Questions and Answers of Ethics Theory And Contemporary Issues

What role, if any, do you believe that emotions should play in moral reasoning? Why or why not?
Do you think that an action ought to be judged morally in terms of its motive, its consequences, the action itself, or some combination of these? Explain your answer.
Kant thought that history would develop in a cosmopolitan direction. Do you think he was correct? Given the cultural and religious differences across the world, do you think his vision is possible?
Do you believe that there are limits to toleration? Should we tolerate those who are intolerant of the very idea of toleration?
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Define value pluralism and connect it to religious pluralism, or the idea that there is common
Do you think ethics can be taught? Why is this a difficult question to answer?
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. The chapter asserts that Pat Tillman is a model for virtue. He is the NFL football star who quit
How do we know what traits ought to be considered virtues and what vices?
Do you think that "nature" provides any basis for knowing what we ought to do? How might you explain this basis without committing the "naturalistic fallacy?"
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Does a theory of civil disobedience necessarily depend on there being a natural law?
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Do you think that moral law is higher than the laws of society? Is there a moral law which we
Do you think that the essential characteristics of humanness can be specified? Discuss your answer.
Do you think that charity is a perfect or an imperfect duty? Define perfect and imperfect duties and explain your answer.
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Do you think that intention affects the moral character of an action? How would you assess the moral character of a good act done with a bad intention? How would you assess the moral character of a
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Explain the second form of Kant's categorical imperative. What does it mean to say that we
Do you think that moral obligation is categorical in the way that Kant means by this term? That is, if something is moral, it is universally moral. Do you think there are ever exceptions to moral
The study by Bartels and Pizarro, cited in your text, found that proponents of utilitarian solutions had higher measures of psychopathy and feelings of meaninglessness. What do you think of these
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Mill claims it's better to be Socrates dissatisfied than a pig satisfied. What do you think of this argument? Do you think there is a qualitative difference between sensual and intellectual
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Mill argues that some pleasures such as intellectual pleasures are better than "lower" pleasures
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Are you convinced by the utilitarian argument that happiness is the only intrinsic good because it is the only thing that we desire for its own sake? Does the argument meet the standards of a good
Do you believe the fact that ethical values vary among individuals and cultures is adequate reason to accept ethical relativism? Explain why you think so.
Martin Luther King Jr. learned about nonviolent resistance from Mohandas Gandhi, who advocated ahimsa, or nonviolence. Do you think that nonviolent civil disobedience is morally justified? How would
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Define descriptive relativism and metaethical relativism and explain the difference between the
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In what ways do you think that science is different from ethics? Are they alike in any ways? For example, do they both involve being impartial and nonbiased? Explain.
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Ayn Rand argues that altruism is pernicious, causing people to sacrifice themselves in a death
Can a selfish person be a moral person? Can a self-interested person be a moral person? Explain the difference, if there is any, between being selfish and being self-interested?
Do you think that universal ethical egoism is inconsistent or incoherent? Explain your answer.
If there is an objective good do you think it is likely to be unitary or plural? For example, is it likely that all morality promotes one good, such as happiness? Or is it likely that there are many
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Aristotle says that virtue is a mean between two extremes. How would one decide just where that middle is between too much and too little of some trait?
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Can you think of an example in which a person ends up worse off for behaving virtuously? Is this a reason to not behave virtuously? Is there another way that we should understand virtue? Discuss your
Carol Gilligan argues in her early work that women have a different moral language and reasoning. How would one decide which type of moral reasoning, male or female, is the morally "right" one? Does
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Explain the first, second, and third waves of feminism. b. The ethics of care sometimes is
Do you believe that there are some good traits or virtues that are more typical of females and others of males? If so, is this learned behavior or is it natural to each sex? Explain why you think so.
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In defining health, we must also think about illness and disease and what constitutes them. Is color blindness a disease? Do you think nearsightedness or myopia is a disability? People normally
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. The World Health Organization defines health as a state of complete physical, mental, and social
Kathleen Lebesco argues that there is a "fat panic" associated with the obesity epidemic, meaning that people are unreasonably afraid of obesity. It is true that obesity can be linked to health
Do you find Caroline Whitbeck's biological explanation of the male-female difference in morality to be persuasive? Why or why not? What issues might there be with this explanation?
Paternalism in health care ethics is the idea that those with relevant knowledge and experience are better positioned to make decisions than the less informed person (the patient). Do you think
Which do you think is more important in the moral arguments about abortion: utilitarian or rights considerations? Are there other moral approaches that are more important? Explain.
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. What kinds of questions should we ask about abortion if we take a consequentialist, utilitarian
Consider the relationship between the law and morals. Do you think that if abortion is immoral, it therefore ought to be illegal? Or, if morally permissible, that it therefore ought to be legally
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Explain the concept of intersectionality and give an example.
The chapter addresses the issue of representations of Asian Americans on television and film, which are stereotyping and often unflattering. It is worth asking what kinds of stereotypes we see in the
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Explain the difference between a therapy and an enhancement, and give examples of each.b.
The natural law tradition holds that we should not alter the human body from its "natural" state. Do you think that enhancing the human body is the same as "playing God"? Why or why not?
Do you think that non-Western nations ought to adopt modern practices of capitalism and political rights? Why or why not?
Which interpretation, or combination of interpretations, of globalization do you think is the most significant and why?
Do you think that people in Rawls's "original position" would choose the two principles that he suggests? Explain.
Do you think there should be equal opportunity in a just society? What would equal opportunity mean to you?
How are equality and liberty related to justice? Which of these two interests (liberty or equality) is most important to your sense of fairness? Is it possible to achieve a fair balance between the
Would you want to know if you had some genetic mutation that was likely to cause a terrible disease? Why or why not?
A Maryland couple, both born deaf, wanted to have a sperm donor with hereditary deafness so they could increase the likelihood of having a deaf infant. Assert a thesis regarding this case using one
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These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Define stereotype. What is a stereotype? Is there any truth to a stereotype? Are stereotypes
Consider a New Jersey highway patrolman who pulls over a Black driver in a Nissan Pathfinder because the police have intelligence that Jamaican drug rings favor this car as a means for their
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These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Define negative rights and positive rights and give an example of each.b. Do you think that
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These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Define cultural imperialism and give an example. b. Define the "White man's burden" and explain
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These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Do you believe you have an obligation to be a good ancestor? That is, do you think you have an
Do you think that it is morally permissible to use animals in experiments? If so, are there any conditions you would set on the experiments regarding the type of animal used, the purpose of the
Incorporate films, TV episodes, podcasts, and other media that include Vto ethics and the activity of philosophical inquiry as an in-class activity. By viewing popular media, students understand that
Do some animals have greater value than others? Why or why not?
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Do you think you will eat in vitro meat when it becomes generally available? Why or why not?b.
Do you think that nonhuman animals have interests? Does this mean that they also have rights? Explain your answer.
What is ecofeminism? In what ways do environmental ethical concerns overlap with feminist ethical concerns?
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Do you favor an anthropocentric approach or an ecocentric approach to environmental ethics? Why?
Do you think that a book, a plant, or a building can be said to have intrinsic value? Can things be done for the best interest of such things? Explain your answer.
Explain the principle of last resort. What are some ways of applying this ideal?
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How would you distinguish combatants from non-combatants (in an urban warfare scenario, for example)?
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Explain the principle of proportionality. Do you think there are reliable ways to determine
Are you a pacifist? Explain your answer. What do you take to be the strongest argument for pacifism, and what is the strongest argument against it?
Do you think that death is the only fitting punishment for some crimes? For which crimes is this the case, and why?
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How important do you think it is that punishment fit a crime? Should there be equal weight between the crime and the punishment? Why or why not?
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Proponents of restorative justice argue for decarceration, or the reduction of the number of
Which do you think is the most convincing rationale for legal punishment, a deterrence view or a retributivist view? Why?
Apply each of the three major normative theories—Kantianism, utilitarianism, and natural law—to the concept of comprehensive sex education. Develop a thesis in favor of or against sex education.
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Is there such a thing as sexual perversion? What would you mean by "perversion"?
These open response writing prompts can be used as in-class reflections or as assessment activities.a. Jeremy Bentham argued that, although prostitution was shameful, it was better to legalize it
Which perspective on how to decide matters of sexual morality is most convincing to you: utilitarianism, Kantianism, or natural law? Why? If you believe that more than one of these three (or some
Do you think that those in wealthier nations have an obligation to help those in poorer nations? If so why, and if not why not? If so, is it an obligation of individuals or of national aid agencies?