Philosophy Exam 1

Question 1

Problem of Evil Argument Premises

Answer 1

1. If God exists, then he is all-good and all-powerful.
2. If God is all-good then he would want to eliminate all suffering.
3. If god is all-powerful then he could eliminate all suffering.
4. Therefore, if god exists there would be no suffering.
5. but there is suffering.
6. therefore, god does not exist.

Question 2

Free Will Objection Version 1

Answer 2

A world where people have free will is better than a world without free will.

Question 3

Who made the problem of evil argument?

Answer 3

Mackie

Question 4

Free will objection version 2

Answer 4

a world where people have the ability to make morally significant choices is better than having free will and no significant choices.

Question 5

Suffering

Answer 5

by natural causes: say it allows for charity but charity wouldnt be necessary if there was no suffering.
innocents: good from child suffering outweighs the bad but what about the children that dont have any good come.

Question 6

objections to the problem of evil

Answer 6

1. punishing those who suffer
2. no good without evil
3. an evil all-powerful being
4. free will objection

Question 7

Testimony

Answer 7

knowledge you gain from other people

Question 8

anti-reductionism

Answer 8

you can sometimes be justified in believing a proposition based on testimony alone

Question 9

problems with anti-reductionism

Answer 9

Gullibility

Question 10

reductionism

Answer 10

you also have to have other good reasons to believe the proposition in question
(talk about children)

Question 11

Fricker

Answer 11

She stated you need to know that someone is credible in order to believe testimony

Question 12

Lackey

Answer 12

talked about gullibility

Question 13

Aquinas’ Causal Argument premises

Answer 13

1. at least some things come into existence
2. whatever comes into existence had to be caused to come into existence.
3. an infinite number of past causes is impossible
4. therefore, there was a first cause.

Question 14

Causal argument not sound

Answer 14

third premise fails. respond by saying there can be an infinite number of past causes.

Question 15

Aquinas’ argument for third premise

Answer 15

if you take away a cause, you take away its effects. if there were an infinite number of past causes, there would be no first cause, and its effects would never happen. but we exist so there cant be an infinite number of past causes.

Question 16

problem with argument for third premise

Answer 16

begs the question. uses conclusion to prove argument for third premise.

Question 17

Descartes and the skeptical challenge

Answer 17

tried to be more skeptical then any skeptic ever was. posed question to himself and tried to answer it.

1. i know that p only if i can rule out every possibility that not-p.
2. I cant rule out every possibility that not-p.
3. therefore, i dont know that p.

Question 18

first skeptical possibility

Answer 18

sense deception: our senses have deceived us in the past, therefore they could be deceiving us now.

Question 19

Descartes’ response to the first skeptical possibility

Answer 19

In order to know they have deceived us, they had to have been right at one point.

Question 20

second skeptical possibility

Answer 20

dreaming: you cant rule out the possibility that you are only dreaming about that p, so if you are only dreaming, then not-p is possible.

Question 21

Descartes’ response to the second skeptical possibility

Answer 21

colors, shapes, and quantities exist in all our dreams, therefore they must be real.

Question 22

third skeptical possibility

Answer 22

evil demon: i cant rule out the possibility that an evil demon is making me believe that p, so i dont know p.

Question 23

Response to the third possibility

Answer 23

cant deny that i am a thinking thing. even if he tries to make me doubt i am thinking, i am still thinking.

Question 24

Clifford’s argument premises

Answer 24

1. if the truth of a belief could matter to other people, you shouldnt have that belief without good reason.
2. the truth of any belief could matter to other people.
3. therefore, you shouldnt have any belief without good reason.

Question 25

Objections to Clifford’s argument

Answer 25

Zagzebski: religious beliefs dont rely on evidence of god existing. based on feelings and emotions. ex: friendships
2. also based on our communities

Question 26

objection to zagzebski’s argument

Answer 26

communities can be wrong. respond to this by saying there are peaceful ways of resolving these problems by giving reasons for your side, just not to the extreme.

Question 27

Anselm’s ontological argument premises

Answer 27

1. God is the greatest possible being.
2. existence in reality and in the mind is greater than existing just in the mind.
3. so if god existed only in the mind, he wouldnt be as great as he would if he existed in reality.
4. so if god existed only in the mind he wouldnt be the greatest possible being.
5. therefore, god must exist in both reality and the mind.

Question 28

Guanilo’s greatest island objection

Answer 28

exact same argument but with SuperHawaii. Anslem’s argument proves too much.

Question 29

attacking an assumption

Answer 29

problem with his third premise. says that what exists in the mind and reality are the same thing. But something is not exactly the same in my mind and in reality.

Question 30

Bostrom’s argument premises

Answer 30

1. some people will survive to reach technological maturity.
2. At least some people will want to run ancestor simulations.
3. the number of ancestor simulations will outnumber the number of people that lived in the civilization before it reached technological maturity.
4. therefore, it is more likely that i am a computer simulation than not.

Question 31

objections

Answer 31

1. reject the assumptions

2. should we care?

Question 32

reject the assumptions

Answer 32

1. there is no reason to believe some people will not survive to see technological maturity.
2. there is a chance people will like to run simulations since they do now
3. there are many more simulations than the person playing the simulation.

Question 33

should we care

Answer 33

1. want truth over deception
2. want control of our own life.
   being simulations does not mean we are wrong about our ordinary life. we still know certain things exist.