Philosophy 313
Study sheet for Midterm
Midterm: March 2, 2016
The following list of terms and concepts is to assist you in studying for the short answer
section of the test. There will be 10 short answer questions on the test, of which you are
to answer 8 (5 points each):
Socratic method
knowledge vs. opinion
fact/value distinction
justice
parts of the soul
more reality/more satisfaction
analogy of the cave
Ideas (or Forms)
teleology
righteous indignation
habituation
happiness
mean
pleasure/happiness distinction
reason
vice and virtue
good friends
first nature/second nature
Animal rights/environ. ethics
overcompensation
capital punishment
moderation in all things
Two of the following essay questions will be on the midterm (just as they appear here),
and you are to write on one of them (60 points):
1. In the Euthyphro, Socrates questions Euthyphro about the nature of holiness. This form
of questioning has often been called the Socratic method. Explain Socrates' manner of
questioning. This process of questioning also led both to Socrates' eventual trial and
conviction, and it led to his conclusion that if he is wise it is only insofar as he knows that
he knows nothing. What is the positive significance of recognizing that one knows they
know nothing, and how, especially for Socrates, does this tie in to ethics?
2. Aristotle argues that to be happy we must make the right decisions as consistently and
often as we can. Detail the argument that Aristotle lays out to justify this claim and
elaborate what it means and entails. Be sure to give specific examples to clarify the points
you make (preferably your own examples). Turn then to discuss why only the virtuous
person can be happy, and how one might correct their vices in order to become happy.
And finally, discuss either issues in animal rights or environmental ethics (or both) as
they relate to what Aristotle is arguing for.
3. Both Plato and Aristotle set out to determine what is just, best, and good in human
actions, but they each come to a very different conclusion about what these moral
judgments look like. Compare and contrast Plato and Aristotle on these points and in the
context of examples detail who it is you think provides the best account of ethics.