Deck 4: Meeting the Masters: Ethical Theories, Concepts, and Issues

Question 1

Which of the following ethical schools did not exist in ancient Greece?

A) Stoicism
B) hedonism school
C) virtue school
D) utilitarian school

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Which school of philosophy has been called the philosophy of tranquility and indifference to pain?

A) stoicism
B) hedonism
C) the virtue school
D) the religious (scholastic) school

Answer 2

A

Question 3

The main part of Epictetus's philosophy was later incorporated into the doctrine of:

A) Christianity
B) hedonism
C) utilitarianism
D) theory of justice

Answer 3

B

Question 4

In hedonist philosophy, the summum bonum of all values is:

A) inner peace
B) pleasure
C) duty
D) power

Question 5

Which philosopher emphasized the concepts of utopia and philosopher-kings?

A) Socrates
B) Plato
C) Aristotle
D) St. Augustine

Question 6

Among the following philosophers, who was most concerned with the "metaphysical world"?

A) Epicurus
B) Plato
C) Aristotle
D) John Rawls

Question 7

According to the text, the _________ school is considered the most prominent among all schools of ethics.

A) hedonism
B) Stoicism
C) virtue
D) utilitarian

Question 8

Which school of philosophy emphasizes moral individualism: the individual must find what is right for him or her?

A) Stoicism
B) the virtue school
C) Scholasticism
D) existentialism

Question 9

Which of the following did Plato regard as the summum bonum of all ideas?

A) goodness
B) justice
C) pleasure
D) duty

Question 10

What is meant by Aristotle's Golden Mean?

A) functions as a mechanism for economic prosperity
B) relates to the choice between two options on the opposite end of the spectrum
C) relates to man's actualization of potential
D) it serves as the location for moral virtue

Question 11

All of the following are classical rules in the categorical syllogism EXCEPT:

A) a major premise
B) a minor premise
C) a conclusion
D) a thesis statement

Question 12

The religious school of ethics is primarily concerned with which religion's doctrines?

A) Buddhist
B) Christianity
C) Judaism
D) Islam

Question 13

All of the following are reasons that Saint Augustine believed Greek ethical philosophy to be fundamentally flawed EXCEPT:

A) It was limited only to man's earthly existence
B) It was primarily based only on human intellect
C) It permitted interjection of religious doctrine
D) The virtues emphasized were prideful vices unless done so in accordance with religious doctrine

Question 14

Which of the following statements would Thomas Hobbes likely agree with?

A) It is necessary to give up certain freedoms in exchange for protection from others' pursuit of self-interest
B) Religious doctrine is imperative in instituting a framework from which to establish government
C) Human beings are primarily in pursuit of collective welfare
D) none of the above

Question 15

Friedrich Nietzsche was critical of what?

A) Government
B) Social interaction
C) The rich maintaining their status
D) Religion

Question 16

Which of the following is not associated with Nietzsche?

A) the Superman doctrine
B) the City of Man
C) transvaluation of values
D) slave morality

Question 17

Attempting to maximize the greatest good for the greatest number of individuals best explains which ethical concept?

A) Due process
B) Utilitarianism
C) Deontology
D) The Superman Doctrine

Question 18

Bentham used what to measure the characteristics of happiness?

A) risk-reward paradox
B) hedonistic calculus
C) social geometrics
D) the golden rule

Question 19

According to Kant, the master principle of ethics and the summum bonum is:

A) justice
B) duty
C) pleasure
D) love of neighbor

Question 20

Which of the following is consistent with Rawls's idea of social justice?

A) Inequality can be justified if it benefits the underprivileged.
B) If inequalities should occur, they should favor the middle class.
C) In a fair and just society, inequalities simply cannot exist.
D) Inequalities are necessary in a society motivated by pursuing one's self-interest.

Question 21

Before the advent of Christianity, Stoicism was invented to distract the disadvantaged from realizing the inequity perpetrated by the upper-class.

Question 22

Epictetus would agree that because sexual impulses are natural, one may indulge in them.

Question 23

Thomas Hobbes proposed a negative Golden Rule.

Question 24

The Epicurean school refined the Cyrenaic school by emphasizing mental pleasures rather than sensual pleasures.

Question 25

Aristotle's concept of happiness (eudaemonia) simply means a pleasurable experience, nothing more.

Question 26

The Golden Mean refers to the ideal choice when confronted with whether engaging in a certain action is morally acceptable.

Question 27

Saint Augustine saw philosophy and religion as two separate quests for wisdom, with the Christian faith eventually succeeding in this pursuit.

Question 28

Thomas Hobbes thought that one's happiness or unhappiness was directly related to their achievement of self-preservation.

Question 29

Jeremy Bentham put forth four sanctions which could function to regulate human behavior.

Question 30

Rawls's idea of social justice includes the principle that all participants who interact with public institutions have an equal opportunity to compete.

Question 31

One of Epicletus's primary assertions was that human will can allow anyone to overcome adversity, even when physically imprisoned. In addition, he asserted that reputation, wealth, and destiny are uncontrollable matters one should simply be "indifferent" about. Do you agree with this? Why or why not? Is the education one receives directly related to one's ability to behave ethically?

Question 32

Utilitarianism dictates that actions, laws, and other social restrictions should attempt to maximize utility, or provide the greatest benefit for the greatest number of individuals. Do you believe that to be true of the criminal justice system today? Are there any laws which may not reflect this philosophy? For example, how might laws directed at white-collar crimes (like large embezzlement schemes) fail to uphold utilitarian prescriptions?

Question 33

Provide a brief explanation of each of the three principles of justice addressed by John Rawls. After doing so, provide an argument for whether you believe the "greatest equal liberty" to be the summum bonum of Rawls's social justice. Be sure to explain why or why not.

Question 34

Thomas Hobbes argues that self-preservation is what drives people in the social world. He thought metaphysical configurations to be suspicious. He maintains that people, by nature, are brutish and solitary, thus requiring their behavior to be controlled by a stronger force (i.e., government). In addition, he developed his "don't do unto others what you would not want them to do to you" mantra with the social contract theory, which many believe serves as the framework for the American government. Provide some examples of how the government aims to control "brutish" behavior. In addition, does the metaphysical world (spiritual/religious) play a role in governing behavior, or is Hobbes's assessment correct that only a controlling force (like government) can truly regulate behavior?