Exam practice
Situation Ethics will not be mentioned in the exam - they will talk about 'a moral relativist theory'.
- You may get asked to explain a moral relativist theory
- You may be required to evaluate moral relativism or compare it to another theory.
- You may be asked to apply a moral relativist approach to one of the issues studied.
Have a look at 'Evaluating the Theories' and TICKETs (pdfs), as well as each of the ethical theories on War (AS) and the Environment (A2).
Remember, you will not be asked directly about Situation Ethics, but can use it in questions about religious ethics and moral relativism.
June 2014:
- Explain what is meant by relative morality. [25]
- To what extent are relativist ethics the best approach to genetic engineering? [10]
In January 2011, this question came up:
- Explain how a moral relativist might approach the issues raised by abortion. [25]
- ‘A relativist approach to the issues raised by abortion leads to wrong moral choices.’ Discuss. [10]
The following question was from June 2010:
- Explain the differences between absolute and relative morality. [25]
- ‘Relativist theories give no convincing reason why people should be good.’ Discuss. [10]
This question was from June 2009 :
- Explain the concept of relativist morality. [25]
- ‘Relativist ethics are unfair.’ Discuss. [10]
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.
