction - Answers - what is best for someone is what would best fulfill all of
her or her desires throughout life
function argument - Answers -
three lives - Answers - pleasure, honor, virtue
consequentialism (mills, sub utilitarianism) - Answers - whether an action is morally right
or wrong depends on its consequences. An action is right if it has the best outcome of
the choices available. Otherwise it is wrong
welfarism (mills, sub utilitarianism) - Answers - well-being is the only value and the only
thing that matters
aggregation (mills, sub utilitarianism) - Answers - used calculate how much happiness
with result from our actions. This allows us to determine whether or actions are right or
wrong from the sum of net happiness
utilitarianism - Answers - is the principle that you want actions to promote the most
amounts of happiness and the least amount of unhappiness. Happiness consists of
pleasures and the absence of pain and unhappiness consists of pain and the absence
of pleasure
four major objections to utilitarianism - Answers - utilitarianism is a philosophy of swine,
hard to always be thinking about what will produce the greatest amount of happiness,
no absolute prohibition
no absolute prohibition - Answers - we can break a promise if doing so produces the
greatest amount of happiness
philosophy of swine - Answers - objection to utilitarianism is that there is more to life
than pleasure
consequentialism (singer) - Answers - whether an act is morally correct depends only
on consequences as opposed to the circumstances of the act or anything that happens
before the act
utilitarianism (singer)
singer's argument - Answers - - 1.Suffering is bad (suffering as in dying)- may lead to
bad things, but also may lead to good things. Singer believes this is uncontroversial
- 2. If it is in our power to prevent something bad from happening, without thereby
sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance, we ought, morally, to do it. This
requires us only to prevent what is bad, and to promote what is good, and it requires
this of us only when we can do it without sacrificing anything that is, from the moral
point of view. Singer believes this is obvious and we all already do it. You can still buy
yourself the t-shirt you want, but donate a t-shirt.
- 3. The loss of non-essential goods is not comparably important to suffering- the things
you WANT but don't NEED
- 4. Hence, if you give up non-essential goods to prevent suffering, you ought to do so -
if you accept conclusions 1, 2, 3, then you have to accept this one
- 5. You can give up non-essential goods to prevent suffering
- 6. Hence, you are required to give up non-essential goods for the purposes of
preventing suffering - supported by claims 1-5, doesn't beg the question or any of the
common fallacies.
fair share (singer) - Answers - if everyone were to share, then we wouldn't have to give
up our non-essential goods
kantian principle - Answers - it is always wrong to use a person as a means to end
kant - Answers - rights trump utlity
distributive exemption (thomson) - Answers - it is okay to re-direct a harm that is going
to kill one instead of five
moral relativism (Harman) - Answers - there is not a single true morality. There are a
variety of possible moralities or moral frameworks of reference and whether something
is morally right or wrong, good or bad, just or unjust is a relative matter - relative to one
another morality or moral framework of reference.
moral absolutist (harman) - Answers - there is a single true moral framework
philipia foot - Answers - own solution was based on a distinction between killing and
letting die
, Hedonism - Answers - the ethical theory that pleasure (in the sense of the satisfaction of
desires) is the highest good and proper aim of human life
hedonism - Answers - quality of experience that ultimately matters for well-being or
prudential value
three common mistakes of moral reasoning - Answers - begging the question,
inconsistency, and tu quoique
companionship, shelter, helping others, health, and food - Answers - what a good life
consists of
desire satisfaction - Answers - what is best for someone is what would best fulfill all of
her or her desires throughout life
function argument - Answers -
three lives - Answers - pleasure, honor, virtue
consequentialism (mills, sub utilitarianism) - Answers - whether an action is morally right
or wrong depends on its consequences. An action is right if it has the best outcome of
the choices available. Otherwise it is wrong
welfarism (mills, sub utilitarianism) - Answers - well-being is the only value and the only
thing that matters
aggregation (mills, sub utilitarianism) - Answers - used calculate how much happiness
with result from our actions. This allows us to determine whether or actions are right or
wrong from the sum of net happiness
utilitarianism - Answers - is the principle that you want actions to promote the most
amounts of happiness and the least amount of unhappiness. Happiness consists of
pleasures and the absence of pain and unhappiness consists of pain and the absence
of pleasure
four major objections to utilitarianism - Answers - utilitarianism is a philosophy of swine,
hard to always be thinking about what will produce the greatest amount of happiness,
no absolute prohibition
no absolute prohibition - Answers - we can break a promise if doing so produces the
greatest amount of happiness
philosophy of swine - Answers - objection to utilitarianism is that there is more to life
than pleasure
