PHIL1020 Final Exam

Conventional Morality

The moral rules accepted by a society

Critical morality

The moral rules that survive rational evaluation, even if society rejects them

The “moral starting points” in moral reasoning

The basic, widely shared moral beliefs we rely on as data points in moral reasoing

Ethical egoism

The moral theory that you ought to act only in your own self-interest

Psychological egoism

The theory that all human actions are motivated by self-interest, even actions that appear selfless

How does psychological egoism differ from ethical egoism?

Ethical egoism says that we should act in self-interest

What does Ayn Rand mean by “integrity” and “sacrifice” in The Ethics of Emergencies?

Integrity is staying true to your rational values

Sacrifice is giving up a higher value for a lower one (thinks that this is irrational)

Cultural Relativism

The view that cultural norms determine moral truth

Timmons’s critique on “Cultural Diversity Argument”/”Anthropologist’s Argument” for cultural relativism

Says that it confuses what people believe with what is actually true

Disagreement doesn’t prove there’s no objective truth

Timmons’s “moral argument” against cultural relativism

Believes that relativism makes moral reform and moral progress impossible, and that it criticizes harmful cultures

Intrinsic value

Valuable in itself

Instrumental value

Valuable because it leads to something else good

The Principle of Utility

Choose the action that produces the greatest overall happiness for everyone affected

How do utilitarians respond to the objection that well-being cannot be measured?

They argue that we can compare happiness roughly, even if it’s not perfect

What are the two ways the utilitarians have responded to the “argument from injustice” against utilitarianism?

1. Such cases are rare and unlikely

2. Rule utilitarianism: follow rules that maximizes happiness long-term, which forbids injustice

Kant’s Principle of Universalizability

Act only on maxims you can will to become universal laws

What are the three steps of the universalizability test (i.e., the test for whether a maxim is universalizable)?

1. Formulate your maxim

2. Universalize it

3. Check for contradictions or inability to will it

Kant’s Principle of Humanity

Always treat people as ends in themselves, never merely as means

What is Kant’s argument for “the irrationality of morality”?

Acting immorally uses others as mere tools, which contradicts the rational requirement to respect rational agents

What makes actions morally right or wrong, according to social contract theory (or contractarianism)?

Actions are right if they follow rules that rational people would agree to under a fair agreement

What is the social contract in social contract theory, and what is a party to the social contract?

The social contract, in its theory, is an agreement on rules for mutual benefit

A party is someone who accepts the rules in exchange for protection/benefits

What is the “state of nature,” as conceived by Thomas Hobbes?

A condition without government where life is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.”

In what sense are people in the state of nature “free,” “equal,” and “rational,” according to Hobbes?

Free if there is no authority over them

Equal if no one is strong enough to dominate all others

Rational if all pursue self-preservation

The objection that the Hobbesian social contract theory cannot resolve disagreements among the parties

The Hobbesian social contract theory cannot resolve disagreements among the parties, as each person or group may interpret the contract differently, leading to conflict with no clear resolution

The objection that Hobbesian social contract theory cannot accommodate the interests of “vulnerable stakeholders.”

The Hobbesian social contract theory cannot accommodate the interest of “vulnerable stakeholder” because they have nothing to bargain with

These “vulnerable stakeholders” include animals, severely disabled individuals, children, and marginalized communities

John Rawls’ “Veil of Ignorance”

A hypothetical situation where people design society without knowing their social identity

How might Rawls’ Veil of Ignorance help to address the objections about disagreement and vulnerable stakeholders that have been made against Hobbes’s social contract theory?

Rawls’ veil of ignorance helps address objections to disagreement and vulnerable stakeholders by preventing bias and ensuring that rules protect everyone, including vulnerable and minority groups

Ethical pluralism

The view that more than one fundamental moral principle exists

Prima facie moral duty

A moral duty that is binding unless overridden by a stronger duty

Ross’ 7 prima facie duties

1. Fidelity

2. Reparation

3. Gratitude

4. Justice

5. Beneficence

6. Self-Improvement

7. Non-Maleficene

“All-things-considered duty”

The duty you should follow after weighing all competing prima facie duties

What makes actions morally right or wrong, according to virtue ethics?

An action is morally right if it what a virtuous person would do in that situation

An action is morally wrong if it what a person with a vice would do

Virtue

A stable character trait that enables good reasoning and living

According to Aristotle, what is the relationship between having virtues and eudaimonia?

The relationship between virtues and eudaimonia is that virtues are necessary for achieving eudaimonia (flourishing)

Does Aristotle think that we are born with virtues, or that we learn them?

Aristotle thinks that virtues are learned through habit and practice

What is Confucius’s principle of “reciprocity,” also known as the “Silver Rule”?

Confucius’s principle of “reciprocity”/”Silver Rule” is Do not do to others what you would not want done to you

What are some good reasons to be virtuous, according to Confucius?

Brings social harmony, personal fulfillment, and moral excellence

Ubuntu

Personhood through community and mutal care

How does one attain ubuntu?

Attain it by acting with kindness, respect, and connectedness

What is one missing if one lacks ubuntu?

A full human identity and moral character rooted in community

Judith Jarvis Thomson’s violinist analogy in A Defense of Abortion

“Imagine you wake up involuntarily connected to a famous violinist who will die without your body’s support for nine months; you are not morally obligated to remain connected

What point about the ethics of abortion does Thomson make through her person-plant analogy?

You are not morally required to sustain life that grows inside you, even if it results for voluntary actions

During which trimester or trimesters of a pregnancy does Warren consider a fetus to be an early fetus?

The early fetus is considered to be in the 1st and 2nd trimesters

Does Warren believe that early human fetuses are persons with full moral rights to life?

Warren does not believe that early fetuses have moral rights since she considers them as not persons and do not have full moral rights

What are the traits of personhood, according to Warren?

• Consciousness

• Reasoning

• Self-motivated activity

• Ability to communicate

• Self-awareness

What is Warren’s reply to the infanticide objection against her position on abortion?

Infants gain moral protection through society’s valuing of them, even though they’re not full persons

What is Don Marquis’ stance on the ethics of abortion?

It is wrong because it deprives a fetus of a “future like ours”

What is Marquis’ response to the objection to contraception against his position?

Marquis responds that there is no determinate subject of harm before conception, so contraception is not wrong

Factory farm

An industrial farm maximizing production using intensive confinement

Moral status

Being morally considerate

Direct moral status

A matter for your own sake

Indirect moral status

A matter because of your relationship to others

Alastair Norcross’s argument by analogy to the case of Fred

Norcross’s argument in the case of Fred is that if Fred is wrong for torturing puppies for pleasure, eating factory-farmed meat is also wrong

Alastair Norcross’s argument from “marginal cases”

If infants or disabled humans have moral status, then animals with similar capacities must also have it

What does Nick Zangwill believe we have a moral duty to eat meat?

Zangwill argues that eating meat is required because human-animal relationships help animals flourish

How does Zangwill respond to tge cannibalism objections against his view?

Cannibalism doesn’t apply because humans don’t flourish by being eaten

Why does Adam D. Moore believe that taxation is “on par” with forced labor?

Taking someone’s income requires taking the labor used to earn it

What is the point of Moore’s “Beneficent Violinist” thought experiment?

Shows that forcing people to help others (through taxation) can be like forced labor

Why does Philip Goff believe workers do not have a property right over 100% of their pre-tax (gross) income?

Income depends on social infrastructure funded by tax contributions

Moral rights

Based on ethics

Legal rights

Created by law

Christopher Wellman’s argument that legitimate states (i.e. governments) have a moral right to restrict immigration

States have freedom of association and may choose who enters

Why does Javier Hidalgo believe that all countries should have open borders?

Restrictions are coercive and unjustified; People have a right to move freely

What is gender dysphoria?

A distress from a mismatch between gender identity and assigned sex

What are some of its negative health effects of gender dysphoria?

• High rates of depression

• Anxiety

• PTSD

• Substance use disorders

• Suicidal ideation/attempts

What is gender-affirming care?

A term for medical and mental healthcare services that support an individual's gender identity, ranging from social and legal transitions to medical interventions like hormone therapy and surgery

How common are regret and de-transitioning among people who have gone through a gender transition?

Very low, typically around 1% or less

What does Kathleen Stock’s “fictionalizing” solution to gender dysphoria call for?

Treat gender identity as a helpful fiction rather than a literal one

What is the analogy that Sophie-Grace Chappell draws to transgender identities?

Chappel compares transgender identities to narrative identities: a meaningful story one lives through