Edition Andrew Fiala, Barbara
Solution and Answer Guide: Fiala/Mackinnon, Ethics: Theory & Contemporary Issues, 10th Edition, 2024, 9780357798539, Chapter 1: Ethics and Ethical Reasoning
Solution and Answer Guide
Fiala/Mackinnon, Ethics: Theory & Contemporary Issues, 10th Edition, 2024, 9780357798539, Chapter 1: Ethics and Ethical Reasoning
TABLE OF CONTENTS
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
1. Is Socrates correct to suggest that it is wrong to return evil for evil and that two wrongs don’t make a right?
Talking Points: Students should be considering this from a principled perspective: are these claims true and good? Students may want to make connections to what they’ve learned from parents or religion, which is great. Counter-examples could be considered: such as the justification of violence used in self-defense.
2. Do you agree with the idea that living well is more important than merely living?
Talking Points: Students should be encouraged to speculate about what makes life worth living. They should also be encouraged to imagine circumstances in which life is not worth living. Counter-examples could be brought up: for instance, the concern about who decides this; or a general prohibition against killing and suicide.
3. What would you do if you were wrongly convicted of a crime and sentenced to death? Would you try to escape? Do you think Socrates was wise to refuse to escape?
Talking Points: Students should be encouraged to imagine themselves into such a circumstance. And should be urged to think of the discussion not merely in practical terms
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Solution and Answer Guide: Fiala/Mackinnon, Ethics: Theory & Contemporary Issues, 10th Edition, 2024, 9780357798539, Chapter 1: Ethics and Ethical Reasoning
(i.e., is it possible to escape and can they get away with it?) but more importantly in moral terms–so that ideas about duty, rights, obligations, and responsibilities are on the table.
4. What basic principles or virtues guide your thinking about these issues?
Talking Points: Again, students should be encouraged to go beyond practical concerns. Virtues that may be discussed could include: courage, loyalty, honor, integrity, etc. Key principles might include: obedience to the law and authority, self-preservation (at any cost?), and obligations to friends and family.
REVIEW EXERCISES SOLUTIONS
1. Determine whether the following statements about the nature of ethics are true or false. Explain your answers.
a. Ethics is the study of why people act in certain ways.
b. The solution to moral conflicts and ethical disputes is to accurately describe the way the world actually is.
c. The statement “Most people believe that cheating is wrong” is an ethical evaluation of cheating.
Solution:
1a. True or False (but it depends upon what we mean by “why”)
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1b. False (factual descriptions are not the same as normative argument)
1c. False (the claim the “most people” believe it does not make it wrong; the majority could be wrong or mistaken).
2. Label the following statements as either normative (N) or descriptive (D). If normative, label each
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Solution and Answer Guide: Fiala/Mackinnon, Ethics: Theory & Contemporary Issues, 10th Edition, 2024, 9780357798539, Chapter 1: Ethics and Ethical Reasoning
as ethics (E), aesthetics (A), law (L), religion (R), or custom (C).
a. One ought to respect one’s elders because it is one of God’s commandments.
b. Twice as many people today, as compared to ten years ago, believe that the death penalty is morally justified in some cases.
c. It would be wrong to put an antique chair in a modern room.
d. People do not always do what they believe to be right.
e. I ought not to turn left here because the sign says “No Left Turn.”
f. We ought to adopt a universal health insurance policy because everyone has a right to health care.
Solution:
2a. N; R
2b. D
2c. N; A
2d. D
2e. N; L
2f. N; E
3. Discuss the differences between the ideas that ethics is subjective and that it is objective.
Solution:
To say that ethics is subjective is to say that our moral judgments are merely matters of opinion. This view risks becoming relativism. Those who maintain that ethics is objective believe that we can know what is true or false with regard to moral judgments.
4. Explain emotivism and intuitionism in ethical theory.
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Solution and Answer Guide: Fiala/Mackinnon, Ethics: Theory & Contemporary Issues, 10th Edition, 2024, 9780357798539, Chapter 1: Ethics and Ethical Reasoning
Solution:
Emotivists claim that ethics is merely an expression of emotion (such as saying “yay” or “yuck).
Intuitionists claim that ethical objects (like “the good”) can be known through the faculty of moral intuition.
5. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using naturalistic explanations in ethics.
Solution:
Naturalistic explanations can provide insight into the biological and psychological sources of moral life. But these explanations are merely descriptive. They are unable to provide normative guidance (or else they risk committing the naturalistic fallacy).
6. As they occur in the following statements, label the reasons for the conclusion as appeals to the motive (M), the act (A), or the consequences (C).
a. Although you intended well, what you did was bad because it caused more harm than good.
b. We ought always to tell the truth to others because it is right to tell the truth.
c. Although it did turn out badly, you did not want that, and thus you should not be judged harshly for what you caused.
Solution:
6a. C
6b. A
6c. M
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