Chapter 1 Questions

. In ethics, the terms "right" and "wrong" are used primarily to evaluate the morality of

persons.

actions.

consequences.

concrete objects.

. Which of the following is an example of a duty-based moral theory?

consequentialism

natural law theory

Kantian moral theories

none of the above

. Which of the following is a feature of consequentialist moral theory?

It is a value-based theory.

It involves the idea of alternative actions open to the agent.

It is a strongly impartialist moral theory.

all of the above

. To say that the consequentialist account of right action is a maximizing conception is to say that, according to the account,

we are obligated to convince as many people as possible to accept consequentialism.

we ought to perform that action the consequences of which will have at least as much overall value as any of the alternative actions.

we are to perform that action the consequences of which will have the least overall value compared to any of the alternative actions.

none of the above

. Which of the following is a basic intrinsic good, according to Aquinas's version of natural law theory?

human life

human procreation

human sociability

all of the above

. To say that an action is intrinsically permissible (a feature mentioned in the doctrine of double effect) is to say that

the action, apart from its effects, is morally permissible.

the action, only because of its effects, is morally permissible.

no actual person would ever endorse that action.

the action is valuable because of its relationship to things that are intrinsically valuable.

. In satisfying Kant's Humanity formulation of the categorical imperative, we are obligated to adopt two very general goals: the goal of promoting the (morally permissible) ends of others and the goal of

self-perfection.

producing happiness.

increasing welfare.

self-sacrifice.

. Kant refers to the special worth or value of persons as

virtue.

beauty.

praiseworthiness.

dignity.

. A positive right of A against B would involve A's claim that

nobody interfere with B's pursuit of certain goods.

B do or provide something to A.

everybody must assist B in his pursuit of certain goods.

none of the above

. John considers what Mary has done and thinks to himself, Mary did the right thing. This thought is primarily a judgment about

Mary's upbringing.

an action Mary performed.

Mary's moral character.

what John thinks he would have done.

. Audi proposed that we expand Ross's list of prima facie duties to include

veracity.

enhancement and preservation of freedom.

respectfulness.

all of the above

. Corresponding to the theoretical aim of moral theory is the principle of

explanatory power.

parsimony.

practical guidance.

none of the above

. The basic idea of social contract theories of morality is that correct or justified moral rules or principles are the ones that result from

a social leader's moral deliberations.

an actual or hypothetical social agreement of some sort.

a contract that has been signed by most of the affected parties.

none of the above

. Which of the following is an example of a vice of character?

blindness

physical weakness

obesity

cowardice

. Advocates of care ethics argue that

care ethics is an important development of virtue ethics.

that traditional moral theories have difficulty explaining the rightness or wrongness of attitudes.

that the only important more concepts are care and compassion.

that we should think about welfare and happiness in terms of sympathy.

. Duty-based moral theories include versions of consequentialism and virtue ethics.

True

False

. According to perfectionist consequentialism, an action is right if and only if (and because) it is what a morally perfect person would perform.

True

False

. According to utilitarianism, it is welfare or happiness alone that is intrinsically valuable.

True

False

. Unlike with other moral theories, applying the natural law theory is a mechanical process.

True

False

. Central to Kant's theory is the idea that there are several basic moral principles, none of which can be derived from any other.

True

False

. According to rights-based theory, sometimes it is not possible to respect all the fundamental moral rights of others.

True

False

. Virtue ethics entails that there are only good and bad people; there are no good or bad actions.

True

False

. According to Ross the duty of nonmaleficence is the prima facie duty to ensure that pleasure is distributed according to merit.

True

False

. One way to develop care ethics in a practically useful way is to, like Collins, tie caring for others to their needs.

True

False

. The point of the veil of ignorance, according to Rawls, is to ensure that no one is able to design principles to favor his particular condition.

True

False

. Things that are intrinsically _________ are neither intrinsically good nor intrinsically bad.

. Consequentialism is a(n)_________ theory of right action because, according to it, the rightness (or wrongness) of an action depends on how much intrinsic value it would likely produce compared to how much intrinsic value alternative actions would likely produce.

. _________ consequentialism is any version of consequentialism according to which it is the net intrinsic value of the consequences of particular alternative actions open to an agent in some situation that determines the rightness or wrongness of those alternative actions.

. According to natural law theory, there are objectively true moral principles that are grounded in facts about human _________.

. According to Kant's _________ formulation of his categorical imperative, we should treat persons as ends in themselves and never as a mere means.

. A rights-based theory is a moral theory according to which rights are more basic than right _________.

. According to virtue ethics, an action is right if and only if (and because) it is what a virtuous agent, acting in _________, would not avoid doing in the circumstances under consideration.

. To say that one has a prima facie duty to perform some action is to say that one has some moral _________ to perform the action.

. In contrast to virtue ethics, which focuses on states of character, care ethics is particularly interested in caring _________ between persons.

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