Chapter 11 Self-Check Questions

. Inference to the Best Explanation (IBE) is a form of argument that is only used in discussions of moral controversies.

True

False

. A moral IBE:

Seeks to show that someone's conduct is wrong by explaining why they did it.

Derives a moral principle from empirical observations of the world, and then applies it to a controversial target case to give us guidance.

Identifies a moral principle that best explains clear and uncontroversial cases, and then applies this principle to give us guidance about a more challenging and controversial case.

Gives a detailed and sophisticated explanation of why two cases in an Argument from Analogy are relevantly similar in order to support premise 2 of the argument.

. In the context of a moral IBE, paradigm cases are:

Specific cases with a clear and uncontroversial moral status, used to show why a moral principle is plausible.

Specific instances of the kind of controversial target case the argument is ultimately about.

Perspective-changing examples that people have not thought about before, which are used to explain why people have not already accepted a particular moral principle.

. A moral IBE is composed of two sub-arguments. The Principle Justification Sub-Argument aims to:

Give evidence that a principle is plausible by showing that it is central to prominent, historically-important worldviews.

Apply a principle to paradigm cases to show why our intuitive evaluation of those cases is flawed.

Apply a principle to a target case to justify guidance about that case.

Give evidence that a principle is plausible by showing it best explains the paradigm cases.

. A moral IBE is composed of two sub-arguments. The Principle Application Sub-Argument aims to:

Give evidence that a principle is plausible by showing that it is central to prominent, historically-important worldviews.

Apply a principle to paradigm cases to show why our intuitive evaluation of those cases is flawed.

Apply a principle to a target case to justify guidance about that case.

Give evidence that a principle is plausible by showing it best explains the paradigm cases.

. The __________________ resembles the General Form of Argument from Principle.

Principle Justification Sub-Argument of a moral IBE.

Principle Application Sub-Argument of a moral IBE.

Whole moral IBE, composed of both sub-arguments

. In the Principle Justification Sub-Argument of a moral IBE, premise 1:

States that the target case is the type of case the principle applies to.

States (a) judgment(s) about the paradigm cases.

States the moral principle.

States that the principle best explains the judgments about the paradigm cases.

. In the Principle Justification Sub-Argument of a moral IBE, premise 2:

States that the target case is the type of case the principle applies to.

States (a) judgment(s) about the paradigm cases.

States the moral principle.

States that the principle best explains the judgments about the paradigm cases.

. Moral IBE is especially useful in cases where:

There is no consensus about what moral principle is most relevant to the target issue/case.

There is clear consensus about what moral principle is most relevant to the target issue/case.

There are clear and uncontroversial analogues to the controversial target case.

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