Meta Ethics Flashcards
(98 cards)
1
Q
what does meta ethics mean
A
beyond ethics
2
Q
what does meta ethics look at
A
instead of trying to distinguish right and wrong it looks at the language we use to express morality
asks what good / bad / right / wrong mean as words
3
Q
what is moral realism
A
there are moral facts
4
Q
what is moral anti-realism
A
there are no moral facts
5
Q
what is the main issue of meta ethics
A
whether ethical dilemmas are subjective or objective
6
Q
what is cognitive language
A
able to be proved / known
7
Q
what is non-cognitive language
A
not able to be proved / known
8
Q
what is analytic language
A
true by definition
9
Q
what is synthetic language
A
can be proved true or false by empirical investigation
10
Q
what is ethical language
A
opinions on ethical issues
11
Q
what is Hume’s fork
A
there are two types of human enquiry
-matter of fact
-revelation of ideas
12
Q
what are the 2 types of meta ethics
A
cognitive and non-cognitive
13
Q
what are the 2 types of cognitive meta ethics
A
naturalism and non-naturalism
14
Q
what are 4 examples of naturalistic meta ethical theories
A
utilitarianism
Situation ethics
Natural moral law
Virtue ethics
15
Q
what is the opposing theories to naturalistic meta ethical theories
A
is-ought argument
naturalistic fallacy
16
Q
what are 2 types of not-naturalistic meta ethical theories
A
divine command theory
intuitionism
17
Q
who came up with the is-ought problem
A
Hume
an 18th century Scottish empiricist
18
Q
what is a quote from hume about the is-ought problem
A
“you cannot derive an ought from an is”
19
Q
what is the is-ought problem
A
you cannot more from an is to and ought and claim the statement is still rational
it is illogical to move from a factual statement about the world to a statement about what a human ought to do
20
Q
what is an ‘is’
A
a factual claim about the world established through reason and science
it is ‘matter of fact’
21
Q
what is an ‘ought’
A
a judgement we make based on our opinions, desires and values
22
Q
which studies commit the is-ought problem
A
situation ethics
virtue ethics
natural moral law
utilitarianism
23
Q
who came up with the naturalistic fallacy
A
G.E Moore
20th century English philosopher
24
Q
what is the naturalistic fallacy
A
-same as the is-ought problem
-we should not try to define good by its natural properties or hold it to be identical -with these properties
-Good is undefinable and ineffable
-goodness is self-evident
25
how do other theories commit a naturalistic fallacy
they try to define good:
good = what's natural (NML)
good = agape (SE)
good = what's virtuous (VE)
good = pleasure (Utill)
26
what is a quote from Moore about the naturalistic fallacy
"a philosopher attempts to prove a claim about ethics through appealing to the definition of the term good by using a natural property"
27
what are the key scholars for intuitionism
Moore
Ross
28
what is intuitionsism
morality is objective and cognitive, we already know what goodness is as it exists independently of us
29
is intuitionism a secular or religious ethical theory
secular
30
how would someone who agrees with intuitionism describe good
good is self-evident and we can work it out by looking at the consequences (teleological)
good is unanalysable and can't be defined
31
what are the 3 main things that intuitionism teaches
-moral truths are independent of humans
-there are fundamental truths that cannot be broken down or defined
-humans can discover these by using our intuition
32
what is the comparison Moore used to liken good too
trying to describe good is like trying to describe the colour yellow
33
what is a quote from Moore about the nature of good
"good is good and that's the end of the matter"
34
what is the trolly problem
a runaway trolly is heading down a track toward 5 people who will be killed, you have the option to pull to lever and redirect the trolly onto another track where it will only kill 1 person instead of 5
35
how does the trolly problem link to intuitionism
looks at utilitarianism vs intuitionism
in utilitarianism that would assess the consequences and decide it is better for only one person to die instead of 5. However for most people intuitionism would override and not change the tracks because they can't bring themselves to kill an innocent person
36
who came up with the Prima Facie Duties
W D Ross
a 20th century Scottish philosopher
37
what does Prima Facie mean
'at first glance'
38
how many prima facie duties are there
7
39
what are the 7 prima facie duties
fidelity
reparation
gratitude
justice
beneficence
self-improvement
non-maleficence
40
what is the acronym for the 7 prima facie duties
funny red goats just bring some nuts
41
what is fidelity
promise keeping, truth telling
42
what is reparation
making amends
43
what is gratitude
appreciation
44
what is justice
fairness
45
what is beneficence
helping others
46
what is self-improvement
personal development
47
what is non-maleficence
avoiding harm
48
what are the prima facie duties used for
they are duties that should always be fulfilled if there are no conflicting circumstances.
If they are in conflict then the individual must use there intuition to choose between them
49
what is a quote from Ross about the prima facie duties
"these duties are as much a part of the nature of the universe as the numerical structure expressed in geometry"
50
what are the strengths of intuitionism
-objectiveness of right and wrong
-overcomes problem of disagreements
-moral knowledge without proof
-fits with universal experiences
51
what are the weaknesses of intuitionism
-epistemological uncertainty
-limited guidance
-resolution of disagreements
-subjectivity
-where does intuition come from
52
how is the objectiveness of right and wrong a strength of intuitionism
moral truths are real and independent of personal opinion. This allows us to asses our own actions and gives us guidelines (e.g. deciding between prima facie duties)
53
how is overcoming the problem of disagreements a strength of intuitionism
overcomes the problem of disagreements as to the basis of right and wrong as good is self-evident so as everyone has intuition we can all know good
54
how is moral knowledge without proof a strength of intuitionism
everyone already has moral knowledge without need proof and empirical evidence of it
55
how is fitting with universal experience a strength of intuitionism
fits with the universal experience of having moral intuitions about something. For example most people sense that while murder is wrong, killing someone in self defence is not. Or female intuition, women can know when they are in danger or being followed even if no signs show that they are
56
how is epistemological uncertainty a weakness of intuitionism
where does our intuition come from and how can we know that it is reliable without any justification of them
57
how is limited guidance a weakness of intuituionism
it offers limited guidance when it comes to complex ethical issues. Intuitionism over simplifies making ethical decisions such as "lying is wrong" often issues are more complex and nuanced than this making it unclear what is right and wrong.
58
how is lack of resolution to disagreements a weakness of intuitionism
different people will have different intuitions and what they think is acceptable. How can we know whose intuition is correct and how can people come to agreements over these controversial issues
59
how is subjectivity a weakness of intuitionism
intuition is too vague , two people may apply their intuition totally differently. How can we distinguish moral truths from bias and cultural conditioning
60
how is where does intuition come from a weakness of intuitionism
if we can't locate or observe the basis of rightness and wrongness, how do we even know they exist if we can't comprehend it
61
what is divine command theory
a right moral action is one that has been commanded by God and a wromg moral action is one that he forbids
62
what type of theory is divine command theory
cognitive, non-naturalist type of meta ethics
63
is divine command theory a religious or secular theory
religious, moral commands come from God and are his divine law
64
why does protestant divine command theory think we should follow this theory
-god is omnipotent, transcendent creator so he made mankind in his image to reflect his qualities
-human nature was totally corrupted by the fall
-we are reliant on God's grace to have any understanding of right and wrong
-the only way we can understand this is through revelation of scripture
65
to protestants where does divine command theory come from
it emanates from the bible as god inspired the writers to write his divine law
(e.g. 10 commandments)
only can be known through scripture
66
what is teh difference between protestant and catholic divine command theory
protestants believe we can only understand God through scripture
Catholics believe we can look to scripture, tradition and the church (e.g. Pop)
Catholics may also follow other ethical theories to address more modern issues such as NML
67
what is a quote from Vardy about the catholic church and NML
"NML is the semi-official position of the catholic church"
68
who are 2 protestant theologians that talk about divine command theory
John Calvin
Karl Barth
69
who was John Calvin
16th century reformed protestant that developed Calvinism a branch of protestant theology
70
who was Karl Barth
20th century reformed / Calvinist protestant
71
what did John Calvin believe about DCT
-DCT flows naturally from believe in the absolute sovereignty of God
-used this to justify his beliefs on predestination because God has already ordained all that will happen
72
what is a quote from John Calvin
"the will of God is the supreme righteousness"
73
what did Karl Barth believe about DCT
-humanities obedience to God is the answer to all questions about ethics
-the commands set by God overrides all human ethics
74
what are some examples of quotes from the Bible that would no longer be acceptable today
"if a man lies with another man like he does with a woman, both have committed an abomination"
"slaves obey your earthly masters"
75
what did Richard Dawkins say about Gods character
"the God of classical theism is arguably the most unpleasant character in all of fiction"
76
what are the strengths to divine command theory
-moral authority and objectivity
-clarity and simplicity
-sense of purpose
-timelessness
77
78
how is moral authority and objectivity a strength of DCT
its basis is the objective existence of an omnipotent/benevolent/scient God. This is a clear objective source of right and wrong and avoids moral relativism with ultimate authority
79
how is clarity and simplicity a strength of DCT
It is a clear cut theory with straightforward moral guidance. This could help make ethical decision making easier as something is either right or wrong
80
how is sense of purpose a strength of DCT
ties to a larger metaphysical framework, moral choices have a greater sense of meaning being rooted in divine will
also the promise of life after death gives people motivation to follow Gods will
81
how is timelessness a strength of DCT
the deontological nature of the theory means that the rules are absolute and exceptionless for all times and places
82
what are the weaknesses of divine command theory
-the Euthyphro Dilemma
-immoral rules in the bible
-moral autonomy
83
what is the Euthyphro Dilemma
this is referred to as the 2 horns dilemma by Plato
horn 1 : is 'x' good because it is commanded by God
horn 2 : or does God command 'x' because it is good
84
what is the problem with horn 1 of the Euthyphro dilemma
God could command something immoral and it would have to be seen as right
85
what is the problem with horn 2 of the Euthyphro dilemma
suggests goodness is separate from Gods omni characteristics, which means there is a force greater than God and questions gods supernatural state as creator
86
how is immoral rules in the Bible a weakness of divine command theory
some rules in the Bible are now seen as outdated and no longer applicable to modern life. This makes it hard to know which commands should be obeyed and which ignored
87
what are 2 stories from the Bible that would make people question whether following divine commands is a wise choice
Abraham almost sacrificing is son Isaac
Job, god taking everything away from him to test his loyalty
88
how does the story of Abraham make us question Gods morality
God told Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac to test his faith and obedience. Most people cannot argue how infanticide could ever be good so why would God command this
89
what are Kierkegaard's reasons to why Abraham would sacrifice his son
there is no way for Abraham to communicate God's command in any sensible way, so Abraham must suspend his own views of morality in order to understand this divine command
90
what is Abraham otherwise known as
"a knight of faith"
91
what is a quote from Job
"the lord giveth and the lord taketh away"
92
how does the story of Job make us question Gods morality
God has a wager with the devil that allows God to inflict suffering on Job to test his faith.
It seems immoral that God would put Job through this just to prove a point to the devil
93
how is moral autonomy a weakness of divine command theory
the promise of life after death would mean that any human would obey God to ensure they are going to heaven, not because the want to obey God and follow his commands willingly
94
what are the 3 solutions to the Euthyphro dilemma
1. William of Ockham
2. Gods nature = Gods character
3. Parts of the Bible are corrupt
95
how is William of Ockham a solution to the Euthyphro dilemma
'bite the bullet approach'
adopts the first horn
god is god, he has all of his omni characteristics
if God commands it, it must be good and should be obeyed
even things like genocide
96
how is Gods nature = Gods characteristics a solution to the Euthyphro dilemma
Gods nature and Gods character are the same, so God and goodness are the same, so moral commands must be good
but this gives no answer to why god would command evil things like genocide
97
what is a quote from Ockham
"the simplest solution tends to be the best one"
98
how is parts of the Bible are corrupt a solution to the Euthyphro dilemma
the problem of Gods immoral commands in the Bible are solved by saying that the text at those parts is corrupt
however if parts are corrupt them how do we know that other parts aren't corrupt or what God's actual commands are
