Flashcards
Virtue Ethics - Modern Virtue Ethicists
Cards in this deck (13)
- 1What did Elizabeth Anscombe argue in 'modern moral philosophy'?1) That deontological ethics had become outdated.
2) That the religious basis to ethics and morality could no longer be trusted - 2What else did Anscombe believe about ethics?She felt that ethics had moved away from a focus on a person's character and had instead become obsessed with lots of rules and laws
- 3What did Alasdai McIntyre write about in his 1981 book 'After Virtue'?1) Argued we should give serious consideration to Aristotle's virtue theory.
2) Traced the history of virtue ethics and tried to establish a system of virtue ethics for the modern age - 4What did MacIntyre not like about modern ethics?Placed too much emphasis on reason and not enough on people, their characters and the contexts in their lives.
- 5What were the Homeric virtues?Virtues which were paramount 2 500 years ago:
1) Physical strength
2) Courage
3) Cunning
4) Friendship - 6What are the Athenian Virtues?Virtues which developed as life became more civilised and cities developed:
1) Courage
2) Friendship
3) Justice
4) Temperance
5) Wisdom - 7What were MacIntyre's virtues?1) Courage: courage is very important as it helps us to face up to challenges that may come our way.
2) Justice: Justice is fairness and it is the art of giving someone what they deserve or merit. To be unjust is to be unfair.
3) Temperance: this prevents us from acting rashly; losing our temper for example.
4) Wisdom: this is not knowledge: it is the ability to know how to act in the right way in particular situations.
5) Industriousness: hard work.
6) Hope: being optimistic.
7) Patience. - 8What must be underneath the virtues?The good will of the person. To be virtuous, one must desire to do virtuous things, rather than do them involuntarily. An act is not virtuous if it is not intended
- 9What were the most important virtues according to MacIntyre?justice, courage and honesty. We can only achieve moral excellence through practising these three. They are core virtues that help to prevent organisations and institutions from becoming morally corrupt.
- 10What did Phillipa Foot argue?She has argued that the wise person directs their will to what is good and a good is something that is both intrinsically and extrinsically good. The wise, or virtuous person also knows that there are particular ways of obtaining certain goods and it is these ways of obtaining goods that are the virtues.
- 11How does Foot argue skills and virtues are different things?We may make a deliberate mistake with a skill, but not damage our character or reputation; for example, a teacher who deliberately misspells a word to draw their students attention to it. However, if you deliberately act in a non-virtuous way, your reputation and character will suffer.
- 12How did Food characterise virtues?As 'correctives'
- 13How does Foot make a comparison between humans and out of season wood?She likens humans to planks of wood that are left out to season. Wood naturally warps and changes shape and it needs continuous straightening to make it straight. Virtues do the same for the human character: they continually straighten us out so that eventually we can, through habit, become virtuous.
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- a2 Religious Studies (Ethics) Flashcards on Virtue Ethics - Modern Virtue Ethicists, created by Ella Foster on 17/04/2017.
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