...AS Philosophy of Religion 2001 1. (a) What are the key features of the design argument for the existence of God? (10 marks) (b) Identify the strengths of this argument. To what extent are these strengths more convincing than its weaknesses? (10 marks) 2. (a) Describe the main strengths and weaknesses of the cosmological argument for the existence of God. (14 marks) (b) To what extent do the weaknesses of this argument limit its effectiveness? (6 marks) 3. (a) Examine the characteristics of BOTH a religious and a scientific interpretation of the origins of the universe. (14 marks) (b) Comment on the view that the differences between these interpretations rule out any major disagreement between them. (6 marks) 4. (a) What do religious believers mean by the ‘problem of suffering’? (5 marks) (b) Select any TWO theodicies and consider how far they offer solutions to this problem. (15 marks) 5. (a) Examine TWO philosophical reasons for belief in miracles. (6 marks) (b) Outline at least TWO problems with belief in miracles. (8 marks) (c) Consider the claim that there are no acceptable solutions to these problems. (6 marks) 2002 1. (a) Outline the design argument for the existence of God. (7 marks) (b) ‘The design argument fails because of its weaknesses.’ Examine and comment on this claim. (13...
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...YhtyujyhSee also: Divine command theory, Morality without religion, and Secular ethics [edit]Positions Within the wide range of moral traditions, religious moral traditions co-exist with contemporary secular moral frameworks such as consequentialism, freethought, humanism, utilitarianism, and others. There are many types of religious morals. Modern monotheistic religions, such as Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and to a certain degree others such as Sikhism and Zoroastrianism, define right and wrong by the laws and rules set forth by their respective scriptures and as interpreted by religious leaders within the respective faith. Polytheistic religious traditions tend to be less absolute. For example, within Buddhism, the intention of the individual and the circumstances should be accounted for to determine if an action is right or wrong.[39] A further disparity between the morals of religious traditions is pointed out by Barbara Stoler Miller, who states that, in Hinduism, "practically, right and wrong are decided according to the categories of social rank, kinship, and stages of life. For modern Westerners, who have been raised on ideals of universality and egalitarianism, this relativity of values and obligations is the aspect of Hinduism most difficult to understand".[40] Religions provide different ways of dealing with moral dilemmas. For example, there is no absolute prohibition on killing in Hinduism, which recognizes that it "may be inevitable and indeed necessary" in...
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...Explain how a utilitarian might use the hedonic calculus in making moral decisions. Introduction Utilitarianism is an ethical theory, introduced by Bentham, in guiding people on how to make moral decisions, based on the outcome of your actions. Does the action that you are going to do, bring pleasure to the majority of people? This is the whole basis of utilitarianism. The hedonic calculus is a part of the decision making process in utilitarianism, it is a guide with 7 measures, which help the utilitarian make a moral decision. This essay will look at the ethical issue of death penalty and how a utilitarian will use the hedonic calculus in making a moral decision. 1st paragraph Death penalty * What is it? * Controversial debate * Talk about how modern society compensation, people want pay back for the loss * Many are in favour some aren’t believe life is valuable 2nd paragraph * A terrorist * Death penalty favourable great happiness * Looking at the hedonic calculus 7 measures how they fit in category? Benefit society how? * Summarise back to the question yes utilitarian then see its good moral decision say it’s good considering all views 3rd paragraph Counter argument * However, doesn’t look at the minority? * How can utilitarian use the hedonic calculus to make a decision? It doesn’t look what else can happen from the action u do. More death threats for the country etc. * Subjective * Summarise back to...
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...Consequentialism or Justice An important role in defining justice is the concept of right. Hooker (2011), " A consequentialist theory that presupposes both that justice is constituted by such-and-such and that justice is one of the things to be promoted does not explain why the components of justice are important.” (para. 12). This paper is a reflection of Team’s D thoughts about Chapter 5, “Consequentialism or Justice.” The consequentialism theory is a decision of an individual who will cause a greater good for all. An individual should take the complete relating information and consider every possible option that will provide a decision that will provide every person with greater good. The decision should not affect just one person, or a small group, but each client. At a sleepover party, a rule of not playing with fire should not be set for just one child. The rule should be set for every child in the house because fire is harmful. Every child will benefit from the rule. Distributive justice is the assistance that every human has an equal chance. It provides an ability to help make sure every person has goods equal to others, for the greater good. The goods are not meant to be materialistic, they are meant to be for safety and health for healthy living. The theory intersects with Tamara’s personal value because where Tamara lives, she sees a community that lives by social justice. Many in the neighborhood make informal contracts among each other and use the...
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...Source: CHRYSSIDES, GEORGE D. and KALER, JOHN H. (1993). An Introduction to Business Ethics. London: Chapman and Hall. Pages 79−106, 143‒146. [The text is derived from a publisher’s proof, and may differ slightly from the finished book. If quoting, it is best to cite the relevant WOLF page.] CHAPTER THREE ETHICAL THEORY In the previous chapter we looked at the role of values in business and considered how business ethics was becoming part of the professionalization of business. But what exactly are ethical judgments, and how do we justify them? At first appearance this may seem a needless difficulty. After all, is it not obvious what is happening when we make ethical decisions? Do we not do so almost every day of our lives in fact? It is one thing to engage in an activity, but often quite another to state what exactly is going on when we do it. For example, someone may have a tremendous gift for selling goods to people, but may not necessarily be aware, until he or she is taught, exactly what is going on when a successful marketing strategy is put into operation. One can instinctively put into operation the classical ‘three Ps’ of marketing (attention to Product, Price and Packaging), but yet be unaware, until this is pointed out, that these are the key features of selling. In a similar way, we can make moral judgments, but yet find some difficulty in explaining exactly what is taken place when we do so. In the case of ethical judgments, the situation is...
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...so proponents say. However, adopting affirmative action would force many employers to replace hard-working employees with those less qualified simply as a consequence of their gender or ethnic background (Sterba, 2003). We can analyze this concept from the perspective of two opponents as “Arguments for ‘Affirmative Action is Reverse Discrimination’” and “Arguments against ‘Affirmative Action is Reverse Discrimination’”. First of all, with reference to “Arguments for ‘Affirmative Action is Reverse Discrimination’”, the fact of affirmative action is that it attempts to end discrimination with discrimination, that is, reverse discrimination. The purpose of affirmative action is to correct the past discrimination based on race, sex, religion, etc. But the way that affirmative action taken to achieve this is to sacrifice the rights of others, which leads to reverse discrimination: as we are all members of some minority or majority groups, helping one group would certainly disadvantage others. For example, in USA, under affirmative action, a company might prefer to hire the minority like women or colored people instead of white males, disregarding the criteria of whether they are better qualified. Under such circumstances, affirmative action is rather a reverse discrimination towards the white males. In the case of Allan Bakke, who sued the Regents of the University of California for being denied admission to the medical school in 1973 based on reverse discrimination (Bender...
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...a) Utilitarianism Utilitarianism is a moral theory that ultimately concentrates on the happiness of an individual. This theory was initially developed by Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) and later altered by Stuart Mill (1806-1873). A Utilitarian’s attitude towards justice implies that no significant act (e.g., act of copying) or rule (e.g., “should not lie”) is basically good or bad. Rather, it solely depends on the overall non-moral good produced on accomplishing the act. The central idea here is that morality depends on the happiness produced after an ethical act or regulation. Hence the act is influential and not elemental. Therefore, utilitarianism is classed under “consequential” theory. Both Bentham and Mill were hedonists and regarded happiness as the most important thing in life. However, there was a conflict in the way they measured happiness. Bentham did not differentiate the pleasures obtained from the actions (Bentham, 1781). According to him, any work that generates happiness- be it eating or listening to music was essentially good. He was concerned about the quantity of happiness produced by doing an action. In contrast, Mill’s theory (Act Utilitarianism) focused on the quality of the action that produces happiness. He distinguished the pleasures into lower and higher pleasures. The former constituted of tactile sensuous pleasure like sleeping or eating, while the latter comprised of more intellectual behavior like listening to elegant music or reading a poem...
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...follow. To make a good environmental theory, the ethical approach must provide moral guidelines for governments, big businesses and individuals alike. One secular theory, which tries to achieve this, is Conservationism. The conservationist theory aims to look at the value of that the environment has to humans and how looking after it and using it will affect us. The conservationist approach takes a shallow ecology approach, which believes that the earth has instrumental value. This means that if lowering the carbon emissions to protect the Maldives will benefit human life then a conservationist approach will argue that this is a good thing to do. The conservationist approach can be closely linked to Bentham’s hedonistic approach to Utilitarianism, sharing the ‘ if its beneficial enough to humans then we will do it but we wont bother if its too much work’ approach, which is also a secular theory. This anthropocentric view is useful when looking at ways to ensure individuals to there bit as it holds the moral opinion that by helping the earth you help humans in the long run, however it is somewhat flimsy and fails to appreciate the idea that the earth can...
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...Utilitarianism, Kantian Ethics, Natural Rights Theories, and Religious Ethics A “utilitarian” argument, in the strict sense, is one what alleges that we ought to do something because it will produce more total happiness than doing anything else would. Act utilitarianism (AU) is the moral theory that holds that the morally right action, the act that we have a moral duty to do, is the one that will (probably) maximize “utility” (happiness, welfare, well-being). AU is not to be confused with egoism. The egoist really only cares about his own happiness. AU says that everyone’s happiness counts equally. Suppose that executing Joseph would in the long run produce more total happiness than letting him live would. Then according to AU, we ought to execute Joseph. Now if Joseph is a convicted serial murderer who would probably escape and commit more murders if we tried to incarcerate him, then it’s reasonable to think that executing him would be the right thing to do. But what if he has committed no crime? What if he is simply an extremely irritating person with no friends or loved ones, and the many people with whom he has contact in his life are very sensitive and dislike him intensely? Since more total happiness is produced if Joseph dies (the increased happiness of the many who no longer have to endure him outweighs his unhappiness about dying) than if he lives, AU says that it’s right to kill him. This example illustrates what is probably the main objection to AU: it tells us to violate...
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...AS Religious Studies [pic] PHILOSOPHY & ETHICS Revision Summary Notes Revision Notes Foundation for the Study of Religion Part One: Philosophy of Religion Plato and the Forms Influence of Socrates • Socrates said that virtue is knowledge – to know what is right is to do what is right. • All wrongdoing is the result of ignorance – nobody chooses to do wrong deliberately. • Therefore, to be moral you must have true knowledge. The problem of the One and the Many Plato was trying to find a solution to the problem that although there is underlying stability in the world (sun comes up every morning), it is constantly changing (you never step into the same river twice). 1. An old theory about this problem is that we gain all knowledge from our senses – empirically. 2. Plato disagreed with this. He said that because the world is constantly changing, our senses cannot be trusted. Plato illustrated his idea in the dialogue, ‘Meno’: Socrates sets a slave boy a mathematical problem. The slave boy knows the answer, yet he has not been taught maths. Plato suggests that the slave boy remembers the answer to the problem, which has been in his mind all along. So, according to Plato, we don't learn new things, we remember them. In other words, knowledge is innate. Plato’s Theory of the Forms Plato believed that the world was divided into: 1. Reality and; 2. Appearance |REALITY ...
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...Length: 1000 ±100 words * Submit after completing Units 1 & 2 (approximately 5 weeks into the course, according to the recommended schedule). 1. Choose ONE of the cases that appear in Units 1 & 2 of the Philosophy 333 Study Guide except Case 2. 1. However, please refer to the discussion regarding Case 2.1 in Unit 2, under the heading “Applying Normative Theories to a Moral Situation”, as an example of how to apply moral theories to a case. 2. Clearly state a professional ethics issue that pertains to the case. It is recommended that you state your issue in question form. 3. Choose TWO out of the five moral theories studied in Unit 2, but only one version of Utilitarian theory at most (e.g. not both Act and Rule Utilitarianism). 4. In essay-form[1], and in one document, apply each of the two theories to the case, focusing on your stated issue, by doing the following: a. For each theory, provide an explanation of the theories basic approach to moral evaluation and decision making. b. Ethically analyze your stated issue using each of the two theories. The idea here is to adopt the strategy of each of the theories to present what you think is a reasonable and balanced ethical analysis of your issue. In doing so, your aims are (i) to show that you understand how the theories work and (ii) to show that you can use them to express the ethical reasoning that should be brought to bear on the issue. c. For each theory, if you think that it...
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...In Conjunction with History of Ethics Instructor: Robert Cavalier Teaching Professor Robert Cavalier received his BA from New York University and a Ph.D. in Philosophy from Duquesne University. In 1987 he joined the staff at Carnegie Mellon's Center for Design of Educational Computing (CDEC), where he became Executive Director in 1991. While at CDEC, he was also co-principal in the 1989 EDUCOM award winner for Best Humanities Software (published in 1996 by Routledge as A Right to Die? The Dax Cowart Case). He also coauthored the CD-ROM The Issue of Abortion in America (Rountledge, 1998) Dr. Cavalier was Director of CMU's Center for the Advancement of Applied Ethics and Political Philosophy from 2005-2007. He currently directs the Center's Digital Media Lab which houses Project PICOLA (Public Informed Citizen Online Assembly), and is also co-Director of Southwestern Pennsylvania Program for Deliberative Democracy. Co-Editor of Ethics in the History of Western Philosophy (St. Martin's/Macmillan, England, 1990), Editor of The Impact of the Internet on Our Moral Lives (SUNY, 2003) and other works in ethics as well as articles in educational computing, Dr. Cavalier is internationally recognized for his work in education and interactive multimedia. He was President of the "International Association for Computing and Philosophy" (2001 - 2004) and Chair of the APA Committee on Philosophy and Computers (2000-2003). Dr. Cavalier has given numerous addresses and...
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...to a special code of social behavior or courtesy d. the rules of etiquette are backed by statutory law 3. Our relationship with the law is best described by which of the following? a. To a significant extent, law codifies a society’s customs, norms, and moral values. b. The law is a completely adequate guide to the moral standards that we should follow. c. The law makes all immoral conduct illegal. d. Violating the law is always immoral. 4. Which of the following is not one of the four basic kinds of law? a. statutes b. constitutional law c. common law d. contractual law 5. A proper perspective of religion and morality is a. only religion can tell us what is right and wrong b. it’s not true that morality must be based on religion c. religion never influences people’s moral beliefs d. without religion, people wouldn’t have a reason to act morally 6. When religion and morality are considered, a. the moral instructions...
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...Introduction Business ethics are not as complicated or abstract as one might think. A simple way to evaluate whether or not a practice is ethical is to determine the ultimate effect of that practice. For example, if the manager of a store paid his cleaning employee less than the going rate to clean his store, knowing exactly what the going rate is, several things could happen to damage the business. The employee could suffer serious financial implications or the employee could leave and find another position where she does not feel exploited. The subject of ethics is often considered abstract or relative by those who believe that rules do not always apply to them. Rules and laws apply to everyone. It is unfortunate that some employees in the upper echelons of the corporate ladder decide to act unethically, but it is a fact of business and of life. For this reason, it is best for a business to be careful of who they promote within their company. Corporate responsibility is a phrase heavily used in the business world. Often mentioned to enhance the image of an organization, corporate responsibility does have a true meaning. Businesses that use energy efficient lighting and offer their employees a fair pay rate are practicing corporate responsibility. Corporate responsibility is an integral part of business ethics and should be practiced by all entities, whether large or small. Corporate responsibility simply means that each individual within a company is practicing personal...
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...Table of Contents Question 1: 2 Question 2: 5 2.1: 5 2.2: 6 Question 3: 9 Question 4: 13 Bibliography 17 Question 1: The definition of ethics deserves more than just one sentence, as it is an ambiguous, complex and intangible subject that revolves around behavior towards society, the environment and the business world at large. It is a reflection of one’s personal values and behavior within the business environment and is concerned with what is right and what is wrong based on sometimes religious values, law, established practices, society and individual conscience. Ethics is based on unwritten rules that address fairness, responsibility, moral obligation and compassion. From the above, business ethics can be defined as “The application of a moral code of conduct to the strategic and operational management of a business.” (Define Business Ethics -Discussion and Debate, online) The impact of ethics on business needs to be seen as positive. Corporations that are purely profit driven will not see this positivity as they perceive that ethics limits them to do business as they wish. One thing they must bear in mind is that consumers are more savvy and educated now and respect organizations that practice business in an ethical way and support these organizations wholeheartedly. Ethics drives business to conduct itself in a right and moral way ensuring that no one (society, environment and industry) is harmed. The ethical issues in the extract that need to...
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