PHI 2630 1st Edition Exam 1 Study Guide Lectures 1 9 Section A You will be asked to explain three different concepts ideas Please explain these clearly and coherently use examples where appropriate Not all of the concepts below will appear on the test but you will have some choice with regards to what concepts you will explain Each of these three answers will be weighted at 20 of your total grade Seven on the exam choose from three 1 The fallacy of common practice a X is morally permissible because it is common for people to do X b Clearly however just because something is commonly practiced does not make it justifiable 2 The slippery slope fallacy a X must occur because Y will occur b The slippery slope fallacy occurs when someone asserts that X must occur if Y does without providing any sort of evidence or proof of this connection c Example if we allow women to have abortions in the first trimester then they ll begin to have abortions in the second trimester which is unacceptable so we must not let them have abortions in the first trimester 3 Deriving an ought from an is fallacy a When one assumes that because things are a certain way that s how they should be b Example people under the age of 21 are not allowed to drink so they should not be allowed to drink i Note that this assumes because something is the law that it ought to be the law 4 Act Utilitarianism a Utilitarianism asserts that human welfare or happiness alone is intrinsically valuable The rightness or wrongness of actions depends solely on how the consequences affect welfare or happiness One must maximize the welfare of all individuals who will be affected in the short term and long term by the consequence of an action b Utility the net value of the consequences of an action i Principle of Utility an action is right iff and because it would if performed likely produce at least as high a utility net overall balance of welfare happiness as would any other alternative action one might perform instead a The utility may be negative and it may turn out that the right action in some circumstances is the one that would likely bring about the least amount of overall negative utility c Act Utilitarians either adhere to a value hedonistic or hedonistic utilitarianism answer to the question What is happiness i Value Hedonism only states of pleasure have intrinsic value and only states of pain have intrinsic negative value Everything else of value is of mere extrinsic value ii Hedonistic Utilitarianism an action is right iff and because it would likely produce if performed at least as high a net balance of pleasure or less pain as would any alternative action one might do instead d Utilitarianism is a form of act consequentialism in that it worries itself with the consequences consequentialism of particular acts Other forms of consequentialism deal with the consequences of say rules etc 5 Kant s Formula of Humanity a Kant s Formula of Humanity is part of his Categorical Imperative a fundamental moral principle from which certain moral requirements could be derived The formulation asserts that an action is right iff and because the action treats persons including oneself as ends in themselves and not merely as means i Requires that we not treat others merely as a means to our own ends negative requirement and that we treat them as ends in themselves positive requirement 1 Persons are ends in themselves in so much as they have a special worth or value that demands of us that we have a certain positive regard for them called dignity In treating others as ends in themselves we adopt 2 goals 1 goal of promoting the morally permissible ends of others and 2 goal of self perfection ii Suicide would violate the categorical imperative because that person has not treated himself or herself as an end 6 Virtue Theory a Makes the concepts of virtue and vice central in moral theory b An action is right iff and because it is what a virtuous agent agent in character would not avoid doing in the circumstances under consideration i Virtue a trait of character or mind that typically involves dispositions to act feel and think in certain ways and that is central in the positive evaluation of persons 1 Example honesty which involves at a minimum being disposed to tell the truth and avoid lying as well as the disposition to have certain positive feelings about truth telling and negative feelings about lying ii Vice a trait of character or mind which typically involves dispositions to act feel and think in certain ways and that is central in the negative evaluation of persons 1 Example dishonesty which may be understood as having inappropriate dispositions of action and feeling regarding truth telling and lying It has a negative value and contributes to what makes someone a morally bad person iii The application of moral theories to particular issues requires moral judgment an acquired skill at discerning what matters the most morally speaking and coming to an all things considered moral verdict where this skill cannot be entirely captured by a set of rules 7 Normative Ethics a Normative Ethical Theories consider how one ought to act in a moral sense It is the branch of ethics concerned with giving a general account of what is right and what is wrong 8 Harm Principle a Put forth by John Stuart Mill the harm principle is A liberty limiting principle according to which a government may justifiably pass laws to limit the liberty of its citizens in order to prohibit individuals from causing harm to other individuals or to society i Harm an action causes harm if it directly undermines the rights of another person or a group of people related to one s interested being frustrated or defeated 1 Any speech or conduct that willfully or negligently interferes with important interests or rights of other is harmful conduct The state is entitled to pass laws against conduct that deliberately or negligently interferes with the rights of others just so long as the rights violation is sufficiently serious and the harm cannot effectively be prevented by other less costly means for example through public education or debate ii John Stuart Mill On Liberty the sole end for which mankind are warranted individual or collectively in interfering with the liberty of action of any of their number is self protection That the only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community against his will is to prevent harm to others iii His
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