Ethical Issues Life Choices Fall 2013 Study Guide for Exam 2 Notes on the Exam The exam will be held during the week of final exams in our regular class on Monday December 9 5 30 7 30 PM The exam will consist of some combination of definitions short and medium length answer You will be responsible for all of the material covered in class as well as that found in the readings The following is intended as a guide to help you know what to focus on in studying for the exam If you are able to provide thorough answers to the following questions you should be in good shape for the exam Hint Remember to think of the readings in terms of 1 the thesis of the argument i e the main point 2 support for the thesis i e the actual argument 3 possible objections focus on those found in the readings and discussed in class and 4 possible responses to the objections Arguments What is an argument An argument is a set of statements one or more of which called premises are offered in support of another statement and called the conclusion What is the difference between an argument and an assertion An assertion is simply a claim or statement An argument shows that something is true What is the difference between an argument and an explanation An argument aims to show that something is true An explanation s goal is to show why an argument is true What is the difference between deductive and inductive arguments Deductive intends to guarantee the truth of the conclusion Inductive shows that the conclusion is likely to be true No guarantee What is a valid argument Argument in which if the premises are true then the conclusion must be true What is a sound argument A valid argument with all true premises What is the difference between descriptive statements and normative statements Normative statements describe how things ought to be descriptive statements describe how things are What are moral arguments What do they need to succeed Why An argument for a moral claim needs at least one premise to be a moral claim to support moral conclusion In general there are only two ways to criticize an argument What are they 1 Show a premise is false attack the premise 2 Show that premises fail to support conclusion Abortion What is the difference between positive obligations and negative obligations Positive obligations are obligations that we are obligated to carry out such as taking care of a newborn child Obligate one to do good things Negative obligations are obligations where we refrain from particular actions such as hitting infants or any other related action Obligate one not to do bad things What is the difference between positive rights and negative rights Positive rights are positive obligations for others to do certain things for you or provide you with certain rights Negative rights are negative obligations for others to refrain from doing certain things for you Warren How does Warren respond to the following argument u 1 It is wrong to kill innocent human beings 2 Fetuses are innocent human beings 3 Therefore it is wrong to kill fetuses Warren says that the term human being has two different meanings In the first premise Warren says that the expression human being is applied in the moral sense to mean a person or a member of the moral community p 188 In the second premise Warren declares that the term human being denotes the sense of a biological human a homo sapien A fetus is a homo sapien but not a person or a member of the moral community because it fulfills none of the traits central to personhood so it does not have the same moral rights right to life as a person does Is a fetus a person member of the moral community according to Warren Why Why not Warren says that a fetus is not a member of the moral community because any being which satisfies none of the personhood traits is not a person member of the moral community Does the fact that some fetuses more developed ones are similar to persons give them a right to life What does Warren say Why Why not Warren says that although developed fetuses are somewhat similar to persons they re not similar enough in the relevant respects that they have a right to life Relevant respects consciousness reasoning self motivated activity capacity to communicate and presence of self concepts self awareness Does the fact that fetuses are potential persons give them a right to life What does Warren say Why Why not Warren says that the mere fact that they are potential persons doesn t show that they are already persons in the present state Even if potential persons did have some right to life the rights of actual people will always outweigh the rights of potential people How might one object to Warren s argument Does Warren have a good way of responding to this objection Why why not One objection to Warren s argument might be one such as saying What about individuals in an irrevocable coma Individuals in an irreversible coma do not exhibit any of the traits central to personhood So does that mean that they are no longer members of the moral community Does that mean that we need no consent from them to euthanize them or pull the plug Warren responds a man or woman whose consciousness has been permanently obliterated but who remains alive is a human being which is no longer a person defective human beings with no appreciable mental capacity are not and presumably never will be people This is not a good way of responding because she is essentially denying moral rights to individuals that were once considered people and members of the moral community Because she did this how could it be trusted that if an individual a fetus that met none of the traits central to personhood that that individual is not a person with moral rights a right to life Thomson is a SHE What does Thomson want to show How is this different from what Warren wants to show Thomson wants to show that abortion is morally permissible regardless of whether fetuses are considered persons Warren on the other hand says that abortion is morally permissible at any stage of the pregnancy According to Thomson what is wrong with the following argument 1 A fetus has a right to life 2 The right to life is stronger than and so outweighs the right to control what happens to one s body 3 Abortion kills the fetus 4 Therefore abortion is morally impermissible at least in cases where the woman s life is not threatened Thomson believes that the fetus does not have the right to the use of woman s body even if a fetus has the
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