Ethics 2050 Possible Final Exam Questions Five of the following questions will appear on your final exam,

and you will be asked to respond to three of those five. Your responses will be in the form of a short essay, and no direct quotations from the texts are required. You will have two and a half hours from the time you access your exam until you need to upload your responses. 1) Analyze the following example using a Kantian approach employing the categorical imperative. John learns non-public information about the pending bankruptcy of Acme Corp and promptly sells all of his stock, giving the money to his favorite charity. Is he justified in doing so? Why or why not? Nothing in the world is unquestionably good except the good will. Both qualities of character (intelligence, courage etc.) and fortune (wealth, power etc.) can lead to both good and bad ends while a good will is always inherently good-even if it fails to translate into positive ends. The specific obligations of a good will are duties- thus, a moral action is one that is performed purely out of duty. Rational agents can align their will with either subjective or objective imperatives. Hypothetical imperatives are those in which an action necessitates a means to an end. In contrast, categorical imperatives are those in which an action is necessary in itself. In order to exclude any other circumstantial motivations besides pure reason, a categorical imperative must be an action upon which its maxim can be established as a universal law. Thus, our moral principles cannot be based solely upon observable actions but upon the universal validity of such actions. If a motivation is only valid in a specific situation, then it is circumstantial and the ensuing action is not universalizable-the deed is selfish in nature. To always act in such a way that your maxim (principle governing your action) could be a universal law. (rational, act with good will) Not only does the end matter a question of intent. (the means that bring about the end) 2) Mill proposes a principle of utility to guide our ethical judgments, meaning that we should aim to maximize the amount of pleasure in the world. Nonetheless, he argues that some pleasures are qualitatively better, and hence, more important than others. Identify and analyze two conclusions that he draws from this claim. Mill argues that human pleasures are inherently superior to animal pleasures- realizing and cultivating our higher faculties leads to the attainment of happiness. Mill further distinguishes between higher-level and lower-level pleasures in terms of the quantity and quality of the consequent happiness. Higher-level pleasures are those that a person would always choose over a different pleasure, even if it causes discomfort. Furthermore, a person would not trade a higher-level pleasure for a greater amount of another pleasure. Only those who have experienced both lower and higher level pleasures can judge the quality of a pleasure-thus, experiences are not judged by a singular standard but rather

according to a variety of different qualities of pleasure correspondent to the type of experience. 3) Singer argues that we should donate money to help those who live in situations of absolute poverty. Despite the fact that those in such situations are generally far away from those living in developed countries, Singer claims that not only do we have an obligation to help them, but that we may be more willing to do so than to help those in relative poverty in our own countries. Why does he suggest this? Do you agree or disagree? Absolute poverty=on any measure poverty/suffering Relative poverty=poverty relative to internal standard (average) of wealthy place. No one can deny how bad the condition of absolute poverty is our aid goes further (our help contributes more; more efficient ways of increasing the quantity of happiness) We have an easier time blaming those in relative poverty for their own conditions.

6) Catholic Social Thought argues that human beings should adopt a relation of stewardship towards the environment. Explain the motivations for adopting such a relation. What do you think a current Villanova student should do in order to steward the environment? Rerum Novarum & Byron Piece Principle of Stewardshipe #7- Our catholic faithshow gratitude & respect to creation. The steward is a manager & not an owner. Moral responsibility for the protection of the environment. (protection & management as opposed to domination & exploitation) 7) Aldo Leopold argues in The Sand County Almanac that humans ought to develop a land ethic. This land ethic would require us to give up the view that we are the conquerors of nature. Explain why he recommends this shift and provide examples of concrete examples of what you think this would look like. Leopold urges us to expand the boundaries of community to include the collective landanimals, plants, and soil. Leopold argues that history has shown the role of human conqueror as self-defeating: we know neither what makes the community clock tick nor what/who are valuable or worthless. An ecological interpretation of history shows man to be a mere member of the biotic community-events is shaped as much by the characteristics of the land as the characteristics of those men who lived upon it. 8) Ethicists such as Tom Regan argue that we ought to respect the rights of animals as they are sentient subjects of a life. By contrast, Roger Scruton argues that our duties towards animals can include eating them, provided we view them as our friends. How might Regan respond to this? Is there, in your opinion, a properly ethical justification for eating animals, or is it merely something we do out of habit/convenience? Scruton believes the moral life is one grounded in value, virtue and duty. He distinguishes between virtuous and vicious consumption of animals-virtuous eating implies fulfilling obligations. Scruton calls for a remoralization of, not complete abolition of, animal consumption. We need to use our meat-eating habits as instruments of hospitality, conviviality and peace, which, when added with the ecological benefits of small-scale life-stock farming more

effectively neutralizes our inherited burden of guilt than vegetarianism could ever hope to accomplish. It then become not only permissible, but required, for virtuous consumers to eat meat-doing so increases the practice of compassionate farming. Where there are conscientious carnivores there exists a motive to raise animals kindly. Duty requires us to limit battery farming by eating our friends. Regan is a definite proponent of the complete abolition of animal consumerism-be it agricultural, scientific or otherwise. 9) Choose the principle of Catholic Social Thought that you think is most at odds with our contemporary American society. How would we have to change our lives to more fully accord with this particular principle? Look in byrons article. 10) Bostrum and Roache refer to Bernard Williams claim that if we lived forever our lives would have no meaning. Explain what Williams means. Do you agree with him or do you think a life without death better allow for human flourishing?