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Meta Ethics Flashcards

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1
Q

name the three components to this topic?

A

Emotivism
Naturalism
Intuitionism

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2
Q

name all the scholars in their category?

A

Emotivism
A.J Ayer
C.L Stevenson

Naturalism
F.H Bradley
Phillipa Foot
Hume
J.L Mackie

Intuitionism
Prichard
Ross
G.E Moore

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3
Q

define naturalism?

A

hold morals as part of the natural world and can be recognised or observed in some way

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4
Q

define intuitionism?

A

hold moral knowledge received in a different way from science and logic

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5
Q

define emotivism?

A

hold moral statements are not statements of fact but are either beliefs or emotions

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6
Q

what is A.J Ayers book?

A

‘Language, truth, logic’

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7
Q

what is C.L Stevensons book?

A

‘Ethics and language’

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8
Q

what three judgements did a.j ayer argue there is?

A

factual judgement
logical judgements
moral judgements

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9
Q

why did ayer argue morality doesn’t tell you anything about the external world?

A

it cannot be verified through using maths or science , morals instead are ONLY relative to our feelings or emotions

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10
Q

why did ayer argue morality to relativist?

A

holds that morality holds there is no known fixed moral truths

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11
Q

what does analytical and synthetic statements mean?

A

analytical = logical statements which are true by definition
ie: 2+2=4

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12
Q

whats a cognitive approach to morality?

A

moral statement that describe the world worked out through using our senses

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13
Q

whats a non-cognitive approach to morality?

A

moral statements that are an expressions of feeling , they are not true or false

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14
Q

what is F.H Bradleys book?

A

‘ethical studies’

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15
Q

finish the quote from f.h Bradley
“what his place is…that all comes….”

what is this arguing?

A

“what his place is…that all come from his station in his organism”

mortality dependent on your role within society , which is fixed within nature and cannot be changed

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16
Q

was Bradley an absolutist or subjectivist?

A

absolutist - morals are fixed

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17
Q

how did Bradley argue we may see morality within the world?

A

argued it can be viewed as an observable part of the natural , concrete , world, similar to observing a tree

(you can look at someones role in society and know what duty come with the role)

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18
Q

why did Bradley argue morality is linked to social order?
what is a flaw within this?

A

your position in society determines your responsibility
he believed order of society is unchanged and fixed in place

flawed because society does change and progress over time an years, if you look back to 1900 society was very patriarchal , where as now there is a lot more of an equal society
naturalists would argue spcoeyy has failed

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19
Q

what is Phillip foots book?

A

‘natural goodness’

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20
Q

what did foot argue about natural evil?

A

its a ‘natural defect’ , when humanity do wrong they have flawed
but when humanity do a morally good action fits with what we are suppose to do

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21
Q

what did foot argue a moral person is?

A

someone who keeps promises and defends those who’s rights are being violated

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22
Q

did foot argue morality can be observed?

give an example

A

yes because certain virtues can be recognised or observed by watching how a person acts in consideration
of those virtues.

a person who act in consideration of honesty, does honest things , the honest things are identified through observation

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23
Q

what part of Aristotles argument did foot apply to her naturalism argument?

A

life has patterns of excellence and defect related to the purpose of things which apply to morality
( we can look at how things work within nature, including humans )

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24
Q

how does life patterns and purpose of things apply to morality?

A
  1. within life there is a cycle, of self-maintence and reproduction
  2. these two things can be achieved differently by each species
  3. certain norms created depending on the species
  4. through applying the Norms of each species, they can be judged about whether they have effective morals
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25
who did foot apply her thinking too and what was their book?
applied her thinking too Peter Kropotkins book = 'memoirs of a revolutionist'
26
what did Peter kropotkins analogy demonstrate about morality?
there's wrongness with breaking a promise trust and respect are things that matter humans have developed a way to ensure everyone can live happily , so the rules developed are therefore natural and ABSOLUTE
27
finish the quote from kropotkins "but he remembered......"
"but he remembered his agreement and refrained" refrained from doing the immoral thing of breaking trust of taking a photograph
28
finish the quote by Phillips foot "moral judgement says ...."
"moral judgement says something about the action of any individual" - Natural goodness
29
what is David Humes book?
"A treatise of human nature"
30
where did Hume argue morality came from if not from reason?
sentiment (opinion) and our emotions
31
what did Hume argue morals are from sentiments?
morality excite us, they motivate us which causes humanity to either act or not act in response to that emotion ie: may riot / protest when you feel passionate or angry about something
32
why did Hume reject reason for only helping us make moral decisions?
reason alone only provides the facts ie: a person is suffering because they are bleeding , but this doesn't provide empathy for the person to ACT upon , only feelings can do that
33
how did Hume argue we know something is wrong?
rejected we use observation to see something is wrong knowing something is wrong comes from how we feel about a certain situation
34
finish the quote by Hume "tis' the ...."
"tis' the object of feeling, not of reason"
35
what is Humes law?
"you cannot go from an is to an ought"
36
what was Humes law describing?
there's a logical gap between descriptive statements and prescriptive statements Just because something is a fact, doesn’t mean you can automatically say what is right or wrong. observing someone steal doesn't prove stealing to be immoral, unless you feel anger or a feeling towards people stealing, without the use of sentiment , you cannot go from fact to a moral understanding just from reason
37
what is J.L Mackie's book?
"inventing right and wrong'
38
whats an analogy that Mackie used to describe why morals are subjective?
morals are like rules of a chess game where they only work when they are accepted
39
“People in this country make promises and expect them to be kept.” for Mackie this demonstrates morality is subjective, why?
your describing a fact not an imperative verb of what you must do , just what people should do, not compulsory
40
why did Mackie argue relationships with people also depend our moral code?
argued we might be more inclined to keep and make promises with people who are close to you, but you may feel less inclined to keep a secrete with a stranger
41
why for makie are morals not absolute?
morals may be put into place but its up to mankind to have the responsibility of not breaking them and following them
42
did Mackie argue morals can be observed?
yes because ie: watch someone help someone else
43
what is G.E Moores book?
'Principia ethica'
44
what did Moore argue about morality and goodness?
1. goodness exists for its own sake 2. cannot be broken down or analysed like other things within the physical world
45
did Moore argue we can observe good within our world?
yes, its not about proving morality, its about SEEING them
46
what is good according to Moore?
good is indefinable and simple
47
what did Moore argue is the most moral thing to do?
we should do the action that causes the most good FLAW: (how can we know what is the most good thing, without a definition of what we ought to do????)
48
what is naturalist fallacy by Moore? give an example
Moore thought that attempts to define good in terms of something else was a naturalist fallacy , good cannot be broken down into something EG: if we say goodness is the thing that provides the most pleasure, we have broken goodness down into something else
49
what colour did moore compare goodness to and why?
yellow = simple notion yellow is simple and you know it when you see it (CA: how do you know what it is unless you've been taught, can't simply just know , must have been given a definition or example to understand, not simply just known otherwise why do children have to learn and mirror different moralities when growing up , depending on their environment???)
50
finish the quote by Moore "everything is what...."
"everything Is what it is and not another thing"
51
why did Moore reject looking at the world for goodness?
turns moral judgement into judgement of the physical world which is wrong there is no proof because methods of proof would include empirical evidence which morals cannot be empirically known
52
did Moore argue we could use our senses for morality?
NO, we use our intuition as the thing that perceives moral goodness
53
what was Prichards article?
'does moral philosophy rest on mistake?'
54
what did Prichard argue there is a gap between within morality?
gap between duty and goodness
55
what are the two types of thinking Prichard suggested?
1. reason 2. intuition
56
how did reason and intuition work together according to Prichard?
reason collects the facts intuition determines what course of action to take - makes the ethical dilemma
57
was Prichards argument absolutist or subjective?
subjective, argued moral obligations are different depending on the situation at hand
58
did Prichard agree with everyone having the same intuition?
no , not all people are able to intuit moral truths the same , morals differ because some people have more clarity than others
59
what is an ethical dilemma for Pritchard?
when you make a choice between different actions which are conflicting and your intuition is what tells you what obligation is better
60
what is W.D Ross book?
'foundations of ethics'
61
did ross argue morality / principles are absolute? example
NO because they can sometimes conflict within a situation and they may change from one culture to another for example: one culture is being morally right and doing the right principle is having an arranged marriage
62
who proposed 'prima facie duties' and what does it mean?
W.D Ross means duties 'at first appearance' A prima facie duty is a moral obligation that binds us to follow it unless there’s an overriding obligation. the most important obligation you must do
63
what are the seven foundation prima facie duties?
1. promise keeping 2. reperation for harm done 3. gratitude 4. justice 5. beneficence 6. self-improvement 7. non-maleficence emphasised as a person character of duty - not absolute don't tell us what to do and are not in priority order
64
how does the prima facie duties and intuition work together?
intuition identifies our prima facie duty this may come with error but to us if thats the best thing to do then do that even though others may see the situation differently to you
65
according to ross, how can we improve our moral decision making?
through experiences of previous moral decision making
66
how would ross' argument be applied to this situation? "son is being asked the where about of his father to murderes who are asking him."
some would argue TRUTH is the best way forward (Kantian ethics) but ross would argue the preservation of life obligation overrides honesty

Ethics (9 decks)

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