Environmental Ethics Midterm

According to Caradonna, what is the stock narrative of the Industrial Revolution?

A story of progress, innovation, and human advancement through industry.

What does Caradonna consider to be the discontents of the Industrial Revolution?

Pollution, social inequality, environmental harm, and disconnection from nature.

How do greenhouse gases warm the planet?

They trap heat in Earth's atmosphere, creating the greenhouse effect.

Who are the critics of the Industrial Revolution?

Environmentalists and social thinkers who question its sustainability and ethics.

What are the critics of the Industrial Revolutions arguments?

That it caused environmental destruction, inequality, and moral detachment from nature.

What is Dasein for Heidegger?

Human existence or "being there"; the way humans exist and relate to the world.

How does Heidegger's use of hyphenated words overcome various philosophical problems that relate to the environment?

It reconnects abstract thought to lived experience and the unity of beings.

What is the question concerning technology?

What technology truly is and how it shapes human understanding of being.

What is the essence of techology?

A way of revealing or disclosing truth, not. just a collection of tools.

How does technology relate to the Being?

It changes how humans perceive and engage with the world.

What does Heidegger mean by enframing?

Viewing everything, including nature, as a resource for human use.

What does Heidegger mean by standing reserve?

Nature and objects seen as stored resources waiting to be used.

Does Heidegger believe that both technology is good? Bad? Both?

Both. It reveals truth but also limits our way of seeing the world.

What is Moral Extensionism?

Extending moral values to others

What is Utillitarianism?

The belief that right actions maximize happiness and minimize suffering.

On what standard is Utillitarianism based?

Consequences. The greatest good for the greatest number.

What is Bentham's Hedonistic Calculus?

A method to measure pleasure and pain to evaluate moral choices.

How does Mill add to Bentham's Hedonistic Calculus?

By distinguishing higher (intellectual) from lower (physical) pleasures.

How does Singer extend Mill's moral theory, to whom, and on what basis?

To animals, based on their capacity to suffer and feel pleasure.

Do animals have rights to Singer's moral theory?

Yes, because they can experience pain and pleasure.

What is Deontology?

A duty-based ethical system focused on intention and moral rules.

What does Kant ground his moral reasoning in, on what standard?

Rationality and universal moral law.

Be able to state the Categorical Imperative - Practical or End-in-itself version.

Treat humanity always an end. never merely as a means.

What is moral unity in Kant?

Rational beings.

How does Regan extend Kant's moral theory, to whom, and on what basis?

To animals who are "subjects-of-a-life" what beliefs and desires.

What is the standard used to determine moral value in Regan?

Being a conscious subject-of-a-life.

What is the moral unit in Regan?

Subjects-of-a-life, both human and animal.

How is Taylor's Respect for Nature deontological or Kantian.

It applies Kantian respect and duty to all life forms.

How does Taylor extend Regan's moral theory, to which entities, and on what basis?

To all living organisms, based on their inherent good.

How does Taylor justify the attitude of respect for nature?

Every organism is a teleological center of life pursuing its own good.

What is biocentric egalitarianism?

The belief that all living beings have equal inherent worth.

What is the moral unit in Taylor?

All living organisms.

What is the Wilderness Debate?

The argument over whether wilderness is truly untouched or a human construct.

Does Christopher Stone believe trees have moral standing?

Yes, they can have legal and moral rights.

According to Stone what kind of moral standings?

Legal and moral standing as entities that can be represented.

What is Stone's argument?

If corporations have rights, natural entities like trees can too.

What entities are worthy of moral consideration and are protected under Rolston's ethic?

Species, ecosystems, and natural processes.

What is Rolston's name for these entities slightly different from that of Taylor's?

Natural value systems beyond individual organisms.

What standard does Rolston base his ethic on?

Natures intrinsic value.

What is Rolston's reasoning to justify this positon?

Nature's value exists independently of human interests.

What is Leopold's ethic and what is it based on.

The Land Ethic, based on viewing humans as part of the biotic community.

Be able to state the Land Ethic.

"A thing is right when it preserves the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community."

What is the moral unit for Leopold?

A biotic community as a whole.

Is the moral unit for Leopold atomistic or holistic?

Holistic

1 multiple choice option

What does Leopold mean by thinking like a mountain?

Understanding long-term ecological balance and consequences.

What is the fierce green fire that Leopold talks about?

The recognition of life's interconnectedness and moral worth.

What is the land pyramid?

A model showing energy flow and interdependence in ecosystems.

What is an ecological conscience?

A sense of moral responsibility toward the land.

What is the difference between Type A and Type B conservationists?

Type A focuses on use; Type B values natures intrinsic worth.

Wendy Lynne Lee claims that Leopold is patriarchal and dismisses his thought - why?

She argues his ethic is rooted in male-dominated and hierarchical views.

How is Arne Naess's Deep Ecology ethic different from Leopold's?

Naess emphasizes intrinsic value and self-realization beyond ecology.

Do Deep Ecologists believe nature has intrinsic value?

Yes, all living things have value in themselves.

What is the difference between deep and shallow ecology for Naess?

Shallow focuses on human needs; Deep values all life equally.

What is ecological Self?

Expanding one's identity to include the natural world.

What are the basic principals of Naess's Platform

Intrinsic value, diversity, ecological balance, and reducing human interference.

What is Derrick Jensen's radicalized form of Deep Ecology?

Advocating for dismantling industrial civilization to protect the planet.

Wendy Lynne Lee frequently discusses the need for a paradigm shift - meaning what?

A complete change in how society views nature and progress

What does Jensen think of Industrial civilization?

It's unsustainable and destructive to life on Earth.

What does Jensen propose we do about Industrial civilization?

Resist and dismantle industrial systems.

How does Jensen justify this position?

Through moral and ecological urgency to protect life.

What is the endgame for Jensen?

A world where ecosystems recover and humans live sustainably.

What is eco-phenomoenology?

Studying how human experience is rooted in the natural world.

For Wood, how is this an environmental ethic, i.e., one that can make value judgments?

It connects human perception to ethical care for nature.

What is eco-feminism?

The belief that the domination of women and nature share the same root causes.

What is the logic of domination?

A mindset that justifies control and hierarchy over others and nature.

What is the Pope's position on the environment?

That caring for creation is a moral and spiritual duty.

How does the Pope think we address the problems we have created?

Through global cooperation, humility, and ecological conversion.

What are some of the basic themes of Laudato Si?

Interconnectedness, justice for the poor, care for creation, and moral responsibility.