Ethics Terms & Concepts

Question 1

Define Moral Reletavism

Answer 1

There is more than one true morality

Question 2

Define Moral Skepticism

Answer 2

We cannot identify a true morality

Question 3

Define Moral Subjectivism

Answer 3

Right and wrong is determined by what the subject happens to believe is right or wrong

Question 4

Define Cultural Reletavism

Answer 4

Right and wrong is determined by what a particular group of people (a particular culture) accepts as right and wrong at the time

Question 5

Define Moral Objectivism

Answer 5

Right and wrong is determined by a standard independent of the subject or a certain group of people

Question 6

Define Moral Egoism

Answer 6

Right and wrong is determined by what is in my best interests; that is to say, it is immoral to act against my best interests

Question 7

Define Psychological Egoism

Answer 7

Acting only in my best interests

Question 8

Define Empirical Thesis

Answer 8

There are numerous profound disagreements about morality

Question 9

Define Meta-ethical Thesis

Answer 9

The truth of moral judgments is relative to a particular group of people

Question 10

Define Consequentialism

Answer 10

The consequences of an act make it right or wrong

Further: An act, rule or principle is right, if, and only if, it promotes the greatest good for the greatest number of persons (or perhaps sentient beings).

Question 11

Define hedonist theories

Answer 11

Pleasure is the only thing that is intrinsically valuable.

Question 12

Compare act and rule utilitarianism

Answer 12

Act utilitarian: considers only the results or consequences of the single act

Rule utilitarian: considers the consequences that result of following a rule of conduct

Question 13

Compare descriptive and prescriptive theories

Answer 13

A descriptive theory sets out to describe, explain, and predict certain phenomena. It operates with factual statements.

A prescriptive theory sets out to prescribe judgements, choices, actions, procedures, etc. it operates with factual and with normative statements.

Question 14

What is a maxim?

Answer 14

A maxim is an expressed intention.

Maxims usually include whatever one intends to achieve and the way she intends to do it.

Question 15

What are the different types of duties?

Answer 15

• perfect duties toward ourselves
  (must always refrain from committing suicide)
• perfect duties toward others
  (must always refrain from making promises you have no intention of keeping)
• imperfect duties toward ourselves
  (should sometimes work to improve oneself)
• imperfect duties toward others
  (should sometimes work to help others)

Question 16

Compare anthropogenic and anthropocentric values

Answer 16

Anthropocentric values – values centred on human beings. X is valuable to the degree it is valuable to humans.

Anthropogenic values – values generated by human beings. X is valuable because human beings identified it as such.

Question 17

What is ethical naturalism

Answer 17

Ethical naturalists acknowledge instances of “x is valuable for y”, when y is a nonhuman organism, and x is a particular property of y (e.g., water is valuable for trees).

Ethical naturalism is compatible with anthropogenic valuation

Question 18

What are prima facie duties?

Answer 18

• Real duties that we accept as such intuitively (duty to tell the truth, obey the law, etc.).
• the significance of these duties does not depend on circumstances, but their applicability does.

Question 19

What are the two definitions of Rights?

Answer 19

1: A right is a justified claim on others

2: A right is a justified liberty

Question 20

Compare negative and positive rights and provide examples

Answer 20

Negative rights: oblige inaction (being left alone, right of non-interference)

Positive rights: concern an action (receiving medical attention)

Negative right: nothing being done to you
Positive right: something being done to you

Question 21

Describe Peter Singer’s stance on animal rights

Answer 21

Singer argued from analogy that nonhuman animals have rights. He posited that if discrimination based on sex, race, or gender is morally unjustified, then so is speciesism.

Singer expands Act-Utilitarian principles to all sentient beings.

Question 22

What is Speciesism?

Answer 22

The unjustified preference of the members of one’s own species over the members of other sentient species.

Question 23

Describe Tom Regan’s tance on animal rights

Answer 23

Regan bases his theory on the view that beings can have experiences, have inherent moral value, and must be treated with respect. A being has rights if it has inherent value. As sentient animals are “experiencing subjects of a life” they have inherent value, and so have rights.

Question 24

What did Tom Regan advocate for?

Answer 24

• The total abolition of the use of animals in science
• The total dissolution of commercial animal agriculture
• The total elimination of commercial/sport hunting and trapping

Question 25

What are the four components of Paul Taylor's Respect for Nature?

Answer 25

1. Humans are part of the biotic community 2. All ecosystems are interconnected networks 3. Each individual organism is conceived as a teleological centre of life pursuing its own good 4. Humans are not in any superior to any other species, to think so is irrational

Question 26

What is Kenneth Goodpasters stance on being Morally Considerable?

Answer 26

- Goodpaster doesn't see a reason for thinking that rationality/sentience are necessary for moral consideration - There is a distinction between moral rights and moral considerability; a non-human organism might not bear rights, but may still deserve moral consideration - There's a distinction between moral considerability and moral significance - Goodpaster seeks to show that all living things have moral standing

Question 27

Who are the 'main figures' in Virtue Ethics?

Answer 27

Artistotle and Hume

Question 28

What question does Virtue Ethics answer?

Answer 28

"What kind of a person ought one to be" Virtuous character guides and contrains practical deliberation

Question 29

Describe eudaimonia and what are the two functions of pleasure?

Answer 29

Eudaimonia is living a florishing, complete, successful life that suits a human being Pleasure serves as an indication of perfection of the senses, and is a driving force to experience things

Question 30

What are virtues?

Answer 30

Character traits, or dispositions to act

Question 31

What do Hume and Aristotle think of virtues?

Answer 31

Hume: emotional disposition that is useful to oneself and others. Aristotle: the golden mean - a virtue stands between two vices

Question 32

What is the Humean Theory of Motivation?

Answer 32

- Motivation requires a belief (realm of reason) and a desire (realm of passions) - Reason alone only defines means to ends, and cannot motivate - Passions define ends - Hume: "reason is a slave of the passions"

Question 33

According to Aristotle, why should you be virtuous?

Answer 33

- Virtuous action constitutes eudamonia, a virtuous life is a florishing one - virtuous action has intrinsic value - The truly virtuous gets pleasure from acting virtuously

Question 34

What is Virtue Ethics about?

Answer 34

Virtue ethics is about looking at particular actions, and ask whether they are moral, by looking at the dispositions behind the action, and investigating whether they are virtuous

Question 35

What is a GMO?

Answer 35

An organism that has been altered through recombinant DNA technology - most common GMO's are crop plants - Microbes first organisms to be genetically modified

Question 36

What are the methods of creating transgenic organisms?

Answer 36

1. DNA Microinjection - a foreign gene is injected directly into a fertilized egg that is put into female animal to act as a surrogate 2. Retrovirus-Mediated Gene Transfer - retrovirus attaches to an organism's DNA and changes its characteristics 3. Embryonic Stem Cell-Mediated Gene Transfer - the blank stem cell is modified and added to an embryo

Question 37

What are the common types of GMO's?

Answer 37

1. Foods - modified to develop resistance to herbicides and increase nutrient content 2. Medicines - can be made cheaper and easier 3. GM Bacteria - important in producing pure human proteins; producing blood clotting factors for treating hemophillia; human growth hormones

Question 38

Constrast selecting breeding vs genetic modification

Answer 38

Selective breeding is slow, imprecise, and modify genes that naturally occur in the organism - occurs between members of the same species GM is very fast, precise, and can introduce new genes that don't occur naturally - can occur between different species

Question 39

What is the non-identity problem?

Answer 39

Our decisions today will have impacts to anyone in the future, but if our choices (social, environmental, economical) are detrimental to the well-being of future generations, our choice cannot be seen as worse than any other choice for any of the future people, because those people would not exist if we had made a different decision that day

Question 40

What are some arguments for genetic manipulation?

Answer 40

Libertarian: It is a matter of individual liberty to decide what genetic enhancements one wants --> deontological perspective, you can decide what you want to do with yourself Utilitarian: GM produces an overall better group of people

Question 41

What are some arguments against genetic manipulation?

Answer 41

Respect for autonomy argument: violate's a childs autonomy by choosing a future for them, sometimes using the child as a mere means Genetic manipulation performed either in utero, or during childhood would seem to threaten the right to make one's own choices

Question 42

What is paternalism? Compare hard, weak, and soft paternalism

Answer 42

Paternalism is when a representative of the state, restricts autonomy in any way for the good of the person Strong paternalism: interference in a competent person's liberty for their own good Weak paternalism: interfence with liberty is justified in order to prevent people from acting in ways that are likely to defeat their goals Soft paternalism: interference in an incompetent person’s liberty for their own good.

Question 43

Define competence, what things factor into competence?

Answer 43

Relation between ones ability and a certain activity Factors in competence: - being adequately informed - consistent goals - age factor

Question 44

Define reasonable person standard

Answer 44

Information a statistically defined reasonable person should expect in order to make an intelligent decision

Question 45

Define modified reasonable person standard

Answer 45

Information a ‘situationally’ defined reasonable person should expect to have in order to make an intelligent decision

Question 46

What is a collective action problem?

Answer 46

When everyone in a group, has a choice between two alternatives, and if everyone actions rationally they choose the same option. However, the outcome will be worse for everyone invovled if they all make the same choice. Ex. depleting a resource

Question 47

Define freeriding with respect to the collective action problem

Answer 47

In a Collective Action Problem in which most agents choose to Cooperate, Defectors are referred to as FREERIDERS, because they benefit from the Cooperation of others, but are unwilling to reciprocate Cooperation - great incentive to free-ride, you do nothing and reap the benefits

Question 48

What is the tragedy of the commons?

Answer 48

There is a common resource, freely accessible to every member of the society. When an individual agent realizes that her wellbeing will increase if she’ll use more of the common resource without affecting its sustainability, she uses more of it. However, every other agent discovers the same thing. So every other agent uses more and more of the commons. This leads to the depletion of the common resource