phil questions

Study Guide for Final Exam Phil 160, Spring 2015 Dr. Wieland ! Format: The exam will be multiple choice and around 40-50 questions long. You will need to bring a scantron form (green 882-E) with you to class. You will have 2 hours to take the exam. The exam will be open book and closed note. ! Question format: The goal of the exam is to test your knowledge of content. For example, a typical exam question will look like this: “What is the Prisoner’s Dilemma?” You will then select the correct answer from among several possibilities. Possible exam topics: All material listed on the syllabus is fair game for the exam. However, it will be more heavily weighted toward the end of the semester. Here is a list of likely figures/topics/concepts with which you should be familiar. !! Moral (Cultural) Relativism

• The best reasons for and against Cultural Relativism as a moral theory ! Subjectivism ! Hedonism

• Epicurus ⇒ His views on hedonism, how he characterizes pleasure and a pleasurable life ⇒ His views on death, and why we shouldn’t fear it

• Mill ⇒ The principle of utility, and his defense of it ⇒ The doctrine of higher and lower pleasures

• Huxley ⇒ The lessons of the brave new world, why he thinks pleasure is not enough for a good life ⇒ How Huxley would critique Subjectivism and Hedonism

• Nozick ⇒ The experience machine ⇒ How Nozick would critique Subjectivism and Hedonism !

Deontology • Kant

⇒ The formulations of the categorical imperative ⇒ The good will ⇒ Examples of acting with/without a good will ⇒ Autonomy and self-respect !!

Utilitarianism • Smart

⇒ Extreme and restricted utilitarianism (or act and rule utilitarianism) ! Virtue Ethics

• Aristotle ⇒ Virtues and vices and the mean ⇒ The importance of external goods ⇒ The importance of a moral education ⇒ The Huck Finn example and the “good” Nazi example ⇒ What makes a life excellent !

Social Contract Theory • Hobbes

⇒ Rational choice theory ⇒ The Prisoner’s Dilemma ⇒ The state of nature

⇒ The laws of nature ⇒ The fundamental equality of humans ⇒ What makes a law just and covenants ⇒ On self-interest !

Global Poverty • Singer

⇒ Utilitarianism and obligations to the poor ⇒ Morally comparable sacrifices ⇒ Distance and moral relevance ⇒ Bob and the Bugatti !

Animal Rights and the Sanctity of Life • Singer and Norcross

⇒ Speciesism ⇒ Utilitarianism and the extent of the moral community ⇒ Vegetarianism ⇒ Equality of interests vs. equality of treatment ⇒ Moral agents vs. moral patients ⇒ Marginal cases and rationality !

Abortion • Foot

⇒ The doctrine of double effect ⇒ Views on permissibility of abortion in cases where a mother’s life is at risk

• Thomson ⇒ Distinction between persons and humans ⇒ Violinist example, rapidly growing baby example, people seeds example, burglar example ⇒ Views on permissibility of abortion !

Torture • Luban

⇒ Illiberal vs. liberal forms of torture ⇒ Torture and liberalism ⇒ The torture memos ⇒ Dershowitz and the warrant system for torture ⇒ How Luban would respond to Dershowitz !

Parents and Children • LaFollette

⇒ Argument for regulating harmful activities ⇒ And the right to have children ⇒ Possible objections to licensing and LaFollette’s responses !

Terrorism (only if we are able to cover this topic in class) • Walzer

⇒ The harms of terrorism ⇒ The way people try to justify terrorism !