Study Guide, Midterm Exam PH 480 A Fall 2016
Seven potential essay questions—choose any four (4) to complete:
1) What is the Ring of Gyges? Why does Glaucon bring it up in his conversation with
Socrates about justice? What does he think we are led to believe by thinking about the story of the ring, and how does Socrates argue against this?
The Ring of Gyges is a ring that allows you to become invisible anytime you wear it, and in turn, you are able to get away with any sort of injustice. Glaucon brings up the conversation of the Ring of Gyges to Socrates when supporting his belief that justice is always something to be done for one’s own sake. Glaucon thinks that people are unable to resist the power of the Ring of Gyges, therefore, they will commit some unjust act under the influence of the ring no matter how “just” that person may seem to be. Socrates argues against Glaucon’s point by stating that being just may not be a reward to an individual in itself, and if not, then are …show more content…
Do you think such a life would really be the most ethical life? Why or why not? According to Epictetus, Apatheia is a state of which passions do not disturb an individual. This type of attitude would bring about what he calls Ataraxia. Ataraxia is the lack of disturbance or strife when troubling things happen to an individual. I think that learning to live such a life can be beneficial depending on how often you are affected by the unfortunate things that happen in a person’s life. However, it is healthy to react differently and grieve because that is how people stretch themselves and grow into a better person.
4) What does Meng Tzu mean by “a heart sensitive to the suffering of others?” Why does he claim that this defines our humanity, and why does it need to be developed if we are to be ethical or truly humane? What are the other three “seeds” which make up
Seven potential essay questions—choose any four (4) to complete:
1) What is the Ring of Gyges? Why does Glaucon bring it up in his conversation with
Socrates about justice? What does he think we are led to believe by thinking about the story of the ring, and how does Socrates argue against this?
The Ring of Gyges is a ring that allows you to become invisible anytime you wear it, and in turn, you are able to get away with any sort of injustice. Glaucon brings up the conversation of the Ring of Gyges to Socrates when supporting his belief that justice is always something to be done for one’s own sake. Glaucon thinks that people are unable to resist the power of the Ring of Gyges, therefore, they will commit some unjust act under the influence of the ring no matter how “just” that person may seem to be. Socrates argues against Glaucon’s point by stating that being just may not be a reward to an individual in itself, and if not, then are …show more content…
Do you think such a life would really be the most ethical life? Why or why not? According to Epictetus, Apatheia is a state of which passions do not disturb an individual. This type of attitude would bring about what he calls Ataraxia. Ataraxia is the lack of disturbance or strife when troubling things happen to an individual. I think that learning to live such a life can be beneficial depending on how often you are affected by the unfortunate things that happen in a person’s life. However, it is healthy to react differently and grieve because that is how people stretch themselves and grow into a better person.
4) What does Meng Tzu mean by “a heart sensitive to the suffering of others?” Why does he claim that this defines our humanity, and why does it need to be developed if we are to be ethical or truly humane? What are the other three “seeds” which make up