Philosophy Final Exam Cheatsheet

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Philosophy

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Apr 3, 2024

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Five topics each page Mill and utilitarianism What is the principle of utility?: Who or what counts as an object of moral concern for Mill? Issues that affect individual’s happiness Principle of Utility, is stated as the principle that happiness is the only thing desirable as an end. Motives don’t matter in questions of morality but do with the worth of the decision maker. What are some of the objections to utilitarianism and how does Mill answer them? 1)Objection: Bad faith, and ‘whataboutism’ states that people will say that they will get more happiness for doing something wrong, making exceptions to moral code if it serves them best. Mill says that this could be stated against any moral code. 2) Utilitarianism can be called chilly, Mill states that what counts to the utilitarian is to judge actions, rather than the quality of the agents who commit them. What are higher and lower pleasures and why does Mill distinguish them? A pleasure is of higher quality if people would choose it over a different pleasure even if it is accompanied by discomfort, and if they would not trade it for a greater amount of the other pleasure. Even though a person who uses higher faculties often suffers more in life (hence the common dictum "ignorance is bliss"), he would never choose a lower existence, preferring instead to maintain his dignity. Kant and deontology : What is the ‘good will’: the distinction between doing things ‘according to duty’ and ‘from duty’ good will is when decisions are fully determined by moral demands. acting from duty, I perform the action because it is my duty, irrespective of whether or not I am inclined to do it Contrariwise, in acting in accordance with duty, whilst I do perform the action that duty commands, I don’t do it for that reason. Rather I do it because I am inclined. The two formulations of the ‘categorical imperative’ (universality, treating persons as ends), and what they mean a rule of conduct that is unconditional or absolute for all agents, the validity or claim of which does not depend on any desire or end . rational human beings should be treated as an end in themselves and not as a means to something else. Universality because one must respect the dignity and autonomy of others and do not put themselves above others. What is an ‘autonomous agent’? autonomous agent recognizes his intrinsic value as a rational being, he must also recognize the intrinsic value of all other rational beings, because there is no relevant difference between his rational agency and that of others. Aristotelian Virtue Ethics What is telos, and how does it connect to living virtuously? Telos is the ancient Greek term for an end, fulfilment, completion, goal or aim. Aristotle believes all creatures have a telos and it aims at some good, if you act in accordance to it u act virtuously. What are virtues, how are they learned, and what are they for? Virtues are Courage, Liberality (generosity), Justice, Temperance, Pride, Wit, Friendliness. Intellectual virtues are a product of teaching, while practical virtues are a product of habit. Virtues allow us to have balance in our character What is happiness or eudaemonia, and how is it achieved? eudaimonia, also spelled eudaemonia, in Aristotelian ethics, the condition of human flourishing or of living well . depends on fulfilling our function, which is to contribute to social projects. Acting in accordance with virtue vs. acting from virtue? Acting from virtue means the person chooses the act for the sake of it, acting in accordance is when the vitues have their own character but it doesn’t follow that they are done justly or temperately. Descartes and the Nature of the Self: Rationalism and empiricism: what are they? Rationalism distinguishes between empirical knowledge, i.e., knowledge that arises through experience, and a priori knowledge, i.e., knowledge that is prior to experience and that arises through reason. Empirical knowledge depends upon our senses. All knowledge, the empiricist argues, arises through, and is reducible to, sense perception. Thus, there is no knowledge that arises through reason alone The Cartesian demon: what is it supposed to show? The Demon is an all-powerful being that deceives your every action. It’s supposed to show that to believe that you are being deceived, or to doubt, is to exist as that which is deceived, or as a doubter. Even the Demon, Descartes claims, cannot put this proposition in doubt! The ‘wax’ argument: what is substance, how do we know it, and what can we infer about the nature of mind? Descartes’ point is that I understand the nature of the wax not through any sensation or group of sensations, but through my understanding of what wax ‘is, ie., substance. Therefore, we have also established beyond any doubt the existence of the mind as the substance which does all of these things. Hume on Identity and the self: What is an ‘idea’ according to Hume? Why can we not have an idea of the self? Ideas are what arise when we reflect upon our sensory experience. We cannot, by definition, have an idea of the self, since all of our impressions are supposed to be ‘with reference to it’ The sources of illusion about identity: resemblance, contiguity, causation: how do they contribute to the illusion We are liable to think that a thing remains the same before and after a dramatic transformation, provided that the transformation appears to be gradual and continuous. The idea of the self is ever changing you are never the same thing.

Five topics each page Why does Hume argue that memory is the source of self and what are its limitations? since through memory we first discover the unity of our perceptions, ideas, etc., as belonging to “me”, it falls to the defenders of personal identity to explain with what right we attribute identity to ourselves beyond what we remember. Skinner: the Self is an illusion we can no longer afford: What is behaviorism, and why does it deny the existence of ‘minds’? Behaviorist theory is when learning is a process of ‘conditioning’ in an environment of stimulus, reward and punishment . We can use the mind but because we cannot explain it means that it can’t exist The importance of operant conditioning Behavior is shaped and maintained by its consequences.’ (16). This is, in effect, learning; and the role of the mental life is to act as a kind of ‘user interface’ guiding this learning process. We can use operant conditioning as a basis to study increasingly complex behaviors, and to actually explain those behaviors (as opposed to treating them as miraculous). ‘Freedom’ and ‘dignity’, and why they are both problematic for Skinner You are free to choose what you do and have dignity if you do things well but Skinner scrutinizes these principles because the people themselves are shaped by the environment they’re in, so are they really the ones in control. Anselm and Aquinas: What is the ontological argument for the existence of god? simply THINK of the deity as the GREATEST CONCEIVABLE BEING and then it indicates that a being that exists in reality (outside of the mind) is greater than one that is just in the mind (imagination). So, the conclusion is that if you think of the GCB you must THINK that the GCB exists not just in your thinking (mind) but in reality (outside of your mind) as well. What is the cosmological argument for God, and how is it different from the ontological argument? The cosmological argument is an attempt to prove the existence of God by the fact that things exist . It assumes that things must have a cause, and that the chain of causes can only end by a supernatural event. Why does Aquinas not accept the ontological argument? Because Anselm thinks we can have insight into the essences of things but for Aristotle and Aquinas it was only possible to acquire knowledge through our senses . The argument from design : What is the metaphor of the watchmaker and what is its significance? Is it really possible that by random chance you find a watch and it wasn’t made by a maker or a product of design, it isn’t possible? Points out that there must be a designer for the world/universe because it is argued that it is obviously not a product of chance but rather a product of design Evidence of purpose and its significance for the existence of a designer Purpose is used to describe that a designer must have a purpose when creating something. How can it be that everything on earth has a particular purpose without being designed? Fine tuning arguments: how do they work and what do they claim to show? the universe’s fine-tuning for life : according to many physicists, the fact that the universe is able to support life depends delicately on various of its fundamental characteristics, notably on the form of the laws of nature, on the values of some constants of nature, and on aspects of the universe’s conditions in its very early stages. The atheists respond: What is Russell’s response to the cosmological and design arguments? ‘My father taught me that the question, “Who made me?” cannot be answered, since it immediately suggests the further question, “Who made God?”. Russell claims that we know that the world was not designed to suit our purposes, but that we have evolved to suit the environment. Furthermore, we see everywhere evidence of the failure of design, seemingly improbable given millions of years for an omnipotent, benevolent being to get it right… Are there moral objections to theism? But the onus is on you to say ‘why’; the onus is not on the rest of us to say ‘why not’. We don’t need to explain why we don’t think there is a teapot orbiting mars, just based on our inability to prove that there isn’t! Why does Dawkins argue that understanding evolution is ‘deeply corrosive to religious faith’? The great intellectual revolution spurred by Darwin was to show how we can explain complexity by means of nothing but simplicity The trial of Socrates: What are the charges against Socrates, and how does he defend himself against these charges? Crimes against the state for corrupting the youth (charged with the natural). the first is that he has no knowledge of ‘natural philosophy’; the second is that he is not, and does not claim to be, a teacher. What is an examined life? Why does Socrates argue that the unexamined life is not worth living? Examined life is when an individual scrutinizes their own life in order to have a fulfilled life, unexamined life is not worth living because this is the only thing that separates us from mere beasts. Why does Socrates argue that he is the wisest man in all of Athens? He believes he is the wisest man in all of Athens because he understands that he knows nothing at all while others claim that they do, this understanding makes him the wisest man (I do not suppose that either of us knows anything really beautiful and good, I am better off than he is - for he knows nothing, and thinks that he knows)

Five topics each page Seneca and William James on the nature of the good life: What is Seneca’s account of the nature of friendship? Not a transactional relationship, choose your friends wisely, to many friends not good, should be for the sake of the concept. What makes a proposition worth believing according to James? How does this impact James’ account of religious belief? Why does James argue that it may be rational to be religious? Three things make propositions worthy of belief: Their character of inner happiness; Their consistency with other thoughts; Their usefulness: ‘serviceability for our needs’. It means that religion is important because of the effects of belief rather than the causes of belief, useful because of its ability to make us feel happy. Introduction to the social Contract: Hobbes, Hume and Rawls: What is the veil of ignorance, and what is it intended to show according to Rawls? moral reasoning device designed to promote impartial decision making by denying decision makers access to potentially biasing information about who will benefit most or least from the available options . What is the state of nature, and why do Hobbes and Hume argue that it is rational to build a social contract to leave the state of nature? state of nature is characterized by the “war of every man against every man,” a constant and violent condition of competition in which each individual has a natural right to everything, regardless of the interests of others. To avoid the state of nature, a social contract is agreed upon, where everyone gives up some rights so that it is easier to live in peace. Criticizing the social contract: Hannah Arendt and totalitarianism (see week 15 lecture and reading) Why does Arendt distinguish totalitarianism from tyranny? Totalitarian is when an entire people are reduced to the beliefs of one, everyone thinks the same. It’s precise and isn’t the arbitrary self-interested rule of a tyrant and the laws of nature. What is the connection between modernism and loneliness according to Arendt? Loneliness is when a person is unable to act by themselves or others, this causes people to lose the shared reality that allows us to know ourselves, to know where we end and the world begins, and how we are connected to others. This causes one to be taught to distrust oneself and others, and to always rely upon the ideology of the movement, which must be right. Plato’s Gorgias: rhetoric, truth, power and persuasion: What is rhetoric, and why is Socrates suspicious of it in the Gorgias? Rhetoric is the art of speaking well, allowing someone to manipulate others with words. Socrates is claiming that rhetoric is a tool of bullshit. What is the nature of the dispute between Socrates and Callicles, and what exactly do they disagree about? Socrates says that doing the just thing is like doing what is ‘healthy’ for the soul? Callicles says might is right, and the only reason we insist on ‘equality’ is because the strong are outnumbered by the weak? Nietzsche’s Genealogy of Morality and the critique of modernity: (see week 18 lecture and reading) What exactly is a genealogical argument, and how does Nietzsche use this style of argument to critique ‘modern’ moral ideas like ‘democracy’ and ‘justice’? What is the concept of ressentiment according to Nietzsche, and why does he use it? he argues that our present morality is born out of a resentment and hatred that was felt toward anything that was powerful, strong, or healthy . Genealogical argument examines how moral values come to be Harry Frankfurt: On Bullshit: What is ‘bullshit’ according to Frankfurt, and why is it different than lying? Why does Frankfurt argue that in some respects, bullshitting may be worse than lying? Bullshit is when failures of clarity lead to failures of understanding, and thereby, to failure to grasp truths (moral or otherwise). Talking about something you do not know anything about. To lie you must know what is true, too bullshit you don’t know what is true. It’s worse because if someone is bullshitting they only care is the other person is persuaded. What are some of the causes of the widespread use of bullshitting in modern life, according to Frankfurt? He states that the social expectation for individuals to have and express their opinions on all matters requires more bullshit. Daniel Dennett: Real Patterns: What exactly is a ‘real pattern’ according to Dennett, and why does Dennett believe that this concept is useful for distinguishing things that are real from things that are imaginary? Three categories of patterns, physical stance , the domain of physics and chemistry, design stance , the domain of biology and engineering, which requires no knowledge of the physical constitution or the physical laws, intentional stance , the domain of software and minds, which requires no knowledge of either structure or design, and “[clarifies] the logic of mentalistic explanations of behavior, their predictive power Kant and Pinker on Enlightenment and ‘ecomodernism’: What is Kant’s conception of enlightenment? What are some of the implications of this conception for the notions of ‘truth’ and ‘progress’? Enlighten’ themselves through education, critical thinking, a commitment to lifelong learning and curiosity, and willingness to share and discuss ideas in public. whether we like it or not, there are curbs on our freedom. Yet the freedom to debate in public, the ‘public use of reason’, is the key to enlightenment, important because it allows people to find the truth.

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