PHIL 2010 Intro to Philosophy through Film Study Sheet

Test #2 Exam is November 8, 2004.

1. This is midterm covers material after James, up to and including Russell. You are responsible for all lectures and readings.

2. Bring a blue book.

3. Approximately 1/3 of the test will be short answer. The rest of your time will be spent answering two essay questions, one from each group below.

General study questions:

1. Explain the divine command theory and what Socrates suggests is wrong with it.

2. In what ways do the two killers in Hitchcock's The Rope follow Nietzsche's ethical guidance? Are there any ways in which they deviate from Nietzsche's recommendations?

3. Consider how a utilitarian, a virtue theorist, and a Kantian might assess the murder of Judah Rosenthal's mistress in Crimes and Misdemeanors. Consider how each might assess the acts of Little Bill in Unforgiven.

4. French calls his paper "The Death of Death." Why?

5. French discusses The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance as an example of a Western that pits two of Giambattista Vico's stages of history against one another. Understand this opposition and how it plays out in this and other Westerns.

6. Understand the retributive, utilitarian, and humanitarian theories of punishment.

7. Compare the view of the afterlife in the Phaedo to that in Afterlife.

8. Do the characters in Afterlife survive after death? After they leave the 'waystation'?

9. Think of one movie you have seen outside this class (and that we have not discussed in class) but that depicts a philosophical issue that we have discussed in class. Describe the movie and the way it illustrates the issue.

These are your essay questions. You will be given a choice of two from each group, and you will have to write on one from each group.

Group I.

1. Explain what Nagel thinks the problem of moral luck is. Do you think moral luck is a problem? Why or why not?

2. Describe the divine command theory of ethics, the utilitarian theory, and the Kantian theory. Explain which you think is most plausible, and consider at least one objection against the theory you defend. If you think none are plausible, explain.

3. Why be moral? Answer in a way that engages the assigned materials, especially Nietzsche.

Group II.

4. French describes The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance as a clash between different sets of virtues. Explain what Aristotle thinks a virtue is, and then assess which set of virtues depicted in Valance you find most appealing.

5. The Unforgiven is a movie, in part, about revenge. Consider two acts of revenge in the movie, and how each fairs on at least two theories of punishment. Then consider which theory of punishment is more plausible, in light of your discussion.

6. Contrast the argument of Plato for the immortality of the soul with that of Russell against it. Which is more persuasive?