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Edexcel A Level Ethics - Normative > Natural (Moral) Law > Flashcards

Natural (Moral) Law Flashcards

1
Q

What does legalism mean?

A

A set of prefabricated moral rules or laws

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2
Q

What does deontological mean?

A

Ethics is concerned with the nature of acts themselves, rather than their outcome - they are right and wrong intrinsically

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3
Q

What does telos mean?

A

The end or purpose

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4
Q

What does Aristotle believe everything has?

A

A purpose

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5
Q

How is purpose revealed?

A

By its design

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6
Q

What is the aim of telos?

A

To fulfil telos is the supreme good to be sought

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7
Q

What happens if something does not reach its purpose?

A

It has not realised its potential

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8
Q

What is Plato’s Euthyphro dilemma?

A

Views 2 possible versions of the universe

1) God (1) moral laws (2) humans (3), God commands moral laws because they are absolutely true in themselves and separate from God

2) God (1) humans (2) God commands humans to do certain things and are good, because God has commanded them

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9
Q

What is Plato’s Euthyphro dilemma?

A

Views 2 possible versions of the universe

1) God (1) moral laws (2) humans (3), God commands moral laws because they are absolutely true in themselves and separate from God

2) God (1) humans (2) God commands humans to do certain things and are good because God has commanded them

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10
Q

What is a quote from Plato’s Euthyphro dilemma?

A

“Loved by the God because it is pious, or pious because it is loved?”

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11
Q

What are the problems that the Euthyphro dilemma proposes?

A

If there is an objective standard of right or wrong, what does that make of God?

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12
Q

What is Divine Command theory?

A

The view that moral rules are true because they have been commanded by God

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13
Q

Who are three critics against the traditional Natural Law?

A

A.J. Ayer, Emil Brunner and Leibniz

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14
Q

What is A.J. Ayer’s criticism?

A
  • commanding something does not make it right
  • no morality can be founded on authority, even if the authority is divine
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15
Q

What is the criticism of Emil Brunner?

A
  • if things were not commanded by God, they would not be right or wrong
  • “hate your neighbour” could have been the command
  • DCT makes moral codes appear arbitrary
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16
Q

What is Leibniz’s criticism?

A

Why praise God for what he’s done, as he would equally be praised for doing the contrary

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17
Q

What is Natural Moral Law based on?

A

Reason alone - used to understand moral teachings and revelations

18
Q

What does Aquinas propose for Natural Moral Law?

A

Anything created by an agent will end b the choice of the same agent, the end is the objective - therefore those that reflect God will end up where they were destined to be by God

19
Q

What are the four laws?

A

Human
Eternal - principle made by God, only know by God
Natural - theory that an eternal, absolute moral law can ve discovered by reason
Divine - the bible reflects this

20
Q

What is Natural Moral Law?

A

An absolutist theory based on the belief that there is a natural order to the world and that natural order has been designed by God

21
Q

What are Primary Precepts?

A

These are the natural laws that are set in stone, the path towards the ultimate purpose

22
Q

What are the 5 Primary Precepts?

A

1) Worship God
2) Defend the innocent
3) Reproduce
4) Ordered society
5) Education

23
Q

What do we learn through the primary precepts?

A

The Secondary Precepts

24
Q

What are secondary precepts?

A

These vary from the law of the land to accept codes of behaviour

25
Q

What is an example of a secondary precept?

A

PP - Reproduce
SP - permits IVF and surrogacy, but condemns abortion

26
Q

What is ‘Hard Determinism’?

A

All human action is casually determined, we never act freely, so are not morally responsible for our actions

27
Q

What are real and apparent goods?

A
  • a real good is in accordance to the natural moral law
  • an apparent good is a mistake, however not intentionally chosen - through an error of reason
28
Q

What are exterior and interior acts?

A

Both the intention and act are important
- ‘exterior’ is acting in a good way for the wrong reason’
- ‘interior’ is acting in a good way within itself

This is similar to MacIntyres Exterior and Interior reasonss

29
Q

What is casuistry?

A

The process of applying NML principles to specific situations, done in a logical way with logical consequences

30
Q

What is the Doctrine of Double Effect?

A

If doing something morally good has a morally bad side-effect, it’s ethically OK to do it providing the bad side-effect wasn’t intended

31
Q

What is proportionalism?

A

Asserts that one can determine the right course of action by weighing up the good and the necessary evil caused by the action

32
Q

Who is proportionalism associated with?

A

Bernard Hoose and Richard McCormick

33
Q

What does Hoose argue?

A

Humans can never live in a world of perfect morals, since society is inherently flawed since the sin of Adam and EVe

34
Q

What is the solution to not living in a world of perfect morals?

A

We must strive towards a moral compromise, not perfection

35
Q

What are Hoose’s ‘Ontic Goods’?

A

Those that alleviate suffering
- justice
- integrity
- dignity

36
Q

What is Hoose’s interpretation of NML?

A

It is a system of guidelines rather than absolutes

37
Q

When was proportionalism developed?

A

1960s - in response to Humanae Vitae and its views on contraception

38
Q

What are ontic evils?

A

They are not immoral but cause pain and suffering - different to ‘moral evil’

39
Q

What does McCormick argue for proportionalism?

A

Recognises that free will is an important part of human nature

40
Q

What are intrinsically evil acts?

A

Those that go against both Primary and Secondary precepts

41
Q

Where does proportionalism stand in ethics?

A

Mid-way between deontological ethics and teleological ethics

Edexcel A Level Ethics - Normative (3 decks)

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