PHIL 181

Question 1

Hedonism

Answer 1

-Pleasure
-Absence of pain
-wellbeing: balance of pleasure over pain

Question 2

Singer’s principle

Answer 2

“it is in our power to prevent something bad from happening, without thereby sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance we ought, morally, to do it.”

Question 3

Welfarism

Answer 3

what matter is how well-off people are and nothing else
-the higher the total amount the better the outcome

Question 4

egalitarianism

Answer 4

-wellbeing is not all the matters: its distribution matters as well
-not only A) people matter equally but also B) equal distribution matters

Question 5

moral desert

Answer 5

-the wellbeing of good people is better than the wellbeing of bad people
-the pain of good people is worse than the pain of bad people
-claim about intrinsic value

Question 6

consequentialism

Answer 6

-theory of the the right
-promoting the best outcomes
-an act is morally right if and only if it produces the best consequences

Question 7

Utilitarianism

Answer 7

an act is morally right if and only if it leads to the greatest total amount of wellbeing
-welfarism (wellbeing is all that matters) and consequentialism (outcomes are all that matter)

Question 8

utilitarianism and commonsense morality

Answer 8

-gives an account of the basis of the rules of commonsense morality
-gives us a standard against which they can be evaluated and modified
-gives us a standard to evaluate the rules when they conflict
-tells us when we should depart from them

Question 9

act utilitarianism

Answer 9

what act would lead to the best consequences?
-determining what will promote the greatest pleasure by considering the specific features of each individual situation

Question 10

rule utilitarianism

Answer 10

what set of rules would lead to the best consequences?
-an act is morally right if and only if it conforms to such rules
-the rules are the criterion of right action

Question 11

Deontology

Answer 11

-denial of consequentialism
-right and wrong are not simply a matter of consequences
-consequences are not all that matter
-theory of the right
-any moral theory that focuses on your moral duty

Question 12

formula of universal law

Answer 12

act only according to that maxim whereby you can, at the same time, will that it should become universal law

Question 13

formula of humanity

Answer 13

act in such a way that you always treat humanity, whether in your own person or in the person of any other, never simply as means but always at the same time as an end

Question 14

categorical imperative

Answer 14

-act only in ways that, given the circumstance make sense to you
-act only in ways that given the circumstance make sense to everyone

Question 15

theory of outcomes

Answer 15

-welfarism
-egalitarianism
-desert theories

Question 16

theory of the right

Answer 16

-consequentialism
-deontology

Question 17

Kantianism

Answer 17

-morality of a decision or action is usually determined by the motiviation of the doer.