Possible Exam Questions for Ethical Inquiry Final

Note: The format for the final exam will be the same as for the midterm exam, except that I may ask fewer questions and give you a little more space to answer them. The exam will be held at 6PM on Monday, May 5 in our regular classroom.

1. Explain the basic idea of social contract theory in your own words. What, according to Rachels, is an important flaw or error in this theory? What do you think about this approach to ethics?

2. Why does Rawls think that we should imagine that people are choosing principles of justice behind a ‘veil of ignorance’? Do you think he is right to argue that a decision made ‘behind the veil’ is more fair than one made with full knowledge?

3. How (i.e., by what argument) would a libertarian like Hospers try to show that affluent people have no obligation to help poor people meet their basic needs? What do you think of this argument?

4. Why does Trudy Govier think that a “permissive” (unconditional) welfare policy is more just than a “Puritan” (conditional) policy? Is she right?

5. Why does Mary Ann Warren think that human fetuses are not, morally speaking, human beings? Is she right?

6. What do you think is the most compelling reason to think that early abortions are morally wrong? How good a reason is that?

7. How does Susan Sherwin distinguish between ‘feminine ethics’ and ‘feminist ethics’?

8. How might one explain the difference between a ‘feminine’ and a ‘feminist’ approach to the issue of abortion?

9. Do you think that an “ethic of care” is needed to correct the male bias of mainstream ethical theory? (Why or why not?)

10. Explain the basic idea of virtue theory in your own words. What, according to Rachels, is an important flaw or error in this theory?

11. What do you think about the claim that at least some of the virtues are universal, in the sense that they are needed for a good life regardless of your cultural context?

12. Why might someone think that ‘affirmative action’ is needed to overcome a legacy of discrimination (that is, that we can’t solve the problem by simply making it illegal to continue to discriminate)? What do you think about this?

13. Is affirmative action unfair to white males? (Why or why not?)

1. How does Thomas Hill’s approach to the issue of affirmative action illustrate a ‘virtue theoretical’ approach to ethics – an approach that is neither consequentialist (utilitarian) nor ‘backward looking’(Kantian)?