Philosophy Forum
Course Objective(s):
•CO3: Distinguish the basic concepts of moral and political philosophy.
•CO6: Evaluate various approaches to the problem of free will.
Please pick one of the following questions to answer for the forum this week:
•Discuss and evaluate the reasons Socrates gives for not escaping jail even though he had ample opportunity to do so. What is the nature of the “social contract” here that Socrates is following?
•How could it be said that the Social Contract Theory produces an orderly society without needing to legislate a particular version of “morality” and what counts as the “good life”? How does the Social Contract avoid problems associated with the Divine Command Theory of morality for a constitutional liberal democracy such as ours in the United States of America?
•Discuss John Rawls’ idea of the “Veil of Ignorance” and evaluate how it is said to establish a fair distribution of wealth. What is the purpose of the “veil” and what is it supposed to accomplish?
