Social & Political Philosophy

Front 1

Moral principle of utilitarianism

Back 1

goodness as maximization of welfare

Front 2

Four commitments to Utilitarianism (4)

Back 2

1. Consequentialism

2. Agent-Neutrality

3. Maximization

4. Welfare

Front 3

Objections against Utilitarianism in general (3)

Back 3

1. implausible consequences (high vs. low welfare)

2. the concept of welfare is dubious

3. measurement problem - interpersonal & interpersonal comparisons seem difficult

Front 4

Political Utilitarianism

Back 4

A government is justified/ institutions are legitimate if maximizing welfare

Front 5

Argument for Political Utilitarianism

Back 5

to choose any non-maximizing government cannot be justified with those who'll loose welfare!

Front 6

The Advantages (3)

Back 6

impartiality

ethical neutrality

anti-rigorism

individualism

Front 7

Objections against Utilitarianism (4)

Back 7

- does not rule out undesirable preferences

does not account for backward-looking obligations

- does not provide justification for basic rights

- does not account for value of equality

Front 8

Act Utilitarianism

Back 8

an act is justified if it maximizes welfare

Front 9

Rule-Utilitarianism

Back 9

A rule is justified if it derives from a rule of which the general observation is to maximize welfare

Front 10

Concrete Conceptions of political utilitarianism

Back 10

institutions are legitimate if they provide rules and account for their inhabitants so that the people have the chance of maximized welfare

Front 11

Problems with concrete political Utilitarianism (2+ conclusion)

Back 11

No basic rights

Tyranny of majority is possible

- seems to entail non-utility based moral obligations towards the government and seems thus to be incompatible with moral utilitarianism

Front 12

What is John Stuart Mill's objection against Democratic self-rule? What would be a solution? (2)

Back 12

1. Allows for tyranny of majority

2. Allows for tyranny of custom

A principle of limiting power is needed

Front 13

What are higher and lower pleasures?

Back 13

higher pleasures are pleasures that the ones acquainted with them prefer even in case of a lower intensity

Front 14

How is welfare best served?

Back 14

By allowing maximum room of free choice for all

Epistemic argument, motivational argument, free choice is pleasurable in itself

Front 15

Epistemology?

Back 15

Epistemology studies the nature of knowledge, justification, and rationality

Front 16

What is Mill's Harm Principle? And what does it not cover?

Back 16

1.Interference with liberty is only legitimate to avoid harm

2. no interference is legitimate to enforce moral rules.

Front 17

What is the distinction between liberal perfectionism and liberalism?

Back 17

Liberal perfectionists argue that the government should respect citizens and their rights equally because this offers them the best chance to lead a good life.

Liberals claim that government should respect all views on what the good life is equally and express this respect by respecting the liberty of citizens.

So: Liberalism is neutral towards views about the good life, liberal perfectionism is not.

Front 18

What's Mill's epistemic argument for democracy?

Back 18

Those concerned are best experts for how to increase welfare.

Front 19

What is justice according to Mill?

Back 19

Right vs. Wrong: an act is wrong if it maximizes human welfare if there is a rule to punish acts of its type

Front 20

What is the justification of rights, according to Mill?

Back 20

- Rights concern essential features of human existence (life, liberty)

- There is a tendency in humans to want to see those who interfere with these features punished

- If appropriately civilized, this tendency is beneficial for welfare

- Thus, institutions may support or incorporate this tendency in the form of rights.

Front 21

What is the general concept of freedom of speech? What is not included within this freedom?

Back 21

-Freedom to express opinions without punishment or interference by the state

- it does not protect against private sanctions

- does not protect speech which directly causes harmful actions

- does not protect for misinterpretations

Front 22

What is Mill's argument in favor of freedom of speech? (2) (epistemic & non-epistemic)

Back 22

- suppressed speech may be true: suppressed speech may contain true parts: suppressed speech may be necessary to see why other opinions are true

- free speech protects against dogmatism, allows individuals to choose positions consciously

Front 23

What is Scanlon's argument for free speech?

Back 23

speech about reasons should not be suppressed, because evaluating reasons is part of the autonomy of persons which supports legitimate government.

Front 24

Feinberg on free speech & Offense Principle

Back 24

supplement Harm Principle by Offense Principle: offensive speech can be harmful and may be regulated, weighing a number of criteria

Front 25

Waldron on free speech:

Back 25

allowing hate speech may send the message to minorities that majority is not committed to treating them as equals; indirect harm.

Front 26

Why is Mill a perfectionist?

Back 26

Mill distinguishes between lower and higher pleasures and assumes that a truly good lifewill consist in ful􏰃lment of the higher pleasures which include the development of one'scapacities and making decisions for oneself. He is thus not neutral between di􏰂fferent waysof life.

Front 27

What is the epistemic justification of Democracy?

Back 27

A justification that argues that democracy will increase the possibility of finding the correct answer to problems. Decisions made democratically are more likely to be correct that decisions made through another form of government.

Front 28

What is the Condorcet Theorem?

Back 28

A theorem that says that in groups which make decisions according to a majority-votingprocedure and in which each member is more likely to be correct about any given issuethan not, the likelihood of the group decision being correct approaches 100% the largerthe group gets.