Naturalism

Question 1

What is the key idea of Naturalism?

Answer 1

Good is the natural fact

Question 2

What is meant by reductive Moral Naturalism?

Answer 2

You can reduce moral properties to natural properties e.g happiness

Question 3

Example of reductive Moral Naturalism and why?

Answer 3

Utilitarianism
Mill says that pleasure is desirable by everyone, therefore pleasure = good. You reduce good to pleasure

Question 4

What is the key idea of the Criticism “Naturalistic Fallacy” ?

Answer 4

Naturalist theories are wrong as you can’t define good

Question 5

1. What is the open question?
2. Example

Answer 5

1. No definition + you can still ask questions
2. Sky=blue, is it always blue? => not a definition

Question 6

1. What is a closed question?
2. Example

Answer 6

1. Good definition + no questions left
2. Water=H2O, is it always H2O? - yes, question doesn’t make sense

Question 7

Who’s criticism is Naturalistic Fallacy?

Answer 7

Ge Moore

Question 8

Naturalistic Fallacy - what is meant by simple and complex ideas?

Answer 8

Ge Moore says that you can only define complex ideas by breaking them into smaller ones. You can’t define simple ideas. E.g yellow can’t be defined further

Question 9

What idea and question (opened/closed) is ‘Good’ according to Ge Moore?

Answer 9

Simple idea, opened question.

You can’t define good, just like yellow. You can always ask questions - is pleasure always good?

Question 10

According to Ge Moore, what is good as a property?

Answer 10

It is a non-definable, non-natural, simple property