/gist:4332115

## gistfile1.txt
Review
: Narrative conception of the self is Aristotelian -- it is teleological
: a) the narrative conception presupposes a certain conception of the good life as a whole
: b) MacIntyre's conception of the good life involves following the narrative of life. In the
: process of determing how I ought to act, it would be wrong to step back from the particulars of my
: situation -- I need to look at my current situation
Final Exam
: 20 MC questions -- broadly thematic
: 2 essays
Bentham
: Utilitarianism
: * Happiness Principle
: * Begins with premise that "our sovereign masters and pleasure and pain"
: * Social policy: Maximize pleasure, quantitatively
: * Believes that all pain and pleasure can be quantitatively measured, on the same scale, has like
: 6 different ways to measure
: * Is an example of consequentialism -- the morality of an action has nothing to do with the
: motive, but only with the consequences of the action
:
: Objection: Doesn't respect human rights
Mill
: * Higher vs Lower pleasures -- measures both quality and quantity of pain and pleasures
: * Higher pleasures are those that we would not relinquish even for a vast amount of lower
: pleasures -- they cannot be measured on the same scale
: * Broadly, the higher pleasures are those related to the intellect. "Better to be Socrates
: dissatisfied than a pig satisfied"
: * Has a test for distinguishing between higher and lower pleasures: Ask someone who has
: experienced both pleasures, and ask them which one of those pleasure they would rather have
: * The test is empirical
: * Problem -- how do you have having "experienced" both pleasures/pains? Many people would choose
: the Simpsons over Shakespeare, although Mill would expect Shakespeare to be the higher pleasure,
: and he would probably say that anyone who chooses the Simpsons simply hasn't fully experience
: Shakespeare
: * This is supposed to address Bentham's account of utilitarianism to try and account for rights
: * He is a famous defender of freedom of speeches -- he believes he can defend rights through his
: distinction of higher and lower pleasures
Nozick
: * Strong defender of individuals rights to life, liberty, and property, independent of whether it
: maximizes the pleasure of society as a whole
: * The right to self-ownership -- not just the ownership of my body, but also the fruits of my
: labor
: * The minimal state -- provides a police force and army to enforce contracts and prevent the
: infringement of basic rights
: * Note contrast between negative and positive rights. The state only has to protect the negative
: right to life.
: * The right to life is merely the right to live as I choose, without the constraint of any other
: individual -- it does not mean the right to a good life
: * Says that any taxation that goes beyond what is needed to support the minimal state is coercion
: and a violation of rights
: * Connects right to property to right to life and liberty -- that the fruits of labor are
: equivalent to our labor and our body, which allows him to make the tie between taxation and
: coercion
: * Says that taxation is on par with forced labor
: * Self-ownership/right to life/liberty => right to labor => right to fruits of labor (earnings)
: => taxation of my earnings is equivalent to controlling my life
: * Nozick is against redistributive justice -- taxation to support social welfare programs --
: taxation to support other people's lives. Because then you are a slave of the majority
: * So, within his framework --
: 1) Justice in acquisition
: 2) Justice in transfer
: 3) Rectification of injustices
: * As long as these things hold, then the current state of society is justice, no matter how wide
: the inequalities are
: * Wilt Chamberlain example -- pick any initial just initial distribution. Then everybody pays ot
: see Wilt Chamberlain, such that he becomes very rich (and there is inequality). He obtained his
: wealth through just means -- so it would be unjust to tax those earnings
Locke
: * *Natural rights* -- the right to life, liberty, and property (specifically these 3!)
: * Purpose is to determine the legitimate extent of governmental authority
: * *Limited government* -- limited by people's natural rights
: * *Unalienable rights* -- we can't, even of our own free will, relinquish our natural rights. We
: cannot given those rights even with our own free consent. I cannot sell myself into slavery, and
: I cannot take my own life. In contrast, Nozick and libertarians would say that we own ourselves
: and that we can do whatever we choose with ourselves.
: * He says that our rights come from God and that they come from reason
: * Locke's state of nature: Pre-political, no common authority
: * Locke's stance on slavery: He says that it would be unjust to enslave an innocent person, but
: that is is acceptable to enslave an aggressor, who oversteps their bounds by trying to infringe on
: another's rights, and thereby enter a state of war
: * You punish them "as far as calm reason dictates" -- only as far as to restrain them and for
: reparations
: * Everybody has the right to punish an aggressor, and everyone can punish as they see fit
: * But then the state of nature results in chaos, and everyone's rights are insecure, so then
: people willingly give up some of their rights (namely, their judicial and penal rights) to form
: a government to secure people's rights, which allows for justice to be more fairly distributed.
: People lose the ability to decide on punishment and carry out the punishment on aggressors
: * Right to property -- unowned things in nature come to become owned by the mixing of labor, and
: it is acceptable so long as I leave enough as is good for the rest of society
: * Extends this to a state where people enclose the land, where people enclose more land than they
: need but that they sell the surplus for money so that they don't go bad, that they hire people to
: work the fields
: * People who don't have any land and have to be day laborers -- their state is just because their
: standard of living is higher than it would've been, and so technically enough was left as is good
: * Allows for majority rule -- says that the government can tax as much as the majority decides
: * Tacit consent -- if you are born into the new society, and you stay and enjoy the benefits of
: society, then you tacitly consent
Kant
: * Common misinterpretation -- that his categorical imperative is utilitarian, because he says you
: can't do those actions that would result in overall bad if everyone in society did them. But that
: isn't what Kant means.
: * Supreme principle of morality -- that principle that is bound on all individuals. The principle
: of right or wrong that applies in all situations and for all people
: * Argues that the only basis of morality is will -- this is deontology, in direct contrast with
: consequentialism of utilitarianism
: * Supreme principle of morality is the categorical imperative
: * Duty vs inclination -- a morally worthy action is one that is done for the sake of duty, not for
: inclination. Example: A shopkeeper could decide not to overcharge someone for two reasons: (1) he
: would be exposed and slandered (out of inclination); (2) he doesn't want to cheat people (out
: of duty)
: * Categorical vs hypothetical imperatives: a hypothetical imperative means that you do X if you
: want Y. There's nothing wrong with hypothetical imperatives, but it cannot be the basis for
: morality
: * First formulation of the categorical imperative: Act only upon that maxim that at the same time
: you could will to be a universal law. Tests whether the maxim places you above other people (i.e.,
: using other people as means rather than as ends)
: * Second formulation of the categorical imperative: Act always such that you treat humanity never
: merely as a means to an end, but always as ends in themselves. Humanity = rational nature = source
: of our dignity = capacity for moral judgment, to act on a categorical imperative
: * My desires and preferences are not things that I have chosen out of my own free will. If we act
: upon our desires, then we are governed by external forces
Rawls
Aristotle
MacIntyre
	Review
	: Narrative conception of the self is Aristotelian -- it is teleological
	: a) the narrative conception presupposes a certain conception of the good life as a whole
	: b) MacIntyre's conception of the good life involves following the narrative of life. In the
	: process of determing how I ought to act, it would be wrong to step back from the particulars of my
	: situation -- I need to look at my current situation
	Final Exam
	: 20 MC questions -- broadly thematic
	: 2 essays
	Bentham
	: Utilitarianism
	: * Happiness Principle
	: * Begins with premise that "our sovereign masters and pleasure and pain"
	: * Social policy: Maximize pleasure, quantitatively
	: * Believes that all pain and pleasure can be quantitatively measured, on the same scale, has like
	: 6 different ways to measure
	: * Is an example of consequentialism -- the morality of an action has nothing to do with the
	: motive, but only with the consequences of the action
	:
	: Objection: Doesn't respect human rights
	Mill
	: * Higher vs Lower pleasures -- measures both quality and quantity of pain and pleasures
	: * Higher pleasures are those that we would not relinquish even for a vast amount of lower
	: pleasures -- they cannot be measured on the same scale
	: * Broadly, the higher pleasures are those related to the intellect. "Better to be Socrates
	: dissatisfied than a pig satisfied"
	: * Has a test for distinguishing between higher and lower pleasures: Ask someone who has
	: experienced both pleasures, and ask them which one of those pleasure they would rather have
	: * The test is empirical
	: * Problem -- how do you have having "experienced" both pleasures/pains? Many people would choose
	: the Simpsons over Shakespeare, although Mill would expect Shakespeare to be the higher pleasure,
	: and he would probably say that anyone who chooses the Simpsons simply hasn't fully experience
	: Shakespeare
	: * This is supposed to address Bentham's account of utilitarianism to try and account for rights
	: * He is a famous defender of freedom of speeches -- he believes he can defend rights through his
	: distinction of higher and lower pleasures
	Nozick
	: * Strong defender of individuals rights to life, liberty, and property, independent of whether it
	: maximizes the pleasure of society as a whole
	: * The right to self-ownership -- not just the ownership of my body, but also the fruits of my
	: labor
	: * The minimal state -- provides a police force and army to enforce contracts and prevent the
	: infringement of basic rights
	: * Note contrast between negative and positive rights. The state only has to protect the negative
	: right to life.
	: * The right to life is merely the right to live as I choose, without the constraint of any other
	: individual -- it does not mean the right to a good life
	: * Says that any taxation that goes beyond what is needed to support the minimal state is coercion
	: and a violation of rights
	: * Connects right to property to right to life and liberty -- that the fruits of labor are
	: equivalent to our labor and our body, which allows him to make the tie between taxation and
	: coercion
	: * Says that taxation is on par with forced labor
	: * Self-ownership/right to life/liberty => right to labor => right to fruits of labor (earnings)
	: => taxation of my earnings is equivalent to controlling my life
	: * Nozick is against redistributive justice -- taxation to support social welfare programs --
	: taxation to support other people's lives. Because then you are a slave of the majority
	: * So, within his framework --
	: 1) Justice in acquisition
	: 2) Justice in transfer
	: 3) Rectification of injustices
	: * As long as these things hold, then the current state of society is justice, no matter how wide
	: the inequalities are
	: * Wilt Chamberlain example -- pick any initial just initial distribution. Then everybody pays ot
	: see Wilt Chamberlain, such that he becomes very rich (and there is inequality). He obtained his
	: wealth through just means -- so it would be unjust to tax those earnings
	Locke
	: * Natural rights -- the right to life, liberty, and property (specifically these 3!)
	: * Purpose is to determine the legitimate extent of governmental authority
	: * Limited government -- limited by people's natural rights
	: * Unalienable rights -- we can't, even of our own free will, relinquish our natural rights. We
	: cannot given those rights even with our own free consent. I cannot sell myself into slavery, and
	: I cannot take my own life. In contrast, Nozick and libertarians would say that we own ourselves
	: and that we can do whatever we choose with ourselves.
	: * He says that our rights come from God and that they come from reason
	: * Locke's state of nature: Pre-political, no common authority
	: * Locke's stance on slavery: He says that it would be unjust to enslave an innocent person, but
	: that is is acceptable to enslave an aggressor, who oversteps their bounds by trying to infringe on
	: another's rights, and thereby enter a state of war
	: * You punish them "as far as calm reason dictates" -- only as far as to restrain them and for
	: reparations
	: * Everybody has the right to punish an aggressor, and everyone can punish as they see fit
	: * But then the state of nature results in chaos, and everyone's rights are insecure, so then
	: people willingly give up some of their rights (namely, their judicial and penal rights) to form
	: a government to secure people's rights, which allows for justice to be more fairly distributed.
	: People lose the ability to decide on punishment and carry out the punishment on aggressors
	: * Right to property -- unowned things in nature come to become owned by the mixing of labor, and
	: it is acceptable so long as I leave enough as is good for the rest of society
	: * Extends this to a state where people enclose the land, where people enclose more land than they
	: need but that they sell the surplus for money so that they don't go bad, that they hire people to
	: work the fields
	: * People who don't have any land and have to be day laborers -- their state is just because their
	: standard of living is higher than it would've been, and so technically enough was left as is good
	: * Allows for majority rule -- says that the government can tax as much as the majority decides
	: * Tacit consent -- if you are born into the new society, and you stay and enjoy the benefits of
	: society, then you tacitly consent
	Kant
	: * Common misinterpretation -- that his categorical imperative is utilitarian, because he says you
	: can't do those actions that would result in overall bad if everyone in society did them. But that
	: isn't what Kant means.
	: * Supreme principle of morality -- that principle that is bound on all individuals. The principle
	: of right or wrong that applies in all situations and for all people
	: * Argues that the only basis of morality is will -- this is deontology, in direct contrast with
	: consequentialism of utilitarianism
	: * Supreme principle of morality is the categorical imperative
	: * Duty vs inclination -- a morally worthy action is one that is done for the sake of duty, not for
	: inclination. Example: A shopkeeper could decide not to overcharge someone for two reasons: (1) he
	: would be exposed and slandered (out of inclination); (2) he doesn't want to cheat people (out
	: of duty)
	: * Categorical vs hypothetical imperatives: a hypothetical imperative means that you do X if you
	: want Y. There's nothing wrong with hypothetical imperatives, but it cannot be the basis for
	: morality
	: * First formulation of the categorical imperative: Act only upon that maxim that at the same time
	: you could will to be a universal law. Tests whether the maxim places you above other people (i.e.,
	: using other people as means rather than as ends)
	: * Second formulation of the categorical imperative: Act always such that you treat humanity never
	: merely as a means to an end, but always as ends in themselves. Humanity = rational nature = source
	: of our dignity = capacity for moral judgment, to act on a categorical imperative
	: * My desires and preferences are not things that I have chosen out of my own free will. If we act
	: upon our desires, then we are governed by external forces
	Rawls
	Aristotle
	MacIntyre