A level AQA philosophy Applied ethics 2024 Exam Review, Exams of Philosophy

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A level AQA philosophy Applied ethics

2024 Exam Review

STEALING: utilitarianism - Answer>> According to act: it is dependent on the situation. People have no moral right to property over and above its utilitarian benefits and so if an act of stealing results in a greater good then it would be morally acceptable to steal. E.g. somebody can steal food to save their life if they are starving. Also robin hood scenario According to rule: despite individual instances of acceptable stealing according to act, having a rule of don't steal leads to the greatest happiness overall. A society that permitted stealing would be one in which nobody could trust anyone. Everyone would live in constant fear of being robbed by someone who thought they were acting in the interest of the greatest happiness. Overall, this would lead to a less happy society so this seems to suggest we would follow the don't steal rule. STEALING: Kant - Answer>> The maxim would be 'I want to steal this thing'. If I will stealing to be universal law, then anybody could steal whatever they wanted, but if anyone could steal whenever they wanted, the very concept of personal property would not exist. If there was no such thing as personal property, the very concept of stealing doesn't make sense. Therefore, willing that 'I want to steal this thing' leads to a contradiction in conception. This means that stealing violates the categorical imperative, and so not stealing is a perfect duty. STEALING: Aristotle - Answer>> Some actions can never fall within the golden mean - and stealing is one of these. Acc. to Aristotle, stealing is an injustice as it deprives a person of what is justly and fairly theirs. Even in extreme cases, Aristotle would likely maintain that stealing is wrong. Aristotle makes a distinction

between unjust actions and unjust states of affairs. A starving child may well be an unfortunate situation, but that's just the world is sometimes. It is much worse to deliberately and freely choose to commit unjust actions even if they are in an attempt to counteract unjust states of affairs. SIMULATED KILLING: Utilitarianism - Answer>> Acc to act: it is morally acceptable. The person watching the film or playing the game gains pleasure from the simulated killing, and the person 'being killed' does not actually suffer as it is fictional. Therefore there is a net gain of happiness and so it is morally acceptable. --------> however, if this is likely to decrease happiness through increased exposure making people more likely to kill, then it would not be morally acceptable. Rule: would only rule it out if these studies came back to be true. SIMULATED KILLING: Kant - Answer>> Murdering people in video games does not lead to a contradiction, a contradiction in will, or violate the humanity formula. For that fact, simulated killing does not go against the categorical imperative. However, Kant could think this takes away from your imperfect duty to develop your talents. SIMULATED KILLING: Aristotle - Answer>> According to aristotle, being a good person is not just knowing what the virtues are, it's about acting on them until these virtues become habitual. Aristotle may well argue that if someone spends a lot of time playing video games that involve simulated killing then they may develop bad habits, or be distracted from developing good habits. However, it is the case that it could be seen as just as killing fictional people has no real injustice involved. The outcome is very situational. A virtuous person may partake in simulated killing in moderation as a form of entertainment, and because they enjoy the competitiveness in games. In that

instance it would not be unvirtuous, but if someone devoted their entire life to games this is certainly not virtuous. EATING ANIMALS: utilitarianism - Answer>> Good = happiness so this can be extended to animals. + Singer on speciesism However, utilitarians could potentially justify eating animals: Farming animals for food has resulted in many animals not existing, and so if they live an overall happy life and die a painless death, then eating animals is morally justifiable because it results in a net increase of pleasure EATING ANIMALS: Kant - Answer>> Kant only aims his categorical imperative at rational beings, and so animals who do not have rational will are excluded from the categorical imperative. There lies no contradiction in conception and no contradiction in will that results from the maxim 'it is ok to eat animals'. Also, the humanity formula only refers to humanity being treated as a means only to an end. Animals do not have a rational will and so can be treated solely as means. One issue could be that this brings into doubt the fact that disabled and newborn babies should be subject to the categorical imperative and the humanity formula. EATING ANIMALS: Aristotle - Answer>> Aristotle says that eudaimonia refers to the good life for humans specifically - it exercises our special faculty to reason. As animals are not capable of reason, eudaimonia does not apply, and so there is no issue with eating animals for aristotle. ----------> Cora Diamond argues that animals are beings who can lead good/bad lives. To ignore animals' faculty to live exercises the virtues of selfishness and callousness, and so we are not exercising our virtue when we eat animals. However, if we raise animals well then we do exercise the virtues of sympathy and respect so this can offset the eating.

LYING: Utilitarianism - Answer>> According to act, it will be dependent on the circumstances whether or not it is morally acceptable. If telling a lie leads to greater happiness, then it is acceptable. Rule - would argue that 'never lie' as a rule would lead to greater happiness than a rule that allows everyone to lie. If this was the case, then nobody could trust anything that people say and such a society would not be happy at all. LYING: Kant - Answer>> If everybody told lies, then the entire concept of belief would be destroyed, hence why Kant would argue that the issue of lying fails the first test of the categorical imperative as it leads to a contradiction in conception. This is an issue however, as Kant would stick to his guns in the axeman case, which would seem inherently wrong. LYING: Aristotle - Answer>> We must habituate our virtue of truthfulness in most instances - however in the instance of conflicting virtues, e.g. loyalty and honesty in the axeman, it is acceptable to tell a lie on this one occasion as it will not take away from your disposition to act virtuously ST1 - Answer>> Tastaphon - should you steal it for your dying wife? ST2 - Answer>> Nathan and file sharing (innit!) SK1 - Answer>> Crime spree 6 - now become psycho-tick where you kill people and you get bonus points for killing elderly and children SK2 - Answer>> 'Feelies' - new performance 'oedipus-x' where you can see, feel, hear, experience everything the actors feel

EA1 - Answer>> Battery chickens EA2 - Answer>> Gilberts free range cows? what if it was an ape? TL1 - Answer>> Shelly and the affair - lying about who she is going with. is the affair morally right - should shelly be truthful? TL2 - Answer>> Axeman murderer Thank you for your purchase! Need academic assistance? Look no further! 📚 From assignments to exams, essays to study guides, I've got you covered. Specializing in top-notch writing services, including essay writing, report drafting, and research & citation assistance. Whether you need help with assignments, online classes, exams, or academic writing tasks, I'm here to support you every step of the way. I also offer test banks, study guides, and exams for any subject at a favorable price. Access study materials from Stuvia, Docsity, Docmerit, and Course Hero. Feel free to DM me for more information. If you're satisfied with my service, I'd greatly appreciate a positive review! Your feedback helps me improve and assist more students like you. For compliments and complaints, please DM me. Additionally, I'm open to discussing any document or topic you need help with. Let's achieve academic success together! 🚀🚀 Contact Information:

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