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Ethics & Logical Fallacies

100 cards · 🇺🇸 English

Ethical theories, dilemmas and common logical fallacies.

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Ethics (moral philosophy)

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1Ethics (moral philosophy)
Philosophical study of moral phenomena; investigates what people ought to do, what is right/wrong, and how to lead a good life; includes normative, applied, and metaethics
2Normative ethics
Branch seeking general principles governing how people should act; aims to discover universal moral principles; includes consequentialism, deontology, virtue ethics
3Metaethics
Study of underlying assumptions and concepts of ethics; asks if objective moral facts exist, how moral knowledge is possible, what moral language means
4Applied ethics
Examines concrete ethical problems in real situations: abortion, euthanasia, animal rights, business practices, war; applies ethical theories to practical issues
5Consequentialism
Theory that morality depends on consequences; an act is right if it produces the best outcomes; judge actions by their results, not intentions or rules
6Utilitarianism
Form of consequentialism: act is right if it produces 'greatest good for greatest number'; maximize happiness, minimize suffering; Bentham and Mill
7Deontology
Ethics based on duties and rules; actions are right if they follow moral principles, regardless of consequences; emphasis on intentions and categorical imperatives; Kant
8Virtue ethics
Focuses on character and virtues (honesty, courage, compassion) rather than consequences or rules; how would a virtuous person act? Aristotle, emphasis on eudaimonia (flourishing)
9Kant's Categorical Imperative
Moral law: act only on maxims you could will to be universal law; treat people as ends, never merely as means; based on reason, applies to all rational beings
10Golden Mean in Aristotelian ethics
Virtue is balance between two extremes; courage is mean between cowardice (deficiency) and recklessness (excess); finding right amount in each situation
11Trolley Problem
Moral dilemma: runaway trolley will kill 5 people; can divert it to kill 1 instead; should you? Tests consequentialism vs deontology, action vs inaction
12Trolley Problem variation (Fat Man)
Push large person off bridge to stop trolley and save 5; same numbers as original but involves actively using someone as means; tests moral intuitions about doing vs allowing
13Lifeboat Dilemma
Overloaded lifeboat will sink killing all; throw some overboard to save majority? Who decides who lives? Tests utilitarianism vs individual rights
14Is-Ought Problem (Hume's Guillotine)
Cannot derive 'ought' from 'is'; descriptive facts don't logically imply moral values; gap between what is and what should be; challenged by naturalistic fallacy
15Naturalistic Fallacy
G.E. Moore: error of defining 'good' in terms of natural properties; cannot reduce moral to non-moral facts; 'natural doesn't mean good' (contrary to appeal to nature)
16Moral Relativism
Moral judgments are true or false only relative to culture/society; no universal moral truths; what's right in one society may be wrong in another
17Moral Objectivism
Moral truths exist independently of beliefs; some things are right/wrong regardless of what anyone thinks; opposite of relativism
18Divine Command Theory
Morality based on God's commands; something is right because God commands it; religious foundation for ethics; challenged by Euthyphro dilemma
19Euthyphro Dilemma
Is something good because God commands it, or does God command it because it's good? Challenges divine command theory; from Plato's dialogue
20Ethical Egoism
Each person ought to pursue their own self-interest; morally right to maximize one's own welfare; distinct from psychological egoism (descriptive claim)
21Social Contract Theory
Morality based on agreement among rational individuals; moral rules are those we'd consent to in fair conditions; Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Rawls
22Rawls's Veil of Ignorance
Thought experiment: choose principles of justice without knowing your position in society; ensures fairness; would lead to protecting worst-off (difference principle)
23Heinz Dilemma
Man's wife dying; can't afford medicine; should he steal it? Tests moral reasoning stages (Kohlberg); conflict between law, property rights, and saving life
24Doctrine of Double Effect
Act with harmful side effect can be permissible if: harm not intended, not means to good end, proportional; e.g., treating pain with drug that may hasten death
25Moral Luck
Idea that moral assessment affected by factors beyond agent's control; same action can have different moral status based on outcomes; challenges control principle
26Care Ethics (Ethics of Care)
Feminist ethics emphasizing relationships, empathy, compassion; morality rooted in caring for others; critique of justice-based ethics as male-biased; Carol Gilligan
27Ring of Gyges thought experiment
Plato: if you had ring making you invisible, would you still be moral? Tests whether morality depends on consequences or is intrinsically valuable
28Paradox of Hedonism
Pursuing pleasure directly often fails; happiness comes as byproduct of other activities; challenges simple hedonistic utilitarianism; Mill's distinction of higher/lower pleasures
29Moral Particularism
No universal moral principles; moral judgment depends on particular circumstances; context matters more than rules; challenges principle-based ethics
30Act Utilitarianism
Evaluate each act by its consequences; choose action producing most good in that specific case; flexible but can justify normally wrong acts