Philosophy Unit 3

Moral theory

An explanation of what makes an action right or what makes a person or thing good

Consequentialist theory

A theory asserting that what makes an action right is its consequences

Nonconsequentialist theory

A theory asserting that the rightness of an action does not depend on its consequences

Utilitarianism

A theory asserting that the morally right action is the one that produces the most favorable balance of good over evil, everyone considered

Act-utilitarianism

A utilitarian theory asserting that the morally right action is the one that directly produces the most favorable balance of good over evil, everyone considered

Rule-utilitarianism

A utilitarian theory asserting that the morally right action is the one covered by a rule that if generally followed would produce the most favorable balance of good over evil, everyone considered

Categorical imperative

An imperative that we should follow regardless of our particular wants and needs; also, the principle that defines Kant's ethical system

Kant's theory

A theory asserting that the morally right action is the one done in with the categorical imperative

Natural law theory

A theory asserting that the morally right action is the one that follows the dictates of nature

What is evil, according to Socrates?

Ignorance of the good

How is goodness apprehended, according to Plato?

By reason

The just or well-ordered soul manifests which virtue, according to Plato?

Wisdom

In what does human happiness consist, according to Aristotle?

Pleasure, Intellectual virtue, Moral virtue

Which desires did Epicureans say you should occasionally satisfy?

Those that are natural but not necessary

Which piece of advice would be more likely to come from a stoic?

Become self-reliant and accept your fate in life with serenity and calm indifference

Where does moral evil come from, according to St. Augustine?

Misdirected love

What are people naturally like, according to Thomas Hobbes?

They are fundamentally selfish

What is morality ultimately based on, according to Immanuel Kant?

Reason

According to John Stuart Mill, why should we seek to raise the general happiness rather than just our own?

By its very nature morality must assume the perspective of an impartial spectator

Socrates believed that non-virtuous conduct is usually the result of willing evil.

False

Plato held that the ultimate source of reality and goodness lies beyond the physical, natural world.

True

Aristotle thought that the key to happiness is having a soul that is well-ordered.

False

Epicureans and stoics agreed that the good life is the pleasant life.

True

St. Augustine believed that the existence of the Devil is the best explanation of why there is evil in a world created by a totally good God.

False

St. Hildegard believed that mystical experience was a source of knowledge as certain as reason.

True

St. Thomas Aquinas held that there were two sets of virtues, one set directing us to happiness on earth and the other directing us to eternal happiness.

True

Thomas Hobbes thought that peace requires justice which, given human nature, requires compulsion under the threat of force.

True

David Hume believed that moral judgments are based on reasoning from the observed facts of a situation.

False

Unlike the utilitarians, who based morality on consequences, Kant held that morality is categorical and thus must be based solely on reason.

True

Aesara of Lucania

A Pythagorean philosopher from southern Italy who held that by introspecting about the nature and structure of the human soul we can identify a standard of personal and public morality.

Aristotle

An ethical naturalist who held that moral judgments are judgments of fact about the natural world. He said that happiness is our highest good.

Consequentialism

Ethical theories that evaluate actions by their consequences.

Contractarian theory

The political theory according to which a legitimate states exists only by virtue of an agreement or "contract" among the subjects of the state.

Contractualism

Ethical theories according to which right and wrong are established by a societal agreement or social contract.

Cultural relativism

The theory that what is right (and wrong) is what your culture believes is right (and wrong).

Cynicism

A school of philosophy founded around the fifth century B.C., probably by Antisthenes or Diogenes; the Cynics sought to lead lives of total simplicity and naturalness by rejecting all comforts and conveniences of society.

Cyrenaicism

The philosophy of Aristippus and others who lived in Cyrene about Plato's time; it emphasized seeking a life of as many intense pleasures as possible.

David Hume

Held that moral principles are neither divine edicts nor discoverable by reason and that value judgments are based on emotion. He said that the act that pleases our moral sensibilities is one that reflects the agent's benevolent character.

Deontological ethics

Ethical theories according to which what I ought to do is whatever it is my moral duty to do.

Descriptive egoism

The doctrine that maintains that in conscious action a person always seeks self-interest above all else.

Descriptive relativism

The doctrine that the moral standards people subscribe to differ from culture to culture and from society to society.

Diogenes

The most famous Cynic, who taught by shocking example that the wise person reduces all wants and avoids all comforts.

Divine-command ethics

Ethical theory according to which what is morally right and good is determined by divine command.

Divine law

In the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas, God's gift to humankind, apprehended through revelation, that directs us to our supernatural goal, eternal happiness.

Egoism

The doctrine that in conscious action one seeks (or ought to seek) self-interest above all else.

Egoistic ethical hedonism

The theory that one ought to seek one's own pleasure above all else.

Epictetus

A leading Stoic, held that one's highest objective is to find a serene or untroubled life through acceptance of the rational natural order of things.

Epicureanism

The philosophy of followers of Epicurus, who believed that personal pleasure is the highest good but advocated renouncing momentary pleasures in favor of more lasting ones.

Epicurus

An Ethical egoist, held that one's highest objective is to lead the pleasant life through moderate living.

Ethical hedonism

The doctrine that you ought to seek pleasure over all else.

Ethical naturalism

The belief that moral value judgments are really judgments of fact about the natural world.

Ethical relativism

The theory that there are no absolute and universally valid moral standards and values and that therefore the moral standards and values that apply to you are merely those that are accepted by your society.

Ethical skepticism

The doctrine that moral knowledge is not possible.

Ethics

The branch of philosophy that considers the nature, criteria, sources, logic, and validity of moral value judgments.

Form

In Plato's philosophy, that which is denoted by a general word (such as "good") that applies to more than a single thing.

Friedrich Nietzsche

Distinguished between slave morality (the morality of the masses) and master morality (the morality of the nobleman). The former represents the denial of life; the latter represents the will-to-power.

Hedonism

The pursuit of pleasure.

Heloise

A medieval French philosopher who held that the morality or immorality of an action is determined by the intention with which it is done.

Hypothetical imperative

An imperative that states what you ought to do if a certain end is desired.

Immanuel Kant

Held that the supreme prescription of morality is to act always in such a way that you could rationally will the principle on which you act to be a universal law. He believed that what you should do you should do not because it promotes some end but simply because it is right.

Individual relativism

The theory that what is right (and wrong) is what you believe is right (and wrong).

Instrumental end

Something that is desirable as a means to an end, but is not desirable for its own sake.

Intrinsic end

Something that is desirable for its own sake and not merely as a means to an end.

Jeremy Bentham

A utilitarian, held that the rightness of an action is identical with the pleasure it produces as its consequence and said that pleasure can be evaluated quantitatively.

John Stuart Mill

A utilitarian, held that the rightness of an action is identical with the happiness that it produces as its consequence and said that pleasure - a part of happiness - must be measured in terms of quality as well as quantity.

Moral imperative

Distinguished by Kant from a hypothetical imperative, which holds conditionally (e.g., "If you desire health, then eat well!"), a moral imperative holds unconditionally (e.g., "Do your duty!").

Moral judgment

A value judgment about what is morally right or wrong, good or bad, proper or improper.

Natural law

In the Stoic philosophy, a principle of rationality that infuses the universe, to which human behavior ought to conform. In Thomas Aquinas's philosophy, God's eternal law as it applies to humans on earth and dictates the fundamental principles of morality.

Objective reality

The reality possessed by anything whose existence or characteristics do not depend on our consciousness of them.

Paradox of hedonism

Henry Sidgwick's term for the fact that the desire for pleasure, if it is too strong, defeats its own aim.

Peter Abelard

Set forth one of medieval philosophy's most careful analyses of the morality of intent.

Plato

Also sought the essences of moral virtues, identifying these with the unchanging Forms, the highest of which he held to be the Form of the Good, the ultimate source of all value and reality.

Prescriptive egoism

The doctrine that in all conscious action you ought to seek your self-interest above all else.

Psychological hedonism

The theory that pleasure is the object of a person's desire.

Skeptic

One who questions or suspends judgment on the possibility of knowledge.

skepticism (lowercase "s")

The doctrine that true knowledge is uncertain or impossible.

Socrates

Sought to discover the essences of moral virtues and championed the use of reason in moral deliberation.

Sophists

Ancient Greek rhetoricians who taught debating skills for a fee.

St. Augustine

Used Platonic concepts to solve "the problem of evil," held moral evil to be misdirected love, and identified God as the supreme moral authority and source of all goodness.

St. Hildegard of Bingen

A medieval German mystic philosopher who held that the moral powers of the soul come from its three faculties understanding, insight, and execution.

St. Thomas Aquinas

Reconciled Aristotelian ethical naturalism with Christianity.

Stoicism

The ethical philosophy of the ancient Greek Stoics, who emphasized the serene or untroubled life as the highest good and thought it best reached through acceptance of the natural order of things.

Subjectivism

In ethics, the doctrine that what is right is determined by what people believe is right; elsewhere, the theory that limits knowledge to conscious states.

Thomas Hobbes

Held that "good" and "evil" denote what a person desires or hates; he maintained that our natural end is preservation of self.

Universalistic ethical hedonism

The doctrine that one ought to seek, over everything else, the greatest pleasure for the greatest number of people.

Value judgment

A proposition that explicitly or implicitly assigns a value to something.

Virtue ethics

Ethical theories according to which what I ought to do is what the virtuous person would do; for virtue ethics, the primary question is, What kind of person ought I to be?

Zeno

The founder of Stoicism.

What is the form of the ideal state, according to Plato?

It is an aristocracy ruled by an elite group of intellectually superior individuals.

What is the form of the ideal state for Aristotle?

Another trick question! Aristotle didn't think there is any single form that the ideal state must take.

What is not true of the natural law, for St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas?

When there is a conflict between it and human law, human law takes precedence.

What is not true of the contract that gives rise to the state, according to Thomas Hobbes?

It gives citizens a right to revolt if the state acts unjustly towards them.

Which best describes Locke's governmental contract?

The people delegate or entrust their natural rights to a divided government, retaining the right to revolt if the government violates its trust.

What is true, moral freedom, according to the later Rousseau?

Obedience to the general will.

In which of the following was the power of the Supreme Court to declare laws unconstitutional established?

Marbury v. Madison

Which did Harriet Taylor support?

The toleration of nonconformist thought and lifestyles.

John Stuart Mill believed that

one should seek general happiness.

Karl Marx viewed history as the struggle between two classes. What are they?

A dominant class that owns and controls the means of production and a subordinate class that doesn't.

Plato and Aristotle were both fans of democracy and basic human equality.

False

Both Plato and Aristotle thought the state was an organic entity, a person in its own right.

True