Question 1

According to Timmerman, the standard objection to Singer's argument is the&#10;A) demandingness objection.&#10;B) repugnant conclusion.&#10;C) right-recognition argument.&#10;D) integrity objection.

Accepted Answer

The standard objection to Peter Singer's argument, particularly regarding his stance on the moral obligation to assist those in extreme poverty, is known as the demandingness objection. This objection argues that Singer's expectations for individual contributions to aid those in need are unreasonably high and demanding, potentially requiring individuals to sacrifice their own significant interests to help others.

Question 2

Singer supports his key claim-&#34;If it is in your power to prevent something bad from happening, without sacrificing anything nearly as important, it is wrong not to do so&#34;-with&#10;A) the Trolley Problem.&#10;B) the Drowning Child thought experiment.&#10;C) the Hayden and the Oyster thought experiment.&#10;D) the Experience Machine thought experiment.

Accepted Answer

Peter Singer uses the Drowning Child thought experiment to support his key claim. In this thought experiment, he asks us to imagine walking past a shallow pond and seeing a child drowning in it. He argues that if you can save the child without sacrificing anything of comparable importance, it is morally wrong not to do so. This scenario is used to illustrate the moral obligation to help others when one can do so with minimal sacrifice.

Question 3

Timmerman notes that Singer purports to demonstrate that the ethical commitments his typical readers already accept are&#10;A) not demanding enough to require them to donate a substantial portion of their expendable income to aid organizations.&#10;B) not demanding enough to make it even permissible for them to donate a substantial portion of their expendable income to aid organizations.&#10;C) demanding enough to make it permissible for them to donate a substantial portion of their expendable income to aid organizations.&#10;D) sufficiently demanding to require them to donate a substantial portion of their expendable income to aid organizations.

Accepted Answer

Singer's argument is that the ethical commitments of his readers are sufficiently demanding to require them to donate a substantial portion of their expendable income to aid organizations, aiming to show that if one accepts certain ethical principles, then one is committed to acting in ways that significantly aid those in severe need.

Question 4

Timmerman argues that his Drowning Children case&#10;A) blocks the inference Singer makes from the intuition in Drowning Child.&#10;B) gives us positive reason to reject Singer's central claim.&#10;C) Both a and b&#10;D) Neither a nor b

Accepted Answer

Timmerman's Drowning Children case is designed to challenge Peter Singer's argument by both blocking the inference Singer makes from the intuition in the Drowning Child scenario and providing reasons to reject Singer's central claim about our moral obligations to assist others.

Question 5

Timmerman characterizes the relationship between Singer's Drowning Child case and the actual circumstances of affluent people as&#10;A) logically equivalent.&#10;B) incoherent.&#10;C) irrelevant.&#10;D) asymmetrical.

Accepted Answer

Timmerman argues that the relationship between Singer's hypothetical Drowning Child scenario and the real-life situations of affluent individuals is asymmetrical. This means that while there are similarities, there are also significant differences that prevent them from being directly equivalent or identical in moral implications.

Question 6

Timmerman claims Singer's Drowning Child case is deceptive because the implicit assumption is that&#10;A) it is an anomalous event.&#10;B) you and the child live in the same society.&#10;C) the child wants to live.&#10;D) the child doesn't deserve to die.

Accepted Answer

Timmerman argues that Singer's Drowning Child analogy is misleading because it implicitly assumes the situation is an unusual or rare event, which affects our moral intuition about our obligation to help.

Question 7

Timmerman would most likely agree that&#10;A) people in affluent countries are morally obligated to provide aid until the point that doing so would bring about more harm than benefit.&#10;B) people in affluent countries are not morally obligated to provide any aid.&#10;C) how much aid people are morally obligated to give is not clear, but reflection on Drowning Children may help answer this question.&#10;D) providing aid usually causes more harm than benefit.

Accepted Answer

Timmerman's argument, as reflected in discussions about moral obligations towards aiding those in distress (like the Drowning Children analogy), suggests that while the exact extent of aid required from individuals in affluent countries is complex and debatable, engaging with such thought experiments can guide us in understanding our moral duties. He does not categorically deny the obligation to aid nor does he assert that aid is predominantly harmful; instead, he emphasizes the importance of thoughtful consideration on the matter.

Question 8

Timmerman claims that his thought experiment&#10;A) contradicts Singer's.&#10;B) is superior to Singer's because it better reflects our actual circumstances.&#10;C) is superior to Singer's because it involves a more realistic case.&#10;D) both a and c

Accepted Answer

Timmerman argues that his thought experiment is superior to Singer's because it better reflects our actual circumstances, suggesting it is more applicable to real-life situations.

Question 9

Timmerman resists Singer's key claim because he&#10;A) holds that individuals have a right to do as they desire with their property.&#10;B) denies that world famine is as bad of a problem as Singer claims.&#10;C) believes that governments, not individuals, should take action to improve conditions.&#10;D) believes that, on reflection, our intuitive judgments do not support the key claim.

Accepted Answer

Timmerman's resistance to Singer's key claim is based on the argument that our intuitive judgments, upon reflection, do not actually support Singer's key claim, rather than any of the other reasons listed.

Question 10

Timmerman thinks that his Drowning Children case shows that Unlucky Lisa is&#10;A) morally permitted to enjoy some good less important than a child's life at least one time in her own life.&#10;B) morally prohibited from enjoying some good less important than a child's life at least one time in her life.&#10;C) permitted to enjoy non-moral goods such as personal hobbies or luxuries, not by morality, but by self-interest.&#10;D) justified in taking a break from morality every once and a while.

Accepted Answer

Timmerman's Drowning Children case illustrates that individuals are morally permitted to sometimes prioritize their own less significant goods over more critical needs of others, like saving a child's life, acknowledging a balance between moral obligations and personal well-being.

Question 11

According to Timmerman, Singer provides a valid argument that consists of premises that he takes his typical readers to already accept.

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to Timmerman, Singer provides a valid...

Question 12

Timmerman challenges the inference from the intuition that we are obligated to rescue the child in Drowning Child to the truth of Singer's central claim-&#34;If it is in your power to prevent something bad from happening, without sacrificing anything nearly as important, it is wrong not to do so.&#34;

Accepted Answer

The answer of Timmerman challenges the inference from the intuition...

Question 13

Timmerman denies that it's intuitive that one should save the child in Singer's Drowning Child.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Timmerman denies that it's intuitive that one...

Question 14

According to Timmerman, all people in an affluent nation, so long as they have some expendable income, will always be in a position to save the lives of people living in extreme poverty.

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to Timmerman, all people in an...

Question 15

Timmerman claims that one is morally obligated to spend one's entire life making repeated $200 sacrifices to prevent children from drowning.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Timmerman claims that one is morally obligated...

Question 16

Timmerman argues that his Drowning Children case involving Unlucky Lisa proves that everyone must decide for themselves how seriously to take the demands of morality, and that this is reasonable.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Timmerman argues that his Drowning Children case...

Question 17

Timmerman would agree with Singer that suffering is bad.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Timmerman would agree with Singer that suffering...

Question 18

Timmerman and Singer both employ thought experiments in their arguments.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Timmerman and Singer both employ thought experiments...

Question 19

Timmerman's main objection to Singer's Drowning Child case is that it is utilitarian in spirit, whereas Timmerman defends Kantian moral theory.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Timmerman's main objection to Singer's Drowning Child...

Question 20

If Timmerman's argument is sound, then most people in affluent countries will not have to substantially change their behavior.

Accepted Answer

The answer of If Timmerman's argument is sound, then most...

Question 21

Do you think that Singer's inference from his Drowning Child case to his key claim-&#34;if it is in your power to prevent something bad from happening, without sacrificing anything nearly as important, it is wrong not to do so&#34;-is warranted? If it is unwarranted, what principle explains our commonsense verdict that we ought to save the child? Do you think this principle is more or less plausible than Singer's key claim? Explain your answer.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Do you think that Singer's inference from...

Question 22

If Lisa takes a break from saving children to go to the theater, does her life become more (or less) worthwhile? Defend your answer.

Accepted Answer

The answer of If Lisa takes a break from saving...

Question 23

Timmerman challenges Singer's argument. However, they nonetheless share some beliefs in common. On what do they agree? How different is Timmerman's conclusion, in terms of practical changes you would have to make to your lifestyle, from Singer's?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Timmerman challenges Singer's argument. However, they nonetheless...

Question 24

Suppose you are in Lisa's situation. How many lives would you save? When you stop, what justification would you give? What would you say to the parent of the child who drowns right after you stop helping?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Suppose you are in Lisa's situation. How...

Deck 23: A Reply to Singer Travis Timmerman