Ashford Phi 208 Entire Course Ethics And Moral Reasoning

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ASHFORD PHI 208 Entire Course Ethics and Moral Reasoning

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Week 1 DQ1
What is Philosophy
Most people have views that are strongly influenced and informed by philosophy, often without realizing it. Identify a view you have—whether on politics, religion, science, culture, or even the media and entertainment—that might be regarded as being related to philosophy. What kind of reasons do you have for holding that belief? What figure from the history of philosophy section do you think might have some views that are similar, or at least relevant, to your own? Explain why you chose that particular figure.

Week 1 DQ2
Justifying Beliefs
Many philosophers insist that our most strongly held beliefs should be examined and critically evaluated. Using the required text and outside sources, explain what philosophers mean when they say that beliefs need justification? What is the importance of subjecting our beliefs to critical scrutiny? What are the advantages of believing something without examining it? What are the disadvantages? Identify a specific belief

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PHI 208 Week 1 DQ 1 What is Philosophy

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DQ1
What is Philosophy
Most people have views that are strongly influenced and informed by philosophy, often without realizing it. Identify a view you have—whether on politics, religion, science, culture, or even the media and entertainment—that might be regarded as being related to philosophy. What kind of reasons do you have for holding that belief? What figure from the history of philosophy section do you think might have some views that are similar, or at least relevant, to your own? Explain why you chose that particular figure.

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PHI 208 Week 1 DQ 2 Justifying Beliefs

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DQ2
Justifying Beliefs
Many philosophers insist that our most strongly held beliefs should be examined and critically evaluated. Using the required text and outside sources, explain what philosophers mean when they say that beliefs need justification? What is the importance of subjecting our beliefs to critical scrutiny? What are the advantages of believing something without examining it? What are the disadvantages? Identify a specific belief you have that you think is worth defending, and then explain your reasons for holding that belief. Be sure to include logical reasoning as well as factual evidence in all your arguments.

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PHI 208 Week 2 Assignment Famine, Affluence, and Morality

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Peter Singer – “Famine, Affluence, and Morality”

Please read the article “Famine, Affluence, and Morality,” by Peter Singer and complete the following tasks:
Explain Singer’s goal in this article, and then present his argument in relation to this issue. Explain three counter-arguments to Singer’s position that he addresses in his article, and then indicate Singer’s responses to those counter-arguments. Define Singer’s concept of marginal utility and identify how it relates to his argument. Compare how the ideas of duty and charity change in Singer’s proposed world? Finally, present your personal response to Singer (this should be no more than one page of the entire assignment). Provide an argument either in support of Singer’s position, against his position, or somewhere in the middle of his position. Remember that when you present your own positions you need to support those positions with as much logical reasoning and factual evidence as possible. The paper must be at least three p

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PHI 208 Week 2 DQ 1 Ethics and Relativism

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Ethics and Relativism
Our text discusses the challenge relativism presents to various ethical and religious viewpoints. Consider a specific moral question which might make it difficult to accept the relativist's response. State the moral issue involved, and provide an explanation as to why you think a relativist might have a problem giving a justified response to it. In addition, use one of the positive ethical theories from the text to interpret the issue and how one should respond to this issue.

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PHI 208 Week 2 DQ 2 Animal Rights

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Animal Rights
Do human beings have any obligations to animals in terms of their treatment? If it is wrong to treat animals cruelly, why is it not wrong to eat them? Explain if, and how, you think humans can find a balance between treating animals ethically while also raising them for food and for other reasons, such as the testing of pharmaceuticals

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PHI 208 Week 3 Assignment Euthyphro – Plato

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Euthyphro – Plato

In the Euthyphro, Socrates and Euthyphro discuss the concept of piety/holiness. This essay will not only test your ability to recognize and engage philosophical concepts and analysis, but also brings you into the dialogue as a participant, asking you to create your own definition of holiness.

Read the Euthyphro, and write a paper in which you do the following:
Explain how the concept of holiness emerges in the dialogue and why it takes a prominent position in the conversation between Socrates and Euthyphro. Present the three definitions that Euthyphro uses in his response to Socrates, and then explain how Socrates refutes each of Euthyphro’s definitions. Formulate your own argument as to what you think Socrates’s goal is in this dialogue. How do you know that is his goal? What features of the dialogue align with your interpretation of his goal? Provide your own definition of piety/holiness and then create a Socratic response/critique of your definition. After you pr

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PHI 208 Week 3 DQ 1 The Limits of Skepticism

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The Limits of Skepticism
Can a person be skeptical about everything, or are there limits? Is it possible to doubt everything or almost everything? Does a person have an obligation to use ethical and moral reasoning when examining ones beliefs. Are there beliefs you possess that cannot be challenged or shown to be false? How might the skeptic respond to your claim that such a belief cannot be doubted? Identify one such specific belief and present your response to the skeptic. (If you don't have such a belief, explain how one could live while not accepting any claim as true.)

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PHI 208 Week 3 DQ 2 Truth and the Limits of Knowledge

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Truth and the Limits of Knowledge
Explain the epistemological perspective from the text (or outside sources) that most coincides with your view of truth and the way that the human mind grasps reality. Explain why you find it to be the best explanation of the way that the human mind is able to understand its world. Finally, present your views on whether humans can actually know the truth about objects or ideas in the world. If you believe they can, explain why. If you do not think they can, explain why not. Feel free to consult outside academic sources in order to explain more of the details of the theory that you describe here.

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PHI 208 Week 4 DQ 1 Proof of God’s Existence

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DQ1
Proof of God’s Existence
After reading about the various proofs of the existence of God, identify which of these arguments seems to be the best, and explain why you think so. If you find none of them convincing, present your best argument against one of these proofs and why it fails to accomplish its task. Complete your response by reflecting on why philosophers have sought for thousands of years to provide such proofs, and whether it is necessary to do so.

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PHI 208 Week 4 DQ 2 The Turing Test

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DQ2
The Turing Test
Present three specific questions that you would ask in the Turing Test to determine if something is real or artificial intelligence. Explain why you think these questions would be the type to reveal the computer to be a computer? Why would these responses have to be given by a human being? (If you don't think there are such questions, explain how the three questions you chose would fail to determine which one of the respondents was a computer and which was an actual human.)

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PHI 208 Week 5 Assignment Final Paper The Existence of God

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PHI 208 Week 5 Assignment Final Paper The Existence of God

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PHI 208 Week 5 DQ 1 The Meaning of Life

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DQ1
The Meaning of Life
Chapter 5 is focused on the meaning of human life. Present your view on the ultimate meaning of life. Be sure to back up your view with logical reasoning and as much evidence as you can. What gives human life meaning? How do you know? How should one act in the world once one realizes this meaning? Connect your ideas on the essential meaning of life to the views of at least one philosopher. This philosopher can be someone whom we studied or can come from an outside source. You might connect your ideas in a harmonious or contradictory way. Utilize the academic resources aligned with this course to find a philosopher that coincides with or contradicts your own ideas.

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PHI 208 Week 5 DQ 2 Philosophy and Society

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DQ2
Philosophy and Society
After watching Relationship of Philosophy to Other Fields, reflect on the relationship of philosophy to your life in terms of your future education and career goals. What value does philosophy have? How can people benefit from thinking more philosophically? How does philosophy affect ethical issues? What significance does thinking and reasoning critically play in society, and in human flourishing?

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PHI 208 Week 5 Final Argument paper

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Final Argumentative Paper

Three important sub-disciplines of philosophy are addressed in this course: ethics, epistemology, and religion. For this paper, you will develop an argument that includes your own view on one specific topic relating to one of these sub-disciplines. Below is a list of topics from which you must choose. Feel free to combine topics that seem to fit with one another. It is recommended that you choose a topic that interests you or that you have thought about previously.

In philosophical papers, it is always best to present both sides of the issue (remember that there are usually more than two sides to any issue), and then to present the side that you find the most convincing. Remember to back up your position with logical reasoning and factual evidence. In addition, be sure to utilize the philosophical content and ideas that you have encountered in this course.
Identify the specific issue. Make clear one basic dispute over this issue. Clarify the arguments on mul