PHIL 201 Final, Fall 1995

AMERICAN Ge LIBR PHILOSOPHY 201: INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY Section 2: Dr. K. Ferguson . Final Examination: Wednesday, February 7, 1996 at_2:00 p.m. in W.H.C.R. TIME LIMIT: TWO HOURS INSTRUCTIONS: Answer ONE question from PART_A and ONE question from PART B. PART A_ (50%) What is the principle of sufficient reason? What role does it play in Clarke’s version of the cosmological argument? Should we accept the principle? If so, on what grounds? If not, why not? Despite the many objections which have been raised against utilitarianism, many philosophers believe that no alternative account of morality is acceptable, and hence that some version of utilitarianism must be correct. Do you agree? What is the problem of justifying morality discussed by Taylor in “The Ultimate Question”? How does he propose to deal with this problem? Is his treatment persuasive? Do you think there is any genuine problem here that needs to be solved? PART B_ (50%) “No materialist theory of mind can be correct because no such theory can provide a satisfactory account of qualia.” Discuss. In what respects is the functionalist theory of mind an improvement over ollics furuis of materialism? What is Scarle’s Chinese Room argument against functionalism? Is it convincing?