Phil140 Midterm Review1) What problem is there in basing morality on God’s commands?We can’t base morality on god’s commands because everything is up to interpretation. A terrorist and a non-terrorist may both believe that they are living under god’s will but that is because of their different interpretations of god’s commands. God saying “do not steal” can be interpreted in many ways, such as the taking of one’s rights, etc. 2) What is the harm-based account of why killing is ordinarily wrong? %What are some of its merits and demerits?The harm-based account tells us why killing is ordinarily wrong because it inflicts harm upon the victim. The level of wrongness varies directly with the level of harm. Killing harms the victim, infringes the victim’s freedom or autonomy, destroys something of great intrinsic value, harms others, harms the killer, itis illegal, it is against God’s will.3) How does Epicurus argue that death is a harm? %Taking for granted that there is no after-life, identify one or two potential problems with his argument which we have encountered.Epicurus believes death to not be a harm because only things intrinsically good or bad for a person are pleasant/unpleasant experiences (hedonism). Death doesn’t cause one to have unpleasant experiences. Death, therefore, isn’t a bad thing for one.Two potential problems with his argument would be that: 1) the actof dying is harmful to one. 2) if death isn’t seen as a harm, then it wouldn’t be wrong to kill people.4) Describe the case of Wonmug and describe how Rachels employs it to try to undermine Epicurus’ argument. %Rachels disagrees with Epicurus because she does not see death as a harm. 5) What is Nagel’s deprivation theory? How is it relevant to thequestion whether death is an evil? %Be sure to describe the case of the ‘infant-adult’ and indicate how it supports deprivation theory. The deprivation theory suggests that death is bad because of what it deprives of us. It deprives us from accomplishing future goals in our lives. The ‘infant-adult’ case causes us to question why we do not see an infant’s intelligence level as a misfortune, while we see an adult with an infant’s intelligence level as a serious misfortune. The adult in this case is being deprived of his or her full cognitive potential, while it is common knowledge that the infant will mature and reach a greater intelligence level one day. 6) What is the symmetry argument? %Identify one or two plausible criticisms of the argument. %The symmetry argument was derived from Lucretius and suggests three things. One being that there is no reason to see it as a misfortune to not have pre-existed. Death is simply an eternity of non-existence after one’s life. There is no reason to see it as a misfortune not to post-exist. A criticism of this argument would bethat we are forward looking creatures, meaning that humans look to their futures instead of dwelling on their pasts. This means that it would be a misfortune to not post-exist, even if it is not seen as misfortune to not pre-exist. 7) With regard to the desire-fulfillment theory: distinguish the unrestricted version from the success theory and give an illustration of the latter’s superiority over the former.Distinguish summative and global versions and, likewise, give an illustration of the latter’s superiority over the former. %The unrestricted desire fulfillment theory takes into account all desires in one’s life. It suggests that desires we have that we donot even know are fulfilled contribute to our happiness. For example, someone may see a homeless person on the street and momentarily wish that their lives would turn around for the better.Eventually, the homeless person gets a job and a home and your desire is fulfilled although you will never know about it. The unrestricted desire fulfillment theory suggests that this contributes to one’s happiness.The success theory suggests that what is best for you is whatever fulfills your desires about your own life. For example, if one’s child grows up and has a great life that is a good thing.However as long as you felt that you were successful as a parent then it truly contributes to a good life. 8) Explain the relevance of the expression ‘What you don’t know can’t hurt you’ to the question what makes one’s life go well. %On what view of the good life is what happens to you after you die relevant to the quality of your life? %Give illustrations.This expression relates to the question of what makes one’s life go well, in that it is believed by some theories that living a life that is in reality a lie is still a good life. For example, one who lives a life with a cheating wife, but believes his wife to be madly in love with him and is undeniably happy, has still lived a good life. What you don’t know can’t hurt you and what you don’t know can’t contribute to the quality of your life. 9) What is the objective-list theory? %Discuss it in connection with a couple of items from Nussbaum’s list of human capabilities. %How does the blade-counter case seem to favor this theory over its rivals? %The objective-list theory suggests that there are certain thingsin life that determine if your life is good or not such as length of life, bodily health/integrity, reproduction ability, senses, freedom of religion, and democratic participation. Lacking these things would contribute to a bad life. 10) Identify a strength and weakness of each of the three main theories of what makes one’s life go well. %%Hedonism  strength: focuses on the feelings of a person, not just the material successes. weakness: a life that is technically a lie, but intrinsically happy, is a good one.Desire-fulfillment theory: strength what one accomplishes leads to a good life.  weakness doesn’t address intrinsic feelings.Objective-list theory: strength takes into account certain factors that make for a good life. weakness happiness is subjective, some factors may not matter to people.11) Summarize Singer’s argument that people in affluent countries have a strict duty to save those dying from famine.How does the thought-experiment of the child in the pond function in