18 Jan Because it is too difficult

PHI115 ETHICS

Exam 1

Question 1

What is a value that all cultures share, according to Rachels?

Answers:

All cultures value personal freedom.

All cultures value fairness.

All cultures value self-defense.

All cultures value truth-telling.

Question 2

The “Euthyphro Dilemma” is the famous question that Socrates asked Euthyphro in Plato’s Euthyphro. What is that question (or what comes closest to that question)?

Answers:

Can right things be right while people disagree about what’s right and wrong?

Is an action right because people say it’s right or do people say it’s right because it is right?

Are actions right because all the gods love them or do the gods love them because they are right?

If the gods agree about what’s right, then why do religions disagree with each other?

Question 3

Which of the following consequences follows from taking Cultural Relativism to be true?

Answers:

Asking whether a given action conforms to the code of oneâ s society is sufficient for determining that actionâ s rightness or wrongness.

The assumption that our society has progressed since the days of slavery becomes doubtful.

A society tolerant of Jews cannot be said to be superior to an anti-Semitic society.

All of these are .

Question 4

True/False: Euthyphro is prosecuting his own father for not paying his fair share in taxes.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 5

True/False: Socrates is being charged with impiety.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 6

Historians and psychologists are best thought of as doing what kind of ethics?

Answers:

descriptive

normative

meta-ethical

Question 7

What was the position of Socrates in the Crito?

Answers:

He was eating dinner.

He was lecturing to a large audience.

He was in prison.

Question 8

Suppose someone asks Mary what’s the difference between right and wrong and she says, “Well, murder is wrong while helping our neighbors is right. Lying is wrong while obtaining consent from other people is right.” She is making what mistake from Plato’s Euthyphro?

Answers:

She is giving a list of right things and of wrong things.

She is saying that things are right if the gods love them and wrong if the gods hate them.

She is saying that things are right if all the gods love them and wrong if all the gods hate them.

None of the above.

Question 9

Suppose Jim argues in the following way: “Lying is wrong. We were all raised to dislike lying and it’s just socially accepted that lying is wrong.” What mistake is Jim making?

Answers:

The “I think it therefore it’s right” mistake.

He is saying that lots of people think it, therefore it’s right.

He is appealing to a moral authority.

He is using cultural relativism to support his position.

Question 10

Suppose you wanted to know what makes something morally right and were given a list of things that are right. Which of the following is a reason that Socrates would probably give (based on Platoâ s dialogue â Euthyphroâ ) for not wanting a list.

Answers:

A list of examples of rightness would not tell you any examples of rightness.

A list of examples of rightness would not tell you the one characteristic they have in common.

A list of examples of rightness would not help you prosecute your father for murder.

A list of examples of rightness would not be since any and all lists are wrong.

Question 11

(Basedon Regan) Suppose Tom argues in the following way: “Of course murder is wrong. It’s written in the Bible. God says it’s wrong!” What mistake is Tom making?

Answers:

The “I think it therefore it’s right” mistake.

He is saying that lots of people think it, therefore it’s right.

He is appealing to a moral authority.

He is using cultural relativism to support his position.

Question 12

(from Frankena) The claim “It is always wrong to harm someone” is what kind of claim?

Answers:

A claim from descriptive ethics.

A claim from normative ethics.

A claim from meta-ethics.

Question 13

True/False: Based on the syllabus: Each week you are required to post at least two constructive comments in the discussion forum.

Selected Answer:

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 14

True/False: Cultural relativists believe that there are no standards of right and wrong.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 15

Why does Rachels say that not every moral rule can vary from society to society?

Answers:

Some rules are necessary for society to exist.

Human beings share a common creator.

Certain values are innate.

Human beings have all evolved from a common ancestral line

Question 16

Suppose Sue argues in the following way: “82% of the U.S. population is in favor of the death penalty. Therefore, the death penalty is morally permissible.” What mistake is Sue making?

Answers:

The “I think it therefore it’s right” mistake.

He is saying that lots of people think it, therefore it’s right.

He is appealing to a moral authority.

He is using cultural relativism to support his position.

Question 17

Why does Regan think the method of answering moral questions cannot be the appeal to a moral authority?

Answers:

It is not clear that such an authority exists.

Even if there is a moral authority, it is not clear that we could be sure what he or she thinks about moral questions.

The authoritative status of moral judgments can be established only if there are independent ways of testing the truth or reasonableness of those judgments.

All of the choices are , according to Regan.

Question 18

What makes an action right or wrong, according to cultural relativism?

Answers:

the standards of one’s culture

the consequences of doing that action

whether that action is rational or irrational to do

whether that action makes one happy or not

Question 19

(from Frankena) True/False: One of the first points of Socrates when deciding what to do, was to say that we should not let our decisions be determined by our emotions.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 20

Euthypro attempts to define piety at one point by saying, “The pious is what the gods love and the impious is what the gods hate.” Why, according to Socrates, can’t this be ?

Answers:

The gods disagree with one another. Hence the same thing could be both pious and impious, which is impossible.

The gods disagree with one another. Hence one god would have to be more powerful than another god, which we can’t know.

The gods disagree, which means that the gods aren’t rational. That is itself an imious view.

If whatever the gods love is pious, then anything could be pious, even killing children. That’s obviously false.

PHI115 ETHICS

Exam 2

Question 1

True/False: According to Mill, a completely contented fool is happier than an intelligent person who is not fully satisfied with his or her lot.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 2

Suppose you lie to me in order to obtain money from me. In that case, my decision to lend you money was not…

Answers:

voluntary

informed

decisionally-capacitated

Question 3

On what grounds does Mill think some pleasures can be judged higher or better than others?

Answers:

the undisputed superiority of the mind over the body

the compatibility of certain kinds of pleasure with moral virtue

the preference for one kind of pleasure over another shared by all of thsoe fully acquaiinted with both

all of these

Question 4

What is an imperative?

Answers:

It is a command.

It is a question.

It is a statement.

Question 5

True/False: The main idea for Rawls is that justice is fairness.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 6

How does Mill define happiness?

Answers:

the fulfillment of one’s highest human potential

a life lived in accordance with virtue

pleasure and the absence of pain

the achievement of one’s goals

Question 7

True/False: Immanuel Kant is a consequentialist.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 8

Which of Rawls’ principles requires that positions of authority and responsibility be held open, that is be accessible to everyone?

Answers:

First

Second

Question 9

Mill would most likely say that it is generally immoral to lie because:

Answers:

lying involves treating someone merely as a means.

lying undermines trustworthiness, which is indispensable to human well-being.

lying runs counter to the divine will.

to lie is to act according to a maxim that would not be universalized.

Question 10

True/False: Kant believes that it is possible to use ourselves merely as a means and not as an end.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 11

If I am forced at gunpoint to give over my wallet, then my actions was not…

Answers:

voluntary

informed

decisionally-capacitated

Question 12

True/False: When behind the “veil of ignorance,” decision makers know their income level and socioeconomic status.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 13

Which of the following is a hypothetical imperative?

Answers:

Don’t steal.

If you don’t want to go to prison, then don’t steal.

Stealing is a means of getting things.

Question 14

True/False: The utilitarian standard of right action is the happiness of the one performing the action.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 15

Which of the following rules captures Mill’s understanding of utilitarian ethics?

Answers:

Love your neighbor as yourself

Act only according to maxims you would be willing to make into universal laws.

To thine own self be true.

Carpe diem (“Seize the day”).

Question 16

Which of the following is a categorical imperative?

Answers:

Help others.

If you want to be respected, then you should help others.

Helping others is good for the soul.

Question 17

True/False: According to Mill, pleasure is the only thing desirable for itself and not as a means to some other end.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 18

Which of the following is THE Categorical Imperative?

Answers:

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Always act in such a way that you make the world a better place.

I ought never to act in such a way that I couldn’t also will that the maxim on which I act should be a universal law.

Question 19

Suppose I have a hammer and use that hammer to drive nails into wood while I’m building a house. I am using that hammer ____________

Answers:

as an end

merely as a means

Question 20

Suppose that I go to a restaurant. I consent to being there and the wait staff consent to being there and waiting on me. In such a case, when I order food I am using the staff__________

Answers:

as an end

merely as a means

Question 21

How should basic liberties or freedoms be distributed, according to Rawls?

Answers:

Basic freedoms can be distributed to anyone so long as a majority of the people vote for it.

Basic freedoms can be distributed to some but not to others so long as this benefits everyone.

Basic freedoms have to be distributed equally.

Basic freedoms have to be distributed unequally. It’s the only way for this to work.

Question 22

Mill’s supreme principle of morality is…

Answers:

the categorical imperative

the principle of utility

the natural law

the formula of the end in itself

Question 23

True/False: Utilitarians tend to rank pleasures of the mind higher than pleasures of the body.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 24

Consent requires that an action be….

Answers:

voluntary

informed

decisionally-capacitated

all of the above

Question 25

The initial state which insures that the fundamental agreements reached in it are fair is called what?

Answers:

Status quo

Original Positoin

Distributive justice

Continental Congress

PHI115 ETHICS

Exam 3

Question 1

In what sense is moral virtue a mean?

Answers:

It occupies a middle ground between excessive and deficient possibilities of feeling and acting.

It corresponds to what the average person would do in a situation.

It corresponds to what ordinary “common sense” would recomment.

It is a mean in the sense that it is mathematical and one can apply a simple formula to determine what is right and wrong.

Question 2

True/False: Gilligan would probably say that the way that girls reason has typically been devalued and not treated as a genuine alternative to the way that boys typically reason.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 3

True/False: In order for an act to be truly virtuous, it must be done from a fixed state of character, for its own sake and knowingly and willingly.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 4

The Racial Contract is that set of formal or informal agreements establishing the rules and regulations for two groups of people, the _________ and the ___________.

Answers:

whites…non-whites

northern whites…southern whites

Europeans and Africans

Question 5

In what does happiness consist?

Answers:

experiencing pleasure and not experiencing pain

achieving one’s goals and receiving honor from one’s community

activity of the soul in accordance with virtue

health, wealth and time to enjoy them

Question 6

True/False: Human beings have a particular function, according to Aristotle.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 7

What is the purpose of the racial contract and the state that it establishes?

Answers:

To promote the greatest good for the greatest number.

To benefit the least advantaged by promoting equality of basic rights.

To maintain the privileges and advantages of full white citizens.

All of the above

Question 8

True/False: Gilligan argues that young boys and young girls reason about moral dillemmas in very similar ways.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 9

True/False: The person who errs by way of excess with respect to courage can be called foolhardy or rash.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 10

True/False: The epistemological dimension of the racial contract requires that those in a position of privilege misinterpret the world, instead of get their view of the world right.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

PHI115 ETHICS

Exam 4 (Final Exam)

Question 1

True/False: Held thinks that care should be valued more as a virtue.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 2

True/False: Held thinks that moral obligations are universal and apply the same way to every moral agent (to everyone).

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 3

True/False: Lorde says we should respond to difference by ignoring it.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 4

True/False: Lorde thinks that we should define differences for ourselves.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 5

True/False: Hardin and Singer agree on our moral obligations to countries and people less affluent and fortunate than we are.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 6

True/False: Hardin thinks that the appropriate metaphor for the relationship between affluent countries and other countries less fortunate is that of a spaceship.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 7

True/False: Ethics is objective. [Note: Pick true for this one. This isn’t a trick. Ethics is objective. It’s just hard sometimes to figure out the right thing to do. Good luck on your final!]

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 8

True/False: Between Singer and Hardin, Singer is closer to being a utilitarian.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 9

What does Singer think about relief agencies’ practice of thanking donors for their generosity?

Answers:

It undermines the moral value of the donorsâ actions.

It mistakes an act of duty for an act of charity.

It increases the likelihood that others will give.

It should not be followed up by requests for more contributions.

Question 10

Singer considers the moderate version of his position to be more reasonable than the strong version.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 11

The ethics of care is interested in describing but not evaluating the various aspects of care and caring relations.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 12

Singer’s reflections here are primarily:

Answers:

descriptive-empirical.

prescriptive-normative.

meta-ethical.

all of these.

Question 13

Some writers cited by Singer have feared that promoting radically demanding moral standards will:

Answers:

lead to a general breakdown in morality.

lead people to sacrifice more than is good for them.

lead to widespread, paralyzing guilt.

undermine our tolerance of cultures with moral standards different from our own.

Question 14

According to the ethics of care, impartiality is a fundamental criterion of moral reasoning.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 15

According to the moderate version of Singer’s position, I should give until:

Answers:

further giving would force me to sacrifice something of moral significance.

I reach the point of marginal utility.

further giving would bring my income below my nationâ s average.

further giving would require a dramatic change in my lifestyle.

Question 16

Singer believes that we should be working full time to relieve the great suffering common in many parts of the world.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 17

What does Singer believe those who live in relatively affluent countries have a duty to sacrifice to protect people in poor countries from preventable evils?

Answers:

one-tenth of their incomes

as much as they can afford without radically altering their lifestyles

as much as they can afford without sacrificing something of comparable moral worth to what the poor are lacking

as much as it would take to eradicate the evils if everyone else in that economic situation gave an equal amount

Question 18

Singer’s proposal would require a dramatic alteration of the way we think about moral issues.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 19

In technical terms, the duty of the affluent to assist those suffering from preventable evils in poor countries is “supererogatory,” according to Singer.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 20

By “care,” Held means the benevolent disposition of one individual toward another.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 21

The ethics of care places particular emphasis on which of the following?

Answers:

universal rules

human dependence

the distinction between egoism and altruism

all of these

Question 22

Held believes that empathy can become excessive.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE

Question 23

Which of the following actions would Singer be likely to see as morally unjustifiable?

Answers:

buying clothes for any reason other than to keep warm

giving a friend a moderately priced bottle of wine on her birthday

saving money for a family cruise to Alaska

all of these

Question 24

What does Singer think about the view that overpopulation will lead to mass starvation in the future?

Answers:

There is no good evidence to support it.

It mitigates our obligation to do what we can to prevent famine now.

If we accept it, then our duty to prevent famine should lead us to support organizations working for population control.

Because it is too difficult to predict, the future is not relevant to our moral considerations in the present.

Question 25

The distinction between charity and duty is justified, according to Singer, by the social origins of moral attitudes.

Answers:

TRUE

FALSE