Ethical Theories

For a utilitarian, actions are right as they: a) Produce the best consequences b) Produce the most consequences c) Tend to produce the best consequences d) Tend to limit the most harm e) Follow the correct rules of morality

Bentham uses his Hedonic Calculus to: a) Measure how many hedons are present in pleasure. b) Establish the relative values of different pleasures. c) Help us reach our personal goals. d) Justify the mathematical nature of morality. e) Complicate the simplicity of ordinary ethics.

Utilitarianism is a demanding theory because a) it is difficult to calculate what to do. b) no one can figure out how to cause pleasure. c) there will be conflicts between our duties and our interests. d) Bentham and Mill were bossy people. e) self-improvement is its first goal.

For Kant, the only thing good unconditionally is a) pleasure b) courage c) virtue d) a good will e) a good time

For Kant, an action has moral worth only if it is done a) in accordance with duty b) from a sense of duty c) with a measure of good will d) through a motive of love e) to cause the most pleasure possible

The contradictions in Kant’s ethics a) have plagued Kant scholars for decades b) are strange, but since he rejects reason, they are not problematic c) yield perfect and imperfect duties d) make his theory unacceptable until they are resolved e) a and d

Aristotle uses the distinction between intrinsic and instrumental goods to find a) a way to combat militarism is ancient Greece. b) the best or highest good for humans. c) who is a friend and who is an enemy. d) inner peace while maintaining the military. e) honor without economic failure.

We seek happiness, according to Aristotle, only a) as a means to goodness. b) as a means to a virtue-filled life. c) as an end, meaning, as a way to escape reincarnation. d) for the afterlife, never as an end in this life. e) for its own sake, and never as a means to something else.

Aristotle reasons that “the good of an eye is seeing, and the eye is good if it sees well.” The point he is making is that, by analogy, a) we can all see how nature makes things good. b) a good human will see, and see well. c) a good human will reason, and reason well. d) a good human will always use the power of sight for a good cause. e) we can test a moral theory only by its unique function.

Rational animal is a better definition of humans than featherless biped because a) ‘Featherless biped’ is a mere biological definition b) Rationality is better than Featherlessness c) Animality is better than bipedalism d) It tells you more about what is important to know about humans e) It’s not; featherless biped is better (most unique)

Aristotle’s view of happiness is weird because he thinks it … a) depends on friendship b) is an activity, not a condition c) belongs to adults, not children d) is mysterious to happy people e) cannot last

For Aristotle, being moral is … a) more important than being happy b) only important if you value it c) only important as a means to happiness d) part of happiness, but not the most important part e) part of happiness, and the most important part

Which of these virtues is most important? a) Temperance b) Courage c) Prudence d) Generosity e) Wit

Moral virtues are: a) Multi-track dispositions b) Established by nature c) Habits learned in childhood d) Never lost once established e) Difficult to retain

If you tried to return that Bee Gees CD to your sister on time, but failed because “it’s just soooo good!”, you are a) Continent b) Incontinent c) Vicious d) Virtuous e) Malicious

Moral virtue is better than intellectual virtue because a) It is more god-like b) It depends less on “things” c) Its pleasure is more constant d) It isn’t better; it is too stressful and so involves hardship e) It isn’t better; it depends on others and so isn’t self-sufficient

Hobbes thinks that we humans are reducible to: a) Our moral and spiritual identities. b) Our fear of death and hope of eternal life. c) Our passions as they conflict with reason. d) Our brains and their deterministic operations. e) Our private thoughts and their meaning for us.

Hobbes thinks the Right of Nature allows us to: a) Kill whenever we feel we have good reason. b) Kill whenever the government permits it. c) Kill whenever necessary to save our family. d) Kill whenever necessary to save our life. e) Kill whenever necessary to defend the commonwealth.

We should follow the Laws of Nature, according to Hobbes, so that we: a) Are good people. b) Are moral people. c) Avoid the condition of war. d) Avoid the state of nature. e) Avoid prosecution for crimes.

Why does the state of nature mean there is no justice or injustice? a) Because those things are unnatural. b) Because those things are legal concepts. c) Because ‘All’s fair in love and war’. d) Because there is no language in nature. e) It doesn’t mean that; justice and injustice exist in the state of nature.

Hobbes thinks some American Indians are good examples of: a) Societies that get along without a sovereign. b) Societies that show how religion can function as a sovereign. c) Humans in the state of nature where life is nasty, brutish, and short. d) Humans in the state of nature who overcome brutishness using religion.

1c, 2b, 3c, 4d, 5b or c, 6c, 7b, 8e, 9c, 10d 11b, 12d, 13c, 14a, 15b, 16e, 17d, 18d, 19c and d, 20c (all’s fair in the condition of war) 21c