Portico Final Study Guide.docx
Part A: Multiple Choice/True-False. Roughly 35 - 40 questions. Hints about Part A: 1) What are the 7 Randian virtues? 1. Rationality: full mental focus on all decisions, choice, and values 2. Productiveness: recognition of the fact that productive work is the process by which you sustain yourself and calls upon your highest attributes 3. Pride (moral ambitiousness): total commitment to achieving own moral perfection 4. Honesty: refusal to accept facts for other than what they are 5. Independence: acceptance of responsibility of forming own judgment (mind) and living by work of your mind (material) 6. Integrity: loyalty or consistency between values and actions 7. Justice: the virtue of judging peoples’ character and giving them what they deserve 2) What are the 11 Aristotelian moral virtues? 1. Courage a. Recklessness vs. cowardice b. Cardinal virtue c. Gets you beyond yourself 2. Self-control a. Insensitive people b. Bodily pleasures c. Gets you beyond yourself d. Cardinal virtue 3. Justice a. No deficiency or excess: virtue in which you practice all 11 b. The just person practices the virtues for the community at large c. Cardinal virtue 4. Generosity a. Spending money for the right things at the right time b. Wasteful vs. stingy c. Different than Rand d. Deals with money 5. Magnificence a. Large scale spending is justified sometimes (weddings, building stokes) b. Vulgarity vs. meanness c. Deals with money 6. Ambition a. Overly ambitious vs. lack of ambition b. Deals with honor 7. High-mindness a. The crown of virtues b. Deserving of the highest honors c. Vain vs. small minded
d. Being humble is not justified e. Deals with honor 8. Gentleness a. Short tempered vs. apathetic b. Angry at the right time, for the right reasons, and at the right people 9. Friendliness a. Giving pleasure and pain at the right time, in the right way, and for the right b. The flatterer vs. grouchy c. Deals with social relations 10. Truthfulness a. Honest about your personal qualities (strengths and weaknesses) b. Boastful vs. self-deprecating c. Deals with social relations 11. Wittiness a. Humor b. Buffoon vs. overly serious 3) What are the 7 measurements of utility? 1. Intensity of pleasure/pain 2. Duration 3. Certainty (probability) 4. Propinquity (how soon will the expected effects become evident) 5. Fecundity (probability of it leading to further pleasure or pain) 6. Purity (probability of it not leading to further pleasure or pain) 7. Extent (number of people effected) 4) From the material prior to the midterm, review the Michael Porter, Milton Friedman, John Mackey, and Marjorie Kelly pieces. Michael Porter • Five forces analysis to determine the attractiveness of an industry o Existing Rivalries
An industry is attractive if existing rivalries are low If there are many competitors and they offer equally attractive products and services then rivalry is high If equal in size and power, rivalry is high High exit barriers mean high rivalry
o
Buyers
o
Less buyers means higher buyer power More substitute products means higher buyer power Less product differentiation means higher buyer power Weak brand identity means higher buyer power Low switching costs means high buyer power Suppliers
o
If there are a few suppliers, and if they provide a unique service then the supplier power is high Supplier power is high when it does not depend on an industry for revenue Substitutes
o
Are there other ways for a customer to do what you provide Low switching costs means there is a high threat of substitutes High threat of substitutes if high price performance trade offs Threat of New Entrants
If there are low barriers to entry, then there is a high threat of new entry
Milton Friedman • Social responsibility • Friedman says that corporate executives have no social responsibilities because: o The #1 goal of a corporation is to make money o Job of a corporate executive is to do what’s best for investors/shareholders o Violation of trust o They are not trained in social responsibility • Only should act with social responsibility when it benefits the company • It is immoral for an executive to act with social responsibility John Mackey • Mackey on the other hand, the CEO of Whole Foods, says social responsibility is a huge part of business • Uses things such as 5% days to raise money • Huge profit is a means to an end – focusing on all factors of production • He focuses on employees, consumers, executives, community members, vendors, and investors Majorie Kelly • Criticizes the notion that corporations ought to maximize returns to shareholders and the idea that shareholders are the owners of the corporation • She claims that: o Stock price does not fund company except at the IP o A company does not owe the shareholder anything o Stock price is only useful for establishing liquidity o Shareholders switch stocks frequently o Reliance on improving stock price creates an aristocracy that doesn’t fit with the free market o Focus is also creating decapitilization 5) Review the following Monday evening classes: Accounting, Finance, Marketing, Management and Organization, and Mr. Chris Lowney’s presentation.
Part B: Short essay questions (THREE of these eight will appear on the final exam):
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1) One of the major themes that we have explored in Portico is the tension between living for oneself and living for others. Select TWO of the following four short stories/passages that we read in class and explain how they explore this theme: The Bishop and the Candlesticks, The Undesirable Table, Enduring Love, How to Be Good. Bishop and The Candlestick a. He lives for another by giving him another chance in life, despite having stolen from him. The Undesirable Table a. The people at the table choose to live for themselves and ignore the problems outside the restaurant b. They choose to live for themselves rather than to live for others and have no care or regard for the poverty right outside of them Enduring Love a. The people in this story who were holding onto the hot-air balloon as it was beginning to float away ultimately chose to live for themselves as they all started to let go right before the balloon would have started to fall again b. Except for the one man, John Logan who continued to hang onto the balloon as it rose higher and higher with the boy in it c. It is presumed that both the boy, Harry, and John Logan both died d. The people in this story chose to live for Harry until they actually had to potentially make a life or death decision and at that moment, everyone but John Logan chose to live for themselves How to Be Good a. This story is about David Carr, who after being a pessimistic selfish person for years, chooses that he wants stop having children living on the street and he comes up with an idea for every person in the town to house one of the homeless children b. David and five other families choose to house a kid while all the others choose to not have a kid c. The people who chose to have a kid chose to give up their spare bedroom in order to give a kid a place to live – these people choose to live for others while the other people in the town choose to live for themselves
II. In her essay, “How Does One Lead A Rational Life in an Irrational Society,” Ayn Rand is critical of what we called the “extreme form” of moral relativism. Succinctly present two of her criticisms of moral relativism.
If you say that your right and someone else is right and agree upon that, then you lose conviction in (using reason you have determined that certain things are wrong—morally coping out)—lacking integrity if it’s not put in to practice (If it’s someone you care about then you should convince him. The other criticism is that you’re making it harder for good people to do good and evil people to do evil because when you see something that shouldn’t be, you don’t take a stand (creates corruption and mediocrity). III. In Plato’s “Crito,” Socrates argues that if he escaped from prison without the city’s consent, he would be mistreating those whom he should least mistreat. Who/What would Socrates be mistreating if he escaped, and why would that be a particularly grave form of mistreatment according to him? IV. Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of utilitarianism, as articulated by Jeremy Bentham and attacked by Manuel Velasquez. Be sure to explain what utility is and mention the seven measurements of utility. Utility is the term that is used to refer to the net benefits of any sort produced by an action. Therefore, utilitarianism is “used for any theory that advocates selection of that action or policy that maximizes benefits or minimizes costs. Utilitarianism measures the consequences of actions based on their intensity, duration, certainty, fecundity, purity, propinquity, and extent of what or whom they affect. The first problem that Velasquez sees with Utilitarianism is that it is often impossible to “measure” the pleasure or pain felt by a person as utilitarianism requires. We cannot experience these emotions for someone else, and therefore, we can’t know how it compares to another person’s pleasure or pain. There is no objective basis in the measurement. Another problem that arises with Utilitarianism is the idea that certain things such as life can’t have their valued measured. If a decision that cost a great sum of money would add 5 years to a person’s life, it is impossible to decide if this could be worth it or not. The next problem deals with the duration, propinquity, fecundity, and purity of the problem in the fact that it is often very hard to determine consequences of a decision long term. Utilitarianism requires that you take in to account not just the immediate consequences of a decision, but the results that will arise in the future as well. However, these things aren’t easily predicted in a single moment. Additionally, there is a lack of clarity in what counts as benefit and what counts as cost. Certain groups of people may view something as ethical while another sees it in the opposite way. These differences in opinion can change the utility of a decision depending on whom it effects. Finally, Velasquez notes the last problem is that utilitarianism assumes that all goods are tradable to some extent, or in other words, everything has its price. However, there are clearly things such as life, freedom, and health, that cannot hold the equal quantity of another good. V. Explain how the short story by Ursula Le Guin, “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas,” could serve as a criticism of utilitarianism. In The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas, the people of Omela live in a Utopia where there are never any issues, but this is all only possible because of the child that suffers in misery for the entirety of his life in a confined room with little food and water and frequent beatings. The Utilitarian approach would say that this is justifiable because of the immense amount of
pleasure that is felt by the greater population that continues so long as this child remains in an absolute state of despair. The great pleasure of this many outweigh the pain that just one person shows. However, Le Guin’s story brings about a discomfort that proves that the greatest good for the greatest number, regardless of the means of obtaining this, is not always a morally ethical approach. The title, “The Ones Who Walk Away from the Omelas” proves in itself that certain people in the population do not find this to be justifiable and are willing to walk away from a life of eternal happiness, simply due to the fact that one unidentified child suffers so much pain. This proves that situations are much more complex then to just simply look at the ends in all cases. The means to bringing about happiness for a population requires much more concern for the life of every individual, rather than just the greatest number. In the end, the fact that people do chose to leave proves that happiness at the expense of someone else may not truly be pleasurable in the end, making Utilitarianism a difficult ethical framework to abide by. VI. In “The Parable of the Sadhu,” Buzz McCoy claims that they failed because of both the absence of leadership and of a “collective or institutional ethic” (5). What does McCoy mean by that (5; 7)? How does McCoy conceive of ethics and business ethics (7)? According to McCoy, what are the responsibilities of a leader (or manager) within a company (7)? The differing backgrounds among the people they were with provided them with a multitude of opinions on the situation, which made it difficult to come to a solid conclusion as to what the best solution to the problem was. A leader is responsible for getting a group consensus instead of just passing a problem along like they all did. Leaders are people who are “effective managers, action-oriented people who resolve conflict, are tolerant of ambiguity, stress, and change, and have a strong sense of purpose for themselves and their organizations. In the
corporate world, in a safe and protected environment, they are going to perform better. If an individual does not feel like they have the support of the group, they are going to feel uncomfortable making decisions. Additionally, organizations that do not have a consensus for general morality tend to fall apart during times of adversity because individual values tend to take precedent in order for the individual to save themselves first rather than the organization.
VII. In John Hospers’ article “The Problem with Relativism,” he presents a handful of criticisms of cultural relativism. List and explain two of them. The Problem with Relativism explains that one of the biggest issues is that the means to discovering what is right and wrong is often determined by a simple majority. However, this is too unsatisfying because majorities can easily change and just because 51 percent of a population think something is right and the other 49 percent think it to be wrong, is not enough reason to declare something morally correct. Majorities can too often be mistaken. Another issue that arises with cultural relativism comes from the idea that moral rights and wrongs and determined by the groups that we belong to. The problem with this is that people belong to many groups whether it is something as large as a nation or religion or as small as a city, school, or club. These various groups that we are apart of can often have overlapping and
differing moral rights and wrongs. In these situations, you can’t use one group’s ethical beliefs because they go against that of another’s. VIII. Based upon your reading of the Boston Beer Case, (1) identify two admirable leadership qualities that Jim Koch displayed. (2) Use facts presented in the case to elucidate how Koch demonstrated these two qualities. (3) Explain why you think these two qualities are praiseworthy. Jim Koch first and foremost displayed honesty. When he discovered the glass in the product, he took immediate action with the company and informed the customers of the problem, even though he knew it was risky and would result in massive losses for the company. He took a Kantian approach to the situation by valuing human life above all else and treating people as an end in themselves rather than just a means to a profit. Additionally, Koch practices honesty among his employees by implanting the “_____ you” rule, allowing his employees to say what they feel, so long as they can back it up. This eliminates the problems that often arise in companies due to people being too nice to offer constructive criticism. This honesty that Koch displayed is an incredibly valuable quality because it allowed him to build trust with his customers and show that if they are not putting their best product in to the consumers hands, then they are willing to take the blame and suffer the consequences. In terms of his company, the honesty allows for ideas to be evaluated openly and best solve problems in a controlled but comfortable environment. Another quality that Koch clearly displays is generosity. This is seen multiple times in the history of his company but most notably when the price of Hops was increased to prices too high for most other beer companies to afford. Koch’s company could have used this opportunity to monopolize the industry and thrive based on their excess amount of Hops. However, he chose to sell his Hops to these other companies at their lower price simply because it seemed like the right thing to do, and he wanted the industry to thrive. Again, Koch shows generosity with his organizations such as the Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream, The Longshot Homebrew Competition, and Boston Strong 26.2 Brew. Boston Beer Company’s increase in share prices between 2009 and 2013 actually prove their generosity clearly did not harm the profits in any way, so in these cases, generosity worked in their favor (thus justifying it in the mind of Milton Friedman) to benefit the company. Generosity shows that a person or company cares about more than just profit and is looking to better humanity through their company resources. 2) Based upon the passages of The Prince that we read in class, provide a sketch of Machiavelli’s ethical horizon.
Questions to consider: - What does Machiavelli say about human nature? People are self-interested, unreliable, ungrateful, fickle, false, cowardly, and covetous. They are stupid, irrational, and incapable of knowing what is best for them. In general, most people aren’t good.
- What virtues should the prince possess? What is Machiavelli’s general attitude toward the traditionally esteemed virtues like generosity, mercifulness, honesty, etc…? Why? Machiavelli says that if you value these qualities too much, then you’ll never be able to get ahead because you’ll be outdone by the corrupt people in the world. There are moral pairs, and depending upon necessity, you have to veer one way or another. In this case, it’s better to veer the opposite way because there is a general understanding that most people are corrupt and fickle in times of adversity. Money is power, so if you do decide to be liberal with it, then make sure everyone knows about it. Broadcast it to make yourself look good. - Given how Machiavelli views human nature, how does he say a prince should treat his citizens? • Treat them not like your friends but like your subjects but don’t touch their personal property - Is it better to be feared or loved, if a prince has to choose between the two? Why? One should be both, but this is not possible, so it is safer to be feared because as long as you succeed, people will be loyal, but they will also quickly turn against you. It is best to be feared and avoid hate because you do best when this is the case. This happens when you leave people’s family and property alone. Commitments made in peace are not always kept in times of adversity, but commitments made in fear are kept out of fear. Fear is a means to an end (end being security) - Is it better to be cruel or merciful? Why? It is better to be cruel because cruelty demands respect. Ideally, it is better to be merciful, but too much good can lead to uprisings. Leave others to control love and you can control fear because people will do something quicker for you out of fear than friendship due to the fickleness of human nature. - How should a prince view the promises he makes? How important is it for a prince to be honest? - A prince should keep his promises when they will not be turned against him and break them when the reasons that caused him to make the promise no longer exist. It is only important not to get caught when breaking a promise and do to so without causing hatred - How should a prince go about avoiding contempt and hatred? People care much more about private losses than public gains, so the most important thing is to leave people’s money alone. Additionally, leave their family alone and if you have to commit violence or cruelty, do it with a way that can be justified, so that you always look good.
2) Describe in detail Kant’s ethical framework. Be sure to mention his notions of: duty, good will, inclinations, laws, maxims, the categorical imperative (the two formulations we looked at –and how it serves as a test of our maxims), hypothetical imperatives, and respect. I. In Kant’s framework, happiness is not the end goal a. Happiness is the result of inclinations b. Greater moral requirements that we must look towards to foster good will
c. Complex process that involves self reflection, and an obvious obligation to the universality of morality, requiring a person to make decisions in a certain way. II. Great prerequisite to proper decision making = self knowledge a. Doing the mental work to determine duties i. Develops respect ii. Feeling that emergence that is different from pleasure or pain (conscience) b. Allows a person to differ between duties and inclinations i. Duties = the necessity of an action done out of respect for the law ii. These laws are self determined and many exist 1. Based on a form (Ought or ought not) and content (Maxim)à general precept that says you will something iii. Inclinations = pleasure, pain, desires, emotion 1. Fleeting and different for everyone (not universal) III. Two types of laws to look to a. Categorical and hypothetical i. Categorical are universal ii. Hypothetical try to justify action by adding an inclination 1. Therefore not usable b. Kant says there are 4 requirements for ethics i. Respect for human autonomy ii. Respect for human dignity iii. Precepts should be universal iv. Precepts need to be necessary 1. Don’t depend on conditions being fulfilled in order to be binding c. Because of these, testing categorical imperatives are necessary, not hypothetical i. Act as if the maxim of your action serves as a universal law ii. Always treat humanity as an end and never merely a means iii. Fits these = ethical d. Fits the criteria for a good will: i. the only thing good without condition or qualification ii. will because of a good duty e. Ethical decision based on texted maxim out of duty IV. CONLUSION Questions to consider: - Why does Kant think that ethics needs to be devoid of inclinations? Inclinations include things such as desires, pleasure, pain, and emotion, which are different for everyone: happiness is not the end goal for Kant - Why does Kant claim that the only thing that is good without qualification is a good will? What is a good will? A good will is a will that wills because of good duty and a duty is the necessity of an action done out of respect for the law.
- How does respect differ from inclinations? What does respecting the law mean? What does treating humanity as ends in themselves entail? Respect is a feeling that emergences, that is different from pleasure or pain, assuming you’ve done mental work and determined your duties. It requires self-knowledge (conscience). Inclinations are the things such as pleasure, pain, emotion, and desires that are fleeting and different for everyone. - What is a maxim? How does the categorical imperative test maxims? A maxim is a general precept that says you will something. The basis for a maxim is the capacity for reason, and everyone has it. Categorical imperatives tests maxims by looking to the maxim and asking if it could serve as a universal law. - What does Kant mean when he says that our laws must be necessary and universal? • Universal if they hold for all people at all times and in all places • Necessary if they are unconditional in their binding nature - What are the two formulations of the categorical imperative that we looked at in class? • Universality test o Act as though the maxim of your action served as a universal law • Do they always treat humanity as an end in itself and never merely as a means - How do hypothetical imperatives differ from categorical imperatives? - Hypothetical imperatives add inclinations to the form and content of the law. A categorical imperative only deals with the form (I ought/ought not) and the content (maxim). - Why can’t hypothetical imperatives function as genuine moral laws? - A hypothetical imperative can’t function as a genuine moral law because if you are adding an inclination, it won’t be universal (Please note that I am using marginal numbers below instead of page numbers because several of you are using different translations of the Nicomachean Ethics than the one that we used in class. The marginal numbers can be found on the side of the page. Also, I mentioned in class that Aristotle's discussion of moral responsibility would be a possible long essay question. I decided to lump it in with number four to make for a more unified question).
3) In Book I of the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle states that “the good of man is an activity of the (rational part of the) soul in conformity with excellence or virtue…” (1098a16-17). Yet, this alone is not sufficient to enable a man to be happy, for these activities need to be performed over a complete life and one needs to be sufficiently equipped with external goods. Part A: Carefully provide Aristotle’s argument that leads him to conclude that our highest good (end) is an activity of the rational part of the soul in conformity with virtue.
Part B: As “no one would choose to live without friends (1155a5),” it is fair to say that friendship is one of the most important external goods. Provide Aristotle’s account of friendship. [Pay close attention to the three kinds of friendship]. Questions to consider for Part A: -
What does Aristotle mean by happiness? (1095a18-20) • Living well and doing well but varies from person to person • Definition of happiness o Activity of the rational part of the soul o In accordance with virtue o Over a complete life o And sufficiently equipped with external goods • Supreme good • End objective for all humans - What is Aristotle’s argument against the life of pleasure being our highest good? (1095b15-22). The life of honor? (1095b25-30). Mere possession of virtue? (1095b301096a2). Money-making? (1096a6-10). • Pleasure o It is not uniquely human and does not involve reason • Honor o Depends on other people o Not in your own control o Courage is higher than honor because courage is needed to have honor • Mere possession of virtue o You need to act out the virtue not just possess it • Money-Making o Money is used as a means and happiness is more final • The highest good has the following things: o Uniquely human o Final o
everything you do is for its sake and not for the sake of something else Largely of your own possession
o o
Choices you make Active Self-sufficient
Nothing could be added or taken away to make it any more desirable - Happiness is an end that is final (1097a25-1097b7). What does Aristotle mean by an end being final? • It is final if it is not a means to something else • If there are several ends, then the most final and perfect one is the highest good
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You can pick honor, pleasure or any of the other virtues as a means to get to happiness but you never pick happiness as a means to get any of the other virtues - In addition to being final, our highest end must also be self-sufficient. What does that mean? (1097b6-21). • It must make life desirable and deficient in nothing • Can’t make happiness anything more Why must human happiness involve reason? (1097b22-1098a16). • Reason is uniquely human What does Aristotle mean by the rational part of the soul? • Aristotle is talking about the part of the soul that thinks and deliberates and is unique to humans
Questions to consider for Part B: -
Why are friends such important external goods? (1155a3-30)? • Friends are indispensable for life because no one can be happy without friends • When misfortune happens, we find refuge in our friends • Friends enhance our abilities to think and act • They hold states together because concord seems to be something similar to friends o Concord is what lawmakers must strive to attain while they do their best to expel faction • The best works are those done for our friends and they deserve the highest praise • People always need friendship in addition to justice - What are the three sorts of things worthy of affection (1155b19) and how are these things related to the three types of friendship? • Good, pleasurable and useful • Friendships of the good – o Pure friendships – Friendships because you genuinely make each other happy o People who are alike in virtue or character o Wish for each other’s good intrinsically o They are both pleasant and beneficial to one another but that is not what makes them friends • Friendships of Utility – o Friends because you are useful to each other o When no longer useful, the friendship dissolves o Most common in elderly people and young people trying to get ahead • Friendships of Pleasure – o Friends because you bring pleasure to each other
o Typically found in the young who are guided by emotion o When the pleasure is no longer there, the friendship dissolves. - What does Aristotle mean by friendship being reciprocal good will? (1155b33-1156a5). • To be friends you must have: o Good will for one another o Wish good for the other on the basis of what is good, pleasurable, and useful o Must be aware of one another’s good will - Describe each of the three types of friendship in detail. How does the highest form differ from the other two? See above - Why are the highest friendships the so rare? (1156b25-33) • Rare because: o There are only a few men who possess these qualities o Time and familiarity are required to build these friendships
Can’t be a friend until each partner has impressed the other that he is worthy of affection and until each has won the other’s confidence
4) Aristotle writes, “[moral] virtue or excellence is a characteristic involving choice, and… consists in observing the mean relative to us, a mean which is defined by a rational principle, such as a man of practical wisdom would use to determine it” (1106b36-1107a2). Carving this passage up, what does Aristotle mean by: (1) moral virtue being a characteristic; (2) choice (and the rest of his discussion of moral responsibility); (3) moral virtue being at a mean relative to you; (4) practical wisdom. I. Believes we are a byproduct of our actions a. Characteristics of human beings allow us to determine our own moral virtues b. Things we do most often and our ability to decide guide us to discovering virtues that are individual to us i. Guided by a general sense of knowing II. Characteristics = conditions in which we position ourselves relative to emotions a. Byproduct of our habitual actions b. Important because this is how we determine our moral actions c. What we do in practice is how our virtues become our characteristics III. These virtues must be of your own possession a. Choice in our actions i. Individuals have a wish for an end ii. Deliberate multiple means to this end iii. Settle on certain means due to choice iv. Responsible, therefore, of our actions b. Must be voluntary source of motion comes from within you c. Can’t be held responsible if ignorant of: i. Who you are ii. What you are doing
iii. Who you are affecting iv. Ignorance of means used v. Ignorance of result vi. Ignorance of manner in which you’re acting IV. Deliberation is in attempt to find virtue in a mean a. Unique to the individual b. Balance between excess and deficiency c. Doing, thinking, and feeling all contribute to finding this d. 11 moral virtues, which we strive for habitually V. Intellectual virtue that allow us to find the mean= practical wisdom a. General, inherent sense of knowing what is proper in all situations b. Instructed and not practiced Questions to consider: -
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How are moral virtues acquired? (1103a16). • Acquired by habit and repetition • Not implanted by nature • By nature, we are equipped with the ability to receive virtues and habit brings this ability to completion How are characteristics (conditions, states) related to actions? (1103a30-1103b26) • You can’t have happiness without actions. Simply having the qualities that give you happiness are useless without putting them into action What destroys the moral virtues? (1104a11). • Moral virtues are destroyed when there is excess or deficiency. Why are pleasures and pains involved with the moral virtues? (1104b4-1105a17). • Pleasure can make you do things you shouldn’t • Pain can prevent you from doing things you should What does Aristotle mean by characteristics (states, conditions)? (1105b26-29). • How does Aristotle describe the mean? (1106a29-34).
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Why should the mean be relative to you? (1106a32-1106b8).
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Why does Aristotle analyze the difference between voluntary and involuntary actions? Why is this discussion relevant to a study of ethics? • He does this to show what a choice is • He says that all chosen actions are voluntary and to understand what is voluntary, you must know what is involuntary - What are involuntary actions? What are the ways in which one can perform an action due to ignorance? (1111a4-7). Which two are the most important? What does Aristotle mean by an action being done under constraint? (1110b2-3). • Involuntary actions are
o o o
Done under constraint Due to ignorance You can perform an action do to ignorance in six ways
Who you are (insane) What you are doing Who are you effecting Means used Result Manner o The two most important ways are what you are doing and who you are effecting • Aristotle says an action is done under constraint if you don’t have the control over the action - Why does Aristotle say that choice is most proper to virtue rather than the voluntary in general? (1111b5-11). • A choice is made voluntarily but it is preceded by deliberation - Compare choice to wish. Which one is concerned with ends? With means? • A choice is what you actually do while a wish is what you think about doing. The choice is concerned with the ends while the wish is concerned with the means - What do we deliberate about? (1112a31-1113a9). How is deliberation different from choice? • We deliberate about our wishes • Deliberation is the process you take to get from a wish to a choice. You don’t actually make your choice during deliberation but after all your deliberation is completed What is practical wisdom? • You have practical wisdom if you deliberate effectively and quickly
d. Being humble is not justified e. Deals with honor 8. Gentleness a. Short tempered vs. apathetic b. Angry at the right time, for the right reasons, and at the right people 9. Friendliness a. Giving pleasure and pain at the right time, in the right way, and for the right b. The flatterer vs. grouchy c. Deals with social relations 10. Truthfulness a. Honest about your personal qualities (strengths and weaknesses) b. Boastful vs. self-deprecating c. Deals with social relations 11. Wittiness a. Humor b. Buffoon vs. overly serious 3) What are the 7 measurements of utility? 1. Intensity of pleasure/pain 2. Duration 3. Certainty (probability) 4. Propinquity (how soon will the expected effects become evident) 5. Fecundity (probability of it leading to further pleasure or pain) 6. Purity (probability of it not leading to further pleasure or pain) 7. Extent (number of people effected) 4) From the material prior to the midterm, review the Michael Porter, Milton Friedman, John Mackey, and Marjorie Kelly pieces. Michael Porter • Five forces analysis to determine the attractiveness of an industry o Existing Rivalries
An industry is attractive if existing rivalries are low If there are many competitors and they offer equally attractive products and services then rivalry is high If equal in size and power, rivalry is high High exit barriers mean high rivalry
o
Buyers
o
Less buyers means higher buyer power More substitute products means higher buyer power Less product differentiation means higher buyer power Weak brand identity means higher buyer power Low switching costs means high buyer power Suppliers
o
If there are a few suppliers, and if they provide a unique service then the supplier power is high Supplier power is high when it does not depend on an industry for revenue Substitutes
o
Are there other ways for a customer to do what you provide Low switching costs means there is a high threat of substitutes High threat of substitutes if high price performance trade offs Threat of New Entrants
If there are low barriers to entry, then there is a high threat of new entry
Milton Friedman • Social responsibility • Friedman says that corporate executives have no social responsibilities because: o The #1 goal of a corporation is to make money o Job of a corporate executive is to do what’s best for investors/shareholders o Violation of trust o They are not trained in social responsibility • Only should act with social responsibility when it benefits the company • It is immoral for an executive to act with social responsibility John Mackey • Mackey on the other hand, the CEO of Whole Foods, says social responsibility is a huge part of business • Uses things such as 5% days to raise money • Huge profit is a means to an end – focusing on all factors of production • He focuses on employees, consumers, executives, community members, vendors, and investors Majorie Kelly • Criticizes the notion that corporations ought to maximize returns to shareholders and the idea that shareholders are the owners of the corporation • She claims that: o Stock price does not fund company except at the IP o A company does not owe the shareholder anything o Stock price is only useful for establishing liquidity o Shareholders switch stocks frequently o Reliance on improving stock price creates an aristocracy that doesn’t fit with the free market o Focus is also creating decapitilization 5) Review the following Monday evening classes: Accounting, Finance, Marketing, Management and Organization, and Mr. Chris Lowney’s presentation.
Part B: Short essay questions (THREE of these eight will appear on the final exam):
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1) One of the major themes that we have explored in Portico is the tension between living for oneself and living for others. Select TWO of the following four short stories/passages that we read in class and explain how they explore this theme: The Bishop and the Candlesticks, The Undesirable Table, Enduring Love, How to Be Good. Bishop and The Candlestick a. He lives for another by giving him another chance in life, despite having stolen from him. The Undesirable Table a. The people at the table choose to live for themselves and ignore the problems outside the restaurant b. They choose to live for themselves rather than to live for others and have no care or regard for the poverty right outside of them Enduring Love a. The people in this story who were holding onto the hot-air balloon as it was beginning to float away ultimately chose to live for themselves as they all started to let go right before the balloon would have started to fall again b. Except for the one man, John Logan who continued to hang onto the balloon as it rose higher and higher with the boy in it c. It is presumed that both the boy, Harry, and John Logan both died d. The people in this story chose to live for Harry until they actually had to potentially make a life or death decision and at that moment, everyone but John Logan chose to live for themselves How to Be Good a. This story is about David Carr, who after being a pessimistic selfish person for years, chooses that he wants stop having children living on the street and he comes up with an idea for every person in the town to house one of the homeless children b. David and five other families choose to house a kid while all the others choose to not have a kid c. The people who chose to have a kid chose to give up their spare bedroom in order to give a kid a place to live – these people choose to live for others while the other people in the town choose to live for themselves
II. In her essay, “How Does One Lead A Rational Life in an Irrational Society,” Ayn Rand is critical of what we called the “extreme form” of moral relativism. Succinctly present two of her criticisms of moral relativism.
If you say that your right and someone else is right and agree upon that, then you lose conviction in (using reason you have determined that certain things are wrong—morally coping out)—lacking integrity if it’s not put in to practice (If it’s someone you care about then you should convince him. The other criticism is that you’re making it harder for good people to do good and evil people to do evil because when you see something that shouldn’t be, you don’t take a stand (creates corruption and mediocrity). III. In Plato’s “Crito,” Socrates argues that if he escaped from prison without the city’s consent, he would be mistreating those whom he should least mistreat. Who/What would Socrates be mistreating if he escaped, and why would that be a particularly grave form of mistreatment according to him? IV. Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of utilitarianism, as articulated by Jeremy Bentham and attacked by Manuel Velasquez. Be sure to explain what utility is and mention the seven measurements of utility. Utility is the term that is used to refer to the net benefits of any sort produced by an action. Therefore, utilitarianism is “used for any theory that advocates selection of that action or policy that maximizes benefits or minimizes costs. Utilitarianism measures the consequences of actions based on their intensity, duration, certainty, fecundity, purity, propinquity, and extent of what or whom they affect. The first problem that Velasquez sees with Utilitarianism is that it is often impossible to “measure” the pleasure or pain felt by a person as utilitarianism requires. We cannot experience these emotions for someone else, and therefore, we can’t know how it compares to another person’s pleasure or pain. There is no objective basis in the measurement. Another problem that arises with Utilitarianism is the idea that certain things such as life can’t have their valued measured. If a decision that cost a great sum of money would add 5 years to a person’s life, it is impossible to decide if this could be worth it or not. The next problem deals with the duration, propinquity, fecundity, and purity of the problem in the fact that it is often very hard to determine consequences of a decision long term. Utilitarianism requires that you take in to account not just the immediate consequences of a decision, but the results that will arise in the future as well. However, these things aren’t easily predicted in a single moment. Additionally, there is a lack of clarity in what counts as benefit and what counts as cost. Certain groups of people may view something as ethical while another sees it in the opposite way. These differences in opinion can change the utility of a decision depending on whom it effects. Finally, Velasquez notes the last problem is that utilitarianism assumes that all goods are tradable to some extent, or in other words, everything has its price. However, there are clearly things such as life, freedom, and health, that cannot hold the equal quantity of another good. V. Explain how the short story by Ursula Le Guin, “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas,” could serve as a criticism of utilitarianism. In The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas, the people of Omela live in a Utopia where there are never any issues, but this is all only possible because of the child that suffers in misery for the entirety of his life in a confined room with little food and water and frequent beatings. The Utilitarian approach would say that this is justifiable because of the immense amount of
pleasure that is felt by the greater population that continues so long as this child remains in an absolute state of despair. The great pleasure of this many outweigh the pain that just one person shows. However, Le Guin’s story brings about a discomfort that proves that the greatest good for the greatest number, regardless of the means of obtaining this, is not always a morally ethical approach. The title, “The Ones Who Walk Away from the Omelas” proves in itself that certain people in the population do not find this to be justifiable and are willing to walk away from a life of eternal happiness, simply due to the fact that one unidentified child suffers so much pain. This proves that situations are much more complex then to just simply look at the ends in all cases. The means to bringing about happiness for a population requires much more concern for the life of every individual, rather than just the greatest number. In the end, the fact that people do chose to leave proves that happiness at the expense of someone else may not truly be pleasurable in the end, making Utilitarianism a difficult ethical framework to abide by. VI. In “The Parable of the Sadhu,” Buzz McCoy claims that they failed because of both the absence of leadership and of a “collective or institutional ethic” (5). What does McCoy mean by that (5; 7)? How does McCoy conceive of ethics and business ethics (7)? According to McCoy, what are the responsibilities of a leader (or manager) within a company (7)? The differing backgrounds among the people they were with provided them with a multitude of opinions on the situation, which made it difficult to come to a solid conclusion as to what the best solution to the problem was. A leader is responsible for getting a group consensus instead of just passing a problem along like they all did. Leaders are people who are “effective managers, action-oriented people who resolve conflict, are tolerant of ambiguity, stress, and change, and have a strong sense of purpose for themselves and their organizations. In the
corporate world, in a safe and protected environment, they are going to perform better. If an individual does not feel like they have the support of the group, they are going to feel uncomfortable making decisions. Additionally, organizations that do not have a consensus for general morality tend to fall apart during times of adversity because individual values tend to take precedent in order for the individual to save themselves first rather than the organization.
VII. In John Hospers’ article “The Problem with Relativism,” he presents a handful of criticisms of cultural relativism. List and explain two of them. The Problem with Relativism explains that one of the biggest issues is that the means to discovering what is right and wrong is often determined by a simple majority. However, this is too unsatisfying because majorities can easily change and just because 51 percent of a population think something is right and the other 49 percent think it to be wrong, is not enough reason to declare something morally correct. Majorities can too often be mistaken. Another issue that arises with cultural relativism comes from the idea that moral rights and wrongs and determined by the groups that we belong to. The problem with this is that people belong to many groups whether it is something as large as a nation or religion or as small as a city, school, or club. These various groups that we are apart of can often have overlapping and
differing moral rights and wrongs. In these situations, you can’t use one group’s ethical beliefs because they go against that of another’s. VIII. Based upon your reading of the Boston Beer Case, (1) identify two admirable leadership qualities that Jim Koch displayed. (2) Use facts presented in the case to elucidate how Koch demonstrated these two qualities. (3) Explain why you think these two qualities are praiseworthy. Jim Koch first and foremost displayed honesty. When he discovered the glass in the product, he took immediate action with the company and informed the customers of the problem, even though he knew it was risky and would result in massive losses for the company. He took a Kantian approach to the situation by valuing human life above all else and treating people as an end in themselves rather than just a means to a profit. Additionally, Koch practices honesty among his employees by implanting the “_____ you” rule, allowing his employees to say what they feel, so long as they can back it up. This eliminates the problems that often arise in companies due to people being too nice to offer constructive criticism. This honesty that Koch displayed is an incredibly valuable quality because it allowed him to build trust with his customers and show that if they are not putting their best product in to the consumers hands, then they are willing to take the blame and suffer the consequences. In terms of his company, the honesty allows for ideas to be evaluated openly and best solve problems in a controlled but comfortable environment. Another quality that Koch clearly displays is generosity. This is seen multiple times in the history of his company but most notably when the price of Hops was increased to prices too high for most other beer companies to afford. Koch’s company could have used this opportunity to monopolize the industry and thrive based on their excess amount of Hops. However, he chose to sell his Hops to these other companies at their lower price simply because it seemed like the right thing to do, and he wanted the industry to thrive. Again, Koch shows generosity with his organizations such as the Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream, The Longshot Homebrew Competition, and Boston Strong 26.2 Brew. Boston Beer Company’s increase in share prices between 2009 and 2013 actually prove their generosity clearly did not harm the profits in any way, so in these cases, generosity worked in their favor (thus justifying it in the mind of Milton Friedman) to benefit the company. Generosity shows that a person or company cares about more than just profit and is looking to better humanity through their company resources. 2) Based upon the passages of The Prince that we read in class, provide a sketch of Machiavelli’s ethical horizon.
Questions to consider: - What does Machiavelli say about human nature? People are self-interested, unreliable, ungrateful, fickle, false, cowardly, and covetous. They are stupid, irrational, and incapable of knowing what is best for them. In general, most people aren’t good.
- What virtues should the prince possess? What is Machiavelli’s general attitude toward the traditionally esteemed virtues like generosity, mercifulness, honesty, etc…? Why? Machiavelli says that if you value these qualities too much, then you’ll never be able to get ahead because you’ll be outdone by the corrupt people in the world. There are moral pairs, and depending upon necessity, you have to veer one way or another. In this case, it’s better to veer the opposite way because there is a general understanding that most people are corrupt and fickle in times of adversity. Money is power, so if you do decide to be liberal with it, then make sure everyone knows about it. Broadcast it to make yourself look good. - Given how Machiavelli views human nature, how does he say a prince should treat his citizens? • Treat them not like your friends but like your subjects but don’t touch their personal property - Is it better to be feared or loved, if a prince has to choose between the two? Why? One should be both, but this is not possible, so it is safer to be feared because as long as you succeed, people will be loyal, but they will also quickly turn against you. It is best to be feared and avoid hate because you do best when this is the case. This happens when you leave people’s family and property alone. Commitments made in peace are not always kept in times of adversity, but commitments made in fear are kept out of fear. Fear is a means to an end (end being security) - Is it better to be cruel or merciful? Why? It is better to be cruel because cruelty demands respect. Ideally, it is better to be merciful, but too much good can lead to uprisings. Leave others to control love and you can control fear because people will do something quicker for you out of fear than friendship due to the fickleness of human nature. - How should a prince view the promises he makes? How important is it for a prince to be honest? - A prince should keep his promises when they will not be turned against him and break them when the reasons that caused him to make the promise no longer exist. It is only important not to get caught when breaking a promise and do to so without causing hatred - How should a prince go about avoiding contempt and hatred? People care much more about private losses than public gains, so the most important thing is to leave people’s money alone. Additionally, leave their family alone and if you have to commit violence or cruelty, do it with a way that can be justified, so that you always look good.
2) Describe in detail Kant’s ethical framework. Be sure to mention his notions of: duty, good will, inclinations, laws, maxims, the categorical imperative (the two formulations we looked at –and how it serves as a test of our maxims), hypothetical imperatives, and respect. I. In Kant’s framework, happiness is not the end goal a. Happiness is the result of inclinations b. Greater moral requirements that we must look towards to foster good will
c. Complex process that involves self reflection, and an obvious obligation to the universality of morality, requiring a person to make decisions in a certain way. II. Great prerequisite to proper decision making = self knowledge a. Doing the mental work to determine duties i. Develops respect ii. Feeling that emergence that is different from pleasure or pain (conscience) b. Allows a person to differ between duties and inclinations i. Duties = the necessity of an action done out of respect for the law ii. These laws are self determined and many exist 1. Based on a form (Ought or ought not) and content (Maxim)à general precept that says you will something iii. Inclinations = pleasure, pain, desires, emotion 1. Fleeting and different for everyone (not universal) III. Two types of laws to look to a. Categorical and hypothetical i. Categorical are universal ii. Hypothetical try to justify action by adding an inclination 1. Therefore not usable b. Kant says there are 4 requirements for ethics i. Respect for human autonomy ii. Respect for human dignity iii. Precepts should be universal iv. Precepts need to be necessary 1. Don’t depend on conditions being fulfilled in order to be binding c. Because of these, testing categorical imperatives are necessary, not hypothetical i. Act as if the maxim of your action serves as a universal law ii. Always treat humanity as an end and never merely a means iii. Fits these = ethical d. Fits the criteria for a good will: i. the only thing good without condition or qualification ii. will because of a good duty e. Ethical decision based on texted maxim out of duty IV. CONLUSION Questions to consider: - Why does Kant think that ethics needs to be devoid of inclinations? Inclinations include things such as desires, pleasure, pain, and emotion, which are different for everyone: happiness is not the end goal for Kant - Why does Kant claim that the only thing that is good without qualification is a good will? What is a good will? A good will is a will that wills because of good duty and a duty is the necessity of an action done out of respect for the law.
- How does respect differ from inclinations? What does respecting the law mean? What does treating humanity as ends in themselves entail? Respect is a feeling that emergences, that is different from pleasure or pain, assuming you’ve done mental work and determined your duties. It requires self-knowledge (conscience). Inclinations are the things such as pleasure, pain, emotion, and desires that are fleeting and different for everyone. - What is a maxim? How does the categorical imperative test maxims? A maxim is a general precept that says you will something. The basis for a maxim is the capacity for reason, and everyone has it. Categorical imperatives tests maxims by looking to the maxim and asking if it could serve as a universal law. - What does Kant mean when he says that our laws must be necessary and universal? • Universal if they hold for all people at all times and in all places • Necessary if they are unconditional in their binding nature - What are the two formulations of the categorical imperative that we looked at in class? • Universality test o Act as though the maxim of your action served as a universal law • Do they always treat humanity as an end in itself and never merely as a means - How do hypothetical imperatives differ from categorical imperatives? - Hypothetical imperatives add inclinations to the form and content of the law. A categorical imperative only deals with the form (I ought/ought not) and the content (maxim). - Why can’t hypothetical imperatives function as genuine moral laws? - A hypothetical imperative can’t function as a genuine moral law because if you are adding an inclination, it won’t be universal (Please note that I am using marginal numbers below instead of page numbers because several of you are using different translations of the Nicomachean Ethics than the one that we used in class. The marginal numbers can be found on the side of the page. Also, I mentioned in class that Aristotle's discussion of moral responsibility would be a possible long essay question. I decided to lump it in with number four to make for a more unified question).
3) In Book I of the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle states that “the good of man is an activity of the (rational part of the) soul in conformity with excellence or virtue…” (1098a16-17). Yet, this alone is not sufficient to enable a man to be happy, for these activities need to be performed over a complete life and one needs to be sufficiently equipped with external goods. Part A: Carefully provide Aristotle’s argument that leads him to conclude that our highest good (end) is an activity of the rational part of the soul in conformity with virtue.
Part B: As “no one would choose to live without friends (1155a5),” it is fair to say that friendship is one of the most important external goods. Provide Aristotle’s account of friendship. [Pay close attention to the three kinds of friendship]. Questions to consider for Part A: -
What does Aristotle mean by happiness? (1095a18-20) • Living well and doing well but varies from person to person • Definition of happiness o Activity of the rational part of the soul o In accordance with virtue o Over a complete life o And sufficiently equipped with external goods • Supreme good • End objective for all humans - What is Aristotle’s argument against the life of pleasure being our highest good? (1095b15-22). The life of honor? (1095b25-30). Mere possession of virtue? (1095b301096a2). Money-making? (1096a6-10). • Pleasure o It is not uniquely human and does not involve reason • Honor o Depends on other people o Not in your own control o Courage is higher than honor because courage is needed to have honor • Mere possession of virtue o You need to act out the virtue not just possess it • Money-Making o Money is used as a means and happiness is more final • The highest good has the following things: o Uniquely human o Final o
everything you do is for its sake and not for the sake of something else Largely of your own possession
o o
Choices you make Active Self-sufficient
Nothing could be added or taken away to make it any more desirable - Happiness is an end that is final (1097a25-1097b7). What does Aristotle mean by an end being final? • It is final if it is not a means to something else • If there are several ends, then the most final and perfect one is the highest good
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You can pick honor, pleasure or any of the other virtues as a means to get to happiness but you never pick happiness as a means to get any of the other virtues - In addition to being final, our highest end must also be self-sufficient. What does that mean? (1097b6-21). • It must make life desirable and deficient in nothing • Can’t make happiness anything more Why must human happiness involve reason? (1097b22-1098a16). • Reason is uniquely human What does Aristotle mean by the rational part of the soul? • Aristotle is talking about the part of the soul that thinks and deliberates and is unique to humans
Questions to consider for Part B: -
Why are friends such important external goods? (1155a3-30)? • Friends are indispensable for life because no one can be happy without friends • When misfortune happens, we find refuge in our friends • Friends enhance our abilities to think and act • They hold states together because concord seems to be something similar to friends o Concord is what lawmakers must strive to attain while they do their best to expel faction • The best works are those done for our friends and they deserve the highest praise • People always need friendship in addition to justice - What are the three sorts of things worthy of affection (1155b19) and how are these things related to the three types of friendship? • Good, pleasurable and useful • Friendships of the good – o Pure friendships – Friendships because you genuinely make each other happy o People who are alike in virtue or character o Wish for each other’s good intrinsically o They are both pleasant and beneficial to one another but that is not what makes them friends • Friendships of Utility – o Friends because you are useful to each other o When no longer useful, the friendship dissolves o Most common in elderly people and young people trying to get ahead • Friendships of Pleasure – o Friends because you bring pleasure to each other
o Typically found in the young who are guided by emotion o When the pleasure is no longer there, the friendship dissolves. - What does Aristotle mean by friendship being reciprocal good will? (1155b33-1156a5). • To be friends you must have: o Good will for one another o Wish good for the other on the basis of what is good, pleasurable, and useful o Must be aware of one another’s good will - Describe each of the three types of friendship in detail. How does the highest form differ from the other two? See above - Why are the highest friendships the so rare? (1156b25-33) • Rare because: o There are only a few men who possess these qualities o Time and familiarity are required to build these friendships
Can’t be a friend until each partner has impressed the other that he is worthy of affection and until each has won the other’s confidence
4) Aristotle writes, “[moral] virtue or excellence is a characteristic involving choice, and… consists in observing the mean relative to us, a mean which is defined by a rational principle, such as a man of practical wisdom would use to determine it” (1106b36-1107a2). Carving this passage up, what does Aristotle mean by: (1) moral virtue being a characteristic; (2) choice (and the rest of his discussion of moral responsibility); (3) moral virtue being at a mean relative to you; (4) practical wisdom. I. Believes we are a byproduct of our actions a. Characteristics of human beings allow us to determine our own moral virtues b. Things we do most often and our ability to decide guide us to discovering virtues that are individual to us i. Guided by a general sense of knowing II. Characteristics = conditions in which we position ourselves relative to emotions a. Byproduct of our habitual actions b. Important because this is how we determine our moral actions c. What we do in practice is how our virtues become our characteristics III. These virtues must be of your own possession a. Choice in our actions i. Individuals have a wish for an end ii. Deliberate multiple means to this end iii. Settle on certain means due to choice iv. Responsible, therefore, of our actions b. Must be voluntary source of motion comes from within you c. Can’t be held responsible if ignorant of: i. Who you are ii. What you are doing
iii. Who you are affecting iv. Ignorance of means used v. Ignorance of result vi. Ignorance of manner in which you’re acting IV. Deliberation is in attempt to find virtue in a mean a. Unique to the individual b. Balance between excess and deficiency c. Doing, thinking, and feeling all contribute to finding this d. 11 moral virtues, which we strive for habitually V. Intellectual virtue that allow us to find the mean= practical wisdom a. General, inherent sense of knowing what is proper in all situations b. Instructed and not practiced Questions to consider: -
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How are moral virtues acquired? (1103a16). • Acquired by habit and repetition • Not implanted by nature • By nature, we are equipped with the ability to receive virtues and habit brings this ability to completion How are characteristics (conditions, states) related to actions? (1103a30-1103b26) • You can’t have happiness without actions. Simply having the qualities that give you happiness are useless without putting them into action What destroys the moral virtues? (1104a11). • Moral virtues are destroyed when there is excess or deficiency. Why are pleasures and pains involved with the moral virtues? (1104b4-1105a17). • Pleasure can make you do things you shouldn’t • Pain can prevent you from doing things you should What does Aristotle mean by characteristics (states, conditions)? (1105b26-29). • How does Aristotle describe the mean? (1106a29-34).
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Why should the mean be relative to you? (1106a32-1106b8).
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Why does Aristotle analyze the difference between voluntary and involuntary actions? Why is this discussion relevant to a study of ethics? • He does this to show what a choice is • He says that all chosen actions are voluntary and to understand what is voluntary, you must know what is involuntary - What are involuntary actions? What are the ways in which one can perform an action due to ignorance? (1111a4-7). Which two are the most important? What does Aristotle mean by an action being done under constraint? (1110b2-3). • Involuntary actions are
o o o
Done under constraint Due to ignorance You can perform an action do to ignorance in six ways
Who you are (insane) What you are doing Who are you effecting Means used Result Manner o The two most important ways are what you are doing and who you are effecting • Aristotle says an action is done under constraint if you don’t have the control over the action - Why does Aristotle say that choice is most proper to virtue rather than the voluntary in general? (1111b5-11). • A choice is made voluntarily but it is preceded by deliberation - Compare choice to wish. Which one is concerned with ends? With means? • A choice is what you actually do while a wish is what you think about doing. The choice is concerned with the ends while the wish is concerned with the means - What do we deliberate about? (1112a31-1113a9). How is deliberation different from choice? • We deliberate about our wishes • Deliberation is the process you take to get from a wish to a choice. You don’t actually make your choice during deliberation but after all your deliberation is completed What is practical wisdom? • You have practical wisdom if you deliberate effectively and quickly
