📚 FULL REVIEW SHEET: Ethics & Meaning of Life 🏛️ Aristotle’s Ethics (Virtue Ethics) 🔹 The Golden Mean (Virtue = Balance) Aristotle believed that moral virtue is a balance between two extremes: Excess (too much) Deficiency (too little) 👉 Examples: Courage = between cowardice (too little bravery) and recklessness (too much) Generosity = between stinginess and wastefulness ✔ Key idea: Virtue is not one-size-fits-all—it depends on the situation and requires judgment. 🔹 Habits & Character We are not born virtuous Virtue is developed through practice and repetition “We are what we repeatedly do” 👉 If you act honestly repeatedly → you become an honest person ✔ This is why habits are central to Aristotle’s ethics 🔹 Instrumental vs Intrinsic Goods Instrumental goods = useful for achieving something else (ex: money, tools, education) Intrinsic goods = valuable in themselves (ex: happiness) 🔹 Happiness (Eudaimonia) Aristotle’s ultimate goal: eudaimonia (flourishing) Not just pleasure → a life of reason and virtue ✔ Happiness = Living morally Using reason well Achieving your full potential ⚖️ Kant’s Ethics (Deontology) 🔹 Core Idea: Duty Over Consequences Immanuel Kant believed: Morality is about doing your duty NOT about outcomes or happiness 🔹 Maxims A maxim = your personal rule for acting 👉 Example: “It’s okay to lie when it helps me” 🔹 Categorical Imperative The most important rule: 👉 Only act on maxims you would want to become universal laws Ask yourself: “What if everyone did this?” ✔ If it creates a contradiction → it’s immoral 🔹 Treat People as Ends Another version: Never treat people as means only Always treat them as ends (valuable individuals) 🔗 Free Will & Determinism 🔹 Determinism All events are caused by previous events Your actions are the result of: Biology Environment Past experiences 🔹 Hard Determinism No free will exists Everything is predetermined 🔹 Soft Determinism (Compatibilism) Free will can exist with determinism You are free if you act without coercion 🔹 Libertarianism (Free Will Theory) Humans have true freedom We are not fully determined 🔹 Beliefs, Desires & Freedom Actions come from: What you believe What you want 👉 Debate: If these are determined → are we really free? 🔹 Coercion When someone is forced by external pressure 👉 Examples: Threats (gunpoint) Blackmail ✔ Coerced actions = not fully free 🔹 Free Will & Moral Responsibility We can only be held responsible if: We had control We acted freely 🧠 Existentialism & Meaning 🔹 Jean-Paul Sartre Key Idea: 👉 “Existence precedes essence” You are NOT born with a purpose You create yourself through choices 🔹 Human Nature No fixed human nature Humans are radically free 🔹 Anguish Deep anxiety from: Total freedom Total responsibility 👉 You are responsible for everything you choose 🔹 Meaning of Life No built-in meaning You must create meaning yourself 🪨 Sisyphus 🔹 Sisyphus Punished by rolling a rock uphill forever The rock always rolls back down 👉 Represents: Meaningless or repetitive life Human struggle ✔ Often used in existentialism: Even in absurdity → we can create meaning ✝️ Arguments for the Existence of God 🔹 Ontological Argument (A Priori) Anselm of Canterbury Based on logic alone God = “greatest possible being” If God exists in the mind → must exist in reality ✔ No observation needed 🔹 Design Argument (Teleological) William Paley World is complex and ordered Like a watch → implies a watchmaker 👉 Therefore → God exists 🔹 The Problem of Evil If God is: All-powerful All-good 👉 Why does evil exist? ✔ Challenges belief in God 🔬 Scientism & Naturalism 🔹 Scientism Only science gives true knowledge 🔹 Naturalism Everything is explained by natural causes No supernatural explanations 🔹 Impact on Free Will If everything is scientific → maybe free will is an illusion 😊 John Stuart Mill & Utilitarianism 🔹 John Stuart Mill Focus: maximize happiness 🔹 Higher vs Lower Pleasures Higher Pleasures: Intellectual (reading, thinking, learning) Lower Pleasures: Physical (eating, comfort) ✔ Key idea: 👉 “Better to be a human dissatisfied than a pig satisfied”

What is Aristotle’s key concept in Virtue Ethics?

The Golden Mean, which is the balance between two extremes.

What are the two extremes of courage according to Aristotle?

Cowardice (too little bravery) and recklessness (too much bravery).

How is moral virtue developed according to Aristotle?

Through practice and repetition.

What distinguishes instrumental goods from intrinsic goods?

Instrumental goods are useful for achieving something else, while intrinsic goods are valuable in themselves.

What does Aristotle identify as the ultimate goal of life?

Eudaimonia, or flourishing.

What is Kant's core idea in his ethics?

Duty over consequences.

What does a maxim represent in Kantian ethics?

A personal rule for acting.

What is the Categorical Imperative according to Kant?

Only act on maxims you would want to become universal laws.

What is the difference between hard determinism and soft determinism?

Hard determinism asserts no free will exists, while soft determinism allows for free will if actions are not coerced.

What does libertarianism state about human freedom?

Humans have true freedom and are not fully determined.

What is the existentialist view of human nature as proposed by Jean-Paul Sartre?

No fixed human nature; humans are radically free.

What does the phrase 'anguish' refer to in existentialism?

Deep anxiety from total freedom and total responsibility.

What is the ontological argument for the existence of God?

It states that God, defined as the greatest possible being, must exist in reality if He exists in the mind.

What does the design argument suggest about the existence of God?

The complexity and order of the world imply a designer, likened to a watch implying a watchmaker.

How does the problem of evil challenge the belief in God?

If God is all-powerful and all-good, the existence of evil poses a contradiction.

What is naturalism’s stance in explaining reality?

Everything is explained by natural causes with no supernatural explanations.

What does John Stuart Mill emphasize in utilitarianism?

The aim to maximize happiness.

What distinguishes higher pleasures from lower pleasures according to Mill?

Higher pleasures are intellectual, while lower pleasures are physical.

What is the key principle of Mill's view on happiness?

It is better to be a human dissatisfied than a pig satisfied.