Meta Ethics Flashcards by Evie Moloney

What is Meta Ethics a study of

A study of the meaning and justification of moral ideas

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What does Normative Ethics refer to

Normative ethics refer to how humans should live

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Define Intuitionism

We just know what is good

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Define Naturalism

Good is a natural fact

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Define Emotivism

Ethical terms are expressions of emotion and are meaningless

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Who are the four key Naturalist philosophers

Plato, Bentham, Mill & Epicrius

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What Naturalist approach supports the Naturalist view

Plato’s Form of the Good

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What example look looks at bad pleasures not bad good

Aristotle’s Categories of Good

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What example suggests ‘just because we can it doesn’t mean its right’

Hume’s Is/Ought Problem

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What is an example of Hume’s Is/Ought Problem

Reproduction (Just because man and women can reproduce does no mean they ‘ought to’)

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What is an Intuitionist example given by Moore

There is no definition of the colour yellow, but we all know what it is

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Who agreed with Moore’s Yellow theory

Ross and Pritchard agreed with this theory

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Which philosopher said our minds are not neutral observers of the world

Brentano

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Who said ‘our minds are ordered correctly they cannot be subjective’

Moore

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Who are the three key Emotivist philosophers

Ayer, Stevenson and Barnes

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What was Barnes’ Emotivist theory

Barnes’ Killing Boo Theory

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Which philosopher said humans need ethics

Wijolta

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Which philosopher created the Naturalistic Fallacy

G.E Moore

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What does Naturalism argue about ‘goodness’

Naturalism argues that there is something factual about ‘goodness’

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Which group of philosophers believe pleasure is the only good

Hedonists

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What does Ayer say about ethical judgements

Ethical judgements have no factual content therefore people cannot have arguments about what is right and what is wrong

Define Consensia

A moral judgement on right and wrong

What did Aquinas say our conscience is made up of

Our conscience is made up of our consensia and syndresis

Define Syndresis

Being directed towards good and away from evil

What does Aquinas state human mistakes are made by

Our fallible consensia

What does Aristotle state human mistakes are made by

He suggests that mistakes are done due to people being ignorant

What two types of ignorance does Aristotle state

Vincible & Invincible

Define Vincible Ignorance

Common sense

Define Invincible Ignorance

We don't have full knowledge on certain situations

What did Freud suggest our conscience is made up of

Id, Ego & Superego

Define Id

Our basic drive

Define Ego

More central to reality

Define Superego

How we behave rationally

What did Freud believe about God and faith

Freud believed that God and faith has no place within our reality

What did Tillich say about religious language

Tillich says religious language evokes much more than general language

If something is morally objective, what else is it

If morality is objective, it is cognitive

What does Cognitive Language deal with

Cognitive language deals with making propositions about things that can be known and so can be held to be true or false

If something is subjective, what else is it

If it is subjective, it is non-cognitive which deals with matters that are not established by ‘true or false’

What are the four main problems with Intuitionism

People who intuit and those who use reason may reach different conclusions and there is no way to resolve these differences How can we be sure our intuitions are correct? Intuition can be considered a meaningless concept since it is non-verifiable Hume argued that we have motivation for acting in certain ways although intuitionists argue that we have an innate desire to do things beyond reason

Define Objective

Claims that refer to external facts or values

Define Subjective

Claims that are based on personal preference

What did Russell say about 'good'

It is A Priori

Explain the Killing-Boo Theory

If someone shouts ‘boo!’ because they don't like something, he is offering nothing to discuss A yelp of dislike is not an argument that we can debate

What does Michael-John Turp ask about moral truths

Michael-John Turp asked if anyone has the authority to establish moral truths

What did Mel Thompson say about Barnes' Killing-Boo Theory

“You cannot reduce good and bad to boos and cheers”

Who created The Principle of Generic Consistency

Gewirth

What does Gewirth say about The Principle of Generic Consistency

Mutual dependence creates a world of rights - we must treat others as we wish to be treated

Define Moral Antirealism

The belief that moral proportions don't refer to objective features of the world at all - that there are no moral facts

Define Moral Absolutism

There are absolute standards against which moral questions can be judged

Define Moral Relativism

More than one moral position on a given topic can be correct

Define Cultural Relativism

People’s moral beliefs differ from culture to culture

Define Relativism

There are circumstances where something can be right and other times when it can be wrong