Morality Flashcards
Instrumental Values
The set of values that helps to achieve a goal. These can be:
Honesty, Responsibility, Politeness, Self-control, etc.
Terminal Values
A type of value that “has something as a means to an end, not ends to a means” (Driver). These can be:
Freedom, Happiness, Pleasure, Wisdom, Friendship, Equality
What is Morality in Philosophy?
In Ethics, Morality is the differentiation of intentions, decisions and actions between those that are distinguished as proper (right) and those that are improper (wrong).
A body of standards derived from a code of conduct from a particular philosophy, religion or culture, or it can derive from a standard that a person believes should be universal.
What is Consequentialism?
Consequentialism, as its name suggests, is simply the view that normative properties depend only on consequences. (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
What are the basics of Consequentialism?
It evaluates all the right and wrong decisions depending on the consequences.
What are the basics of Utilitarianism?
It advocates for actions that foster happiness and opposes actions that cause suffering.
Moreover, those acts should MAXIMIZE the GOOD and make a bigger number of people HAPPIER (“Switch Dilemma” + “Fat Man Dilemma” + “Transplant Dilemma”)
Denies that the rightness of an action can depend on anything other than consequences.
What are the basics of Hedonism?
It implies that only pleasure (all kinds) has value. And pain is the opposite of being valuable.
From a HEDONISTIC point, all kinds of pleasure are equally valuable:
(length * intensity of pleasure) - (length * intensity of pain) = amount of pleasure (Bentham, qualitative hedonism)
What are some Theories of Happiness?
1) Hedonism
2) Mental State Theory
3) Preferential Theory
4) Objective Theory
How can we object to Hedonism?
Pleasures can actually be different.
1) Higher vs. Lower pleasures (Succeed in life vs. Basic needs, such as food)
2) The Happy Turtle Argument
Example: A turtle can be happy without any need to become successful. How can we compare that to a human’s experience?
3) Who are the pleasure experts?
What is a Mental State Theory?
Pleasure is not the only valuable mental state. Therefore, happiness is in having valuable mental states.
Example: If you know you’re happy, something you don’t know can’t affect your mental state.
How can we object to a Mental State Theory?
1) The “Experience Machine” Argument (Matrix, Nozick)
Being plugged into the experience machine, how can you know your life is good if it is all a matrix? This theory refutes MST since a real-life (being a vegetable plugged into a computer) is not as pleasant as a virtual one. So, only valuable mental states can’t contribute to happiness.
Therefore, you can be mistaken you are happy.
2) The “Successful Old Man” Argument
You’re rich and have a family, but everyone around you creates an illusion of being affectionate just to have your money in the end.
Therefore, unperceived harm exists. Unknown things can matter!
What is a Preferential Theory?
Happiness is when you satisfy all your preferences (truly getting what you want).
Also, a mere illusion of satisfaction (virtual) is insufficient. (Success Theory)
There are:
1) Actual preferences
2) Ideal preferences
Has a special case! Preferences of the dead. A dead person cannot know if their preferences have been satisfied.
Also, preferences are valuable if they are RATIONAL
What is an Objective List Theory?
Only objective values matter and contribute to the state of happiness.
They can be:
Health, Knowledge, Respect, Wealth, Love
HOWEVER
Objection: Good Will Hunting - he is a Mathematics genius, but that does not make him happy.
Also, it is hard to determine what values the list has and what if I do not want to be smart, respected, or rich?
What are the problems of Consequentialism?
1) It is difficult to calculate the consequences of each act and who to include (animals, future generations)
2) Trolley problems, Transplant dilemma
3) What if an innocent person is framed?
