PHI 1100 - Quiz 1 Flashcards
From which 2 Greek words is “philosophy” from?
Philein (to love)
Sophia (wisdom)
Working definition of “philosophy”
Careful reflection of our fundamental beliefs
Thales of Miletus
Considered first philosopher
Reached conclusion through logic
Wondered “what is the stuff that made the world?”
Epistemology
Study of knowledge
When are we justified in believing something?
Ontology
Study of existence
Does God exist?
Axiology
Study of values - anesthetics, political philosophy, ethics
3 branches of philosophy
Epistemology, ontology, axiology
Logic
Study of stuff we use to evaluate arguments
Argument
A set of statements where one statement is supported by the others
Premise
Evidence or supporting statement
Conclusion
Main statement of the argument and supported by the other statements
Inference
Process or how we start with our premises to get to our conclusion
Why is being logical not the same as being devoid of emotions?
Logic is used to balance the emotions in an unbiased way
Thought-experiment
Hypothetical situation that provides insights into a philosophical issue
Descartes’ Evil Demon thought-experiment
An all-powerful evil demon can deceive him about everything he knows. But he can only be deceived if he can think and believe. So he will still know that he exists as a thinking thing. So he says “I think, therefore I am!”
Why is “that can’t happen irl” a bad criticism?
A well-constructed thought-experiment can show what we believe about a certain philosophical issue even if it cannot actually happen
Bertrand Russell’s value in philosophy
It prevents us from accepting the beliefs around us as true without good reasoning.
Lewis Vaughn: When are our beliefs not actually ours?
When we get them from our friends, family, community, society, etc.
John Taylor: What is the downside of blindly accepting one’s societal moralities?
One may struggle to defend their beliefs
Descriptive ethics
Scientific study of morality - what do people think is right?
Normative ethics
Ethical norms - which one is most justified?
Metaethics
Abstract ethics - what is “good” and “bad”?
Applied Ethics
Applying ethical norms in specific cases
Intrinsic value
The thing itself is valuable, such as happiness
Extrinsic value
The thing is valuable because of the consequences associated with it, such as preventive care
Principle of Universalizability
If a principle applies to a situation, then it should apply to all relevantly similar situations
Principle of Impartiality
Principles should be unbiased, such as the Golden Rule
Lewis Vaughn: Why do religious individuals need moral reasoning?
Moral reasoning is needed to interpret the moral codes based on religion
Dilemma concerning Divine Command Theory
If it is morally right because God said so, then anything He says is right. If God said so because it is right, then He didn’t make those standards, they exist independently.
Arbitrariness Argument against DCT
If something is right because God said so, then any arbitrary thing He commands is right, even killing innocents.
Objectivism
Moral truths exist independent of what societies and individuals think
Cultural relativism
An act is morally right if accepted by the doer’s culture
Subjective relativism
An act is morally right if one approves
Emotivism
Moral utterances are neither true nor false ; they are expressions of emotions
Absolutism
Principles are rigid rules with no exceptions
Moral infallibility
That we cannot be wrong in our moral opinions if we sincerely believe
Argument for cultural relativism
Right and wrong are relative to culture because people’s opinion on right and wrong differ by culture, which means that objective moral principles don’t exist
Lewis Vaughn: Why can’t cultural relativists consistently advocate for tolerance?
Because tolerance is an objective moral value, which cannot exist under the idea of cultural relativism
Implication of cultural relativism regarding social reformers
Under cultural relativism, social reformers will always be morally wrong
