The following exam question is written by OCR:
(a) Explain the main differences between Act and Rule Utilitarianism. [33]
(b) To what extent is Utilitarianism a useful method of making decisions about euthanasia? [17]
This AS question is from January 2005:
(a) Explain religious objections to euthanasia. [33]
(b) 'Religious objections to euthanasia ignore human dignity.' Discuss. [17]
This question came up in January 2006:
(a) Give an account of Kant’s ethical theory. [33]
(b) ‘Kant’s ethical theory is a good approach to euthanasia.’ Discuss. [17]
This is an AS question from June 2006:
(a) E xplain what is meant by the sanctity of life. [33]
(b) ‘The concept of the sanctity of life is not helpful in understanding the issues surrounding euthanasia.’ Discuss. [17]
This A2 exam question is from June 2006:
'Only religious ethics can provide answers to the problems raised by euthanasia.' Discuss. [45]
This question came from January 2007:
(a) Explain how moral relativism might be applied to voluntary euthanasia. [33]
(b) ‘Moral relativism is not the best approach to voluntary euthanasia.’ Discuss. [17]
(taken from the OCR website)
You could substitute 'Utilitarianism' with any ethical theory. Answering exam questions is the very best preparation for your exam. Why not try writing an answer for each theory. If you get each question marked, you should learn how to improve your technique and get a better grade for the next one!
From the same website, the following is an A2 question (it is possible, but uncommon, to take Religious Ethics 2 for AS and Religious Ethics 1 for A2). The style of question is more challenging, but well worth having a go at for AS students:
‘Until we can agree on a definition of “mercy”, it will be impossible to legislate for mercy-killing.’ Discuss. [45]
We now have an interactive diagram showing how to answer an ethics exam question, The 'structure' of the paragraph will be different for 'ethical theory' questions, but the basic principles are the same. Try filling it in yourself and print out the completed diagram.
