Question

some ethicists hold that the moral goodness of an individual’s actions depends solely on whether the actions themselves are good, irrespective of the context in which they are carried out. philosopher l. sebastian purcell has shown that surviving works of aztec (nahua) philosophy express a very different view. purcell reveals that these works posit an ethical system in which an individual’s actions are judged in light of how well they accord with the individual’s role in society and how well they contribute to the community. to the extent that these works are representative of aztec thought, purcell’s analysis suggests that _______

which choice most logically completes the text?

a) the aztecs would have disputed the idea that the morality of an individual’s actions can be assessed by appealing to standards of behavior that are independent of the individual’s social circumstances.

b) the aztecs would not have accepted the notion that the morality of an individual’s actions can be fairly evaluated by people who do not live in the same society as that individual.

c) actions by members of aztec society who contributed a great deal to their community could be judged as morally good even if those actions were inconsistent with behaviors the aztecs regarded as good in all contexts.

d) similar actions performed by people in different social roles in aztec society would have been regarded as morally equivalent unless those actions led to different outcomes for the community.

Explanation:

1. Analyze the key points: The passage states that some ethicists think moral goodness of actions depends only on the actions themselves, but Aztec philosophy judges actions based on the individual's social role and contribution to the community.
2. Evaluate Option A: If Aztecs judge actions by social role and community contribution (not independent of social circumstances), they would dispute the idea that morality is assessed by standards independent of social circumstances. This matches the passage's logic.
3. Evaluate Option B: The passage doesn't discuss evaluation by people outside the society, so this is irrelevant.
4. Evaluate Option C: The passage says actions are judged by accord with social role and community contribution, not that inconsistent actions (with general good behaviors) would be judged good. This is inconsistent.
5. Evaluate Option D: The passage emphasizes judgment based on social role, so actions by different social roles wouldn't be regarded as morally equivalent, making this incorrect.

Answer:

A) the Aztecs would have disputed the idea that the morality of an individual’s actions can be assessed by appealing to standards of behavior that are independent of the individual’s social circumstances.