Portico Study Guide 1 What are the two most important take aways from our study of ethics according to Prof Cabral 1 Think before you act 2 Know what you stand for and stand up for it 2 What is Machiavelli s view of human nature How does this allow him to consider his own views practical Humans are all ultimately concerned with their own self interest They may be trustworthy and prosperous at times however to avoid themselves from embarking in trouble they will do what is best for their own worth and self interest Also humans do not possess all positive traits however as long as the people believe and it appears to them that they do than that is all that matters he believe that human nature is inherently bad and therefore should be contested by force Men are ungrateful and cowardly They will turn against you Must secure relationships with fear 3 According to Machiavelli the ruler has to be a great pretender and dissembler Connect this teaching to his belief that moral ends justify immoral means Machiavelli talks about how all that matters is what people perceive and as long as a prince doesn t instill hatred among his subjects he is free to act as he pleases deems necessary This means that as long as nobody feels like the prince is doing something wrong the prince may do that action This gives him the freedom to pursue immoral acts and justifies Machiavelli s teaching that moral ends justify immoral means Machiavelli emphasizes how vices and non virtuous activities are alright as long as there is a reason and it is achieving a virtuous goal He advocates to do this but also to try and make the image look as though you re being virtuous in the path to achieving the goal Thus the connection is Machiavelli thinks virtue is only important in image and the goal is more important overall 1 One obeys and fears the census of one man who is important rather than the combined of many men 2 Doing evil to another is the same as injuring them makes you no better than the others 4 What sort of life does Socrates think is the good life What is Socrates main reason for arguing that it is wrong for one to retaliate against those who do one harm Socrates believes that the good life is the just and honorable one One should not retaliate against those who harm them according to Socrates because if we do we are intentionally doing wrong and we are not supposed to do wrong because doing wrong is evil and dishonorable 5 What is Rand s primary argument in support of egoism Self sacrifice is irrational because it doesn t make sense to do something that makes you unhappy 6 What are two arguments against relativism individual and or cultural 1 One can never take a position disagree with anyone as every alternative is equally as grounded Both slaveowners and abolitionists are correct 1 Cultures are not immune from criticism We may believe that we must accept that other societies are good for their people 2 If you allow people to do evil and don t object on the basis of relativism others may follow suit and you will have a lot of people committing evil acts because they don t think anyone will stand up against them 7 Provide two reasons why relativism is popular among college students 1 They think they are being tolerant by not judging people or arguing that their opinion is better 2 It gives one immunity from learning or arguing 3 It is an evasion of responsibility to speak up against immoral things 8 What are two misconceptions about Utilitarian theory 1 the most utility for the person performing the action However the right action produces the most utility for all persons affected by the action 1 Another misconception is that an action is right so long as its benefits One misconception is that the right action is the one that produces outweigh its costs However utilitarianism holds that in the final analysis only one action is right that one action whose net benefits are greatest by comparison to the net benefits of all other possible alternatives 2 A third misconception is that the theory is only concerned with the immediate direct consequences of the action and fails to include the long term consequences 9 What are two arguments for Utilitarian theory 1 it matches nicely with the virtues that we tend to advocate when discussing the choice of government policies and public goods the proper course of action would be to adopt those projects that objective studies show will provide the greatest benefits for the members of society at the least cost 2 it has the advantage of being able to explain why we hold that certain types of activities are generally morally wrong while others are generally morally right those that improve everyone s well being its intuitive 10 What are two reasons Mr Sandel presents in the article In Economists We Trust to explain why market morality is concerning 1 Removes human aspect 2 Becomes commodities and lose value 11 What is the categorical imperative What is the practical imperative 1 The categorical imperative is act only on that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law In other words only do something if you woud want everyone else doing the same thing If everyone did this would that be bad 2 The practical imperative is act as to treat humanity whether in your own person or in that of any other in every case as an end never as a means only Does anyone get used 12 Why should the moral worth of an action not be based on inclinations feelings or effects consequences according to Kant The moral worth of an action should not be based on inclinations or effects because all the possible effects could have been brought about by other causes so that for this there would have been no need of the will of a rational being 13 Identify and explain two goods that cannot be the highest good according to Aristotle Briefly explain why each of these goods cannot be the highest good 1 Honor because you depend on others to get this 2 Pleasure because this is the way animals live 3 Money You need talent to get it 4 Excellence You could be lazy 14 Identify and explain two of Aristotle s three types of friendship 1 Friendship of utility those who love each other for their utility do not love each other for themselves but in virtue of some good which they get from each other 2 Friendship of goodness for these wish well alike to each other as being good and they are good themselves This type of friendship is perfect both in respect of duration and in all other