Ethics Test2

Front 1

Name and give the dates for the two founders of Utilitarianism.

Back 1

Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) & John Stuart Mill (1806-1873)

Front 2

2. What are the two names of the basic moral principle of Utilitarianism?

Back 2

The basic moral principle of utilitarianism is called the principle of utility or the greatest happiness principle.

Front 3

3. List the first formulation of the greatest of the principle of utility.

Back 3

The morally best (or better) alternative is that which produces the greatest (or greater) net utility, where utility is defined in terms of happiness or pleasure.

Front 4

4. List the second formulation of the greatest of the principle of utility.

Back 4

We ought to do that which produces the greatest amount of happiness or pleasure for the greatest number of people.

Front 5

5. What does it mean to say that Utilitarianism is teleological?

Back 5

It stresses the end or goal of actions.

Front 6

6. what does it mean to say that Utilitarianism is consequentialist?

Back 6

We ought to decide which action or practice is best by considering the likely or actual consequences of each alternative.

Front 7

7. What is the classical theory closest to Utilitarianism? What is its second name (after its founder) ?

Back 7

Classical Utilitarianism is a pleasure or happiness theory.
Closer to utilitarianism is the classical theory that has come to be known as hedonism (from hedon, the Greek word for pleasure) or Epicureanism (named after Epicurus, 341 B.C.–270 B.C.).

Front 8

8. Who is the founder of Hedonism? what are his dates?

Back 8

Epicurus, 341 B.C.– 270 B.C.

Front 9

9. What does Utilitarianism identify as Happiness?

Back 9

Bodily pleasure and mental delight and peace were the goods to be sought in life.
Utilitarians also have believed that pleasure or happiness is the good to be produced.

Front 10

10. Name some different kinds of pleasures

Back 10

Intellectual pleasures- such as the peculiar satisfaction of making sense out of something.
Aesthetic pleasures- such as the enjoyment of watching a beautiful sunset.

Front 11

11. Why do some philosophers call Utilitarianism universalistic?

Back 11

It is the happiness or pleasure of all who are affected by an action or practice that is to be considered.
Everyone affected by some action is to be counted equally. We ourselves hold no privileged place, so our own happiness counts no more than that of others.

Front 12

12. Name the 5 elements used to calculate the greatest amount of happiness/pleasure

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1. Pleasure minus Pain- Something that produces pain may be accepted, but only if it causes more pleasure overall.
2. Intensity- Moments of happiness or pleasure are not all alike. Some are more intense than others.

3. Duration- The longer lasting the pleasure, the better, all else being equal. The more serene pleasure may last longer.
4. Fruitfulness- the fruitfulness of experiencing pleasure depends on whether it makes us more capable of experiencing similar or other pleasures.
5. Likelihood- If before acting, we are attempting to decide between two available alternative actions, we must estimate the likely results of each before we compare their net utility.

Front 13

13. What was the only factor that Bentham used to calculate the greatest happiness?

Back 13

According to Bentham, we ought to consider only the quantity of pleasure or happiness brought about by various acts: how much pleasure, to how many people, how intense it is, how long-lasting, how fruitful, and how likely the desired outcome will occur.

Front 14

14. What were the two factors that Mill used to calculate the greatest happiness?

Back 14

Although Mill agreed with Bentham that the greater amount of pleasure and happiness the better, he believed that the quality of the pleasure should also count.

Front 15

15. What is the point of the “application of the Principle” critique of Utilitarianism?

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The point of this criticism is that no one can consider all of the variables that utilitarianism requires us to consider: the probable consequences of our action to all affected in terms of duration, intensity, fruitful-ness, likelihood, and type or quality of pleasure.

Front 16

16. Explain the objection to Utilitarianism based on personal integrity

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A more substantive criticism of utilitarianism concerns its universalist and maximizing nature: that we should always do that which maximizes overall happiness.
The objection remains that not to give some preference to ourselves is an affront to our personal integrity.

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17. What is Act Utilitarianism?

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Consider the consequences of some particular act such as keeping or breaking one’s promise.
Act utilitarians can claim that we ought to consider only what will or is likely to happen if we act in certain ways, not what would happen if we were to act in certain ways but will not happen because we are not going to so act.

Front 18

18. What is Rule Utilitarianism?

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Consider the consequences of some practice or rule of behavior—for example, the practice of
promise keeping or promise breaking.
Rule utilitarians can claim that acts are similar to one another and so can be thought of as practices.

Front 19

19. What is Preference Utilitarianism?

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The best reading of Mill, however, seems to give preference to the maximization overall. In that case, how the happiness was distributed (to one or three) would not in itself count.

Front 20

20. Name the two methods of determining what people prefer.

Back 20

The amount of pleasure and the kind of pleasures

Front 21

21. How does Cost-Benefit Analysis determine what people prefer

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One policy or action is better than another if the benefi ts outweigh the costs.

Front 22

22. what is one problem with the cost-benefit method of evaluation?

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One difficulty with this form of reasoning is attempting to put a dollar value on things such as health or lives saved. One way around this problem is to consider what people are willing to pay to reduce their risks to life or health. Another is to consider what increase in compensation people require to take on a job with increased risk.

Front 23

what is psychological egoism?

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1. Psychological egoism is a theory about what people are like, but we can understand what it asserts in several ways. one way to understand it is to say that people are basically selfish. However, another formulation of this theory asserts that although people do act for their own self-interest, this self-interest is to be understood more broadly and as being more long term. thus, we might distinguish between acting selfishly and acting in our own self interest.

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what is ethical egoism?

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2. Ethical egoism is a normative theory about what we ought to do, how we ought to act. only looking out for my own interest. I ought to be concerned about others only to the extent that this concern also contributes to my own interests.

Front 25

what is the difference between psychological egoism and ethical egoism?

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3. The difference between psychological egoism and ethical egoism is that psychological egoism states that humans act to fulfill their wants and desires. Ethical egoism states that humans ought to seek the fulfillment of their wants and desires.

Front 26

what is contractarianism

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4. Contractarianism is any of various theories that justify moral principles and political choices because they depend on a social contract involving certain ideal conditions, as lack of ignorance or uncertainty. {dictionary.com}

Front 27

3. To prove that the motivational version of psychological egoism is true, what must be shown?

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What psychological egoism needs to show is not that people do get satisfaction from what they do, but that achieving such satisfaction is their aim.

Front 28

4. How is psychological egoism supposed to provide support for an argument for ethical egoism? What is one problem for this argument?

Back 28

?

Front 29

6. In what sense does the argument for ethical egoism based on economics support not egoism but utilitarianism—in other words, the view that we ought to do what is in the best interest of all or the greatest number?

Back 29

the argument that everyone ought to seek his or her own best interest because this contributes to the general well-being is not ethical egoism at all., this is a form of utilitarianism. Even if an economic system worked well, would this prove that morality ought to be modeled on it?

Front 30

7. What is meant by taking the “moral point of view”?

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Whether one must take a particular point of view to view things morally and whether this is incompatible with egoism. Taking the moral point of view on this interpretation would then involve being able to see beyond ourselves and our own interests. It may also mean that we attempt to see things from another’s point of view or to be impartial.

Front 31

8. How does the example of the “ring of Gyges” illustrate the question, “Why be moral?”

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Glaucon then asks whether we all would not do the same if we, like Gyges, could get away with it.

Front 32

what does philosophy literally mean?

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love of wisdom

Front 33

what is "wisdom" according to aristotle?

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a comprehensive account of the whole, in light of its first principle

Front 34

what is philosophy?`

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a strong desire and rigorous search for a comprehensive account of the whole, in light of the first principle

Front 35

how does thales exemplify philosophical activity, according to aristotle?

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believing in the statement "everything is water"
also believed he could "figure the world out, the world is knowledge"

Front 36

what is ethics?

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a strong desire and rigorous search for a comprehensive account OF HUMAN ACTIONS THROUGH THIER 1ST PRINCIPLE.

Front 37

3. what is divine command theory?

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thinking further about religious morality and also raises challenges for it
VIEW: certain things are good for us to do because this is what God wants.

Front 38

5. what is evaluative/normative judgement ?

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statements that express approval of something

Front 39

what is normative ethics?

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objective is to help us decide whaty is good or bad, better or worse

Front 40

4. what is the euthypronic problem?

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morality has a certain independence. we should be able to determine whether certain actions are right or wrong in themselves

Front 41

6. what is descriptive judgement?

Back 41

state factual belief

Front 42

7. what is a poor argument called?

Back 42

fallacies

Front 43

8. what are the three elements that form a sound ethical argument?

Back 43

value assumption
conceptual matters
factual assertions

Front 44

11. what is platos view about the ability to teach ethics?

Back 44

?

Front 45

11. how does aristotle disagree with him?

Back 45

?

Front 46

14. compares and evaluates the sets of values and beliefs, giving reasons for preferring one set of ethics over another

Back 46

conclusion

Front 47

a view about what is the nature and basis of good or right.
provides reasons or norms for judging acts to be right or wrong and attempts to give justification for these norms

Back 47

ethical theory

Front 48

2. what is meant by the "divine command theory"?

Back 48

the view that certain things are good for us to do because this is what God wants.

Front 49

WHO'S VIEW IS THIS?
asks whether things are good because they are approved by the gods or whether the gods approve of them because they are good

Back 49

plato's view about how to treat the Euthypro problem

Front 50

7.what are the three reasons supporting ethical relativism

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the diversity of moral views
moral uncertainty
situational differences

Front 51

14. what is absolutism

Back 51

view that moral rules or principles have no exceptions and are independant
"stealing is always wrong"

Front 52

Who wrote this of moral --?
"goodness is a specific quality that attaches people or acts. Although we cannot observe it, we intuit its presence"

Back 52

G.E Moore's Thoery of Moral Realism

Front 53

what is ethical relativism

Back 53

there is no objective standard of right and wrong,
even in principle. There are only different views of
what is right and wrong.