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Essay Available:
Pages:
2 pages/≈550 words
Sources:
6 Sources
Style:
APA
Subject:
Life Sciences
Type:
Essay
Language:
English (U.S.)
Document:
MS Word
Date:
Total cost:
$ 15.84
Topic:

Markets and the Good Life

Essay Instructions:

Read the instructions below carefully and completely before beginning. It includes the questions to answer, details about the required organization of the paragraphs, and formatting guidelines. You may not consult or cite any material not assigned for this course or specified in these instructions. There is no word minimum or maximum. Of course, you will want to write enough to address the requirements sufficiently. But do not write more than you need to do so. With excessively "wordy" responses, it can be more difficult to follow the flow of your thought and to see that you have addressed the requirements.
Be sure to read and follow the formatting instructions for essays.
Be sure to read the explanation of the rubric criteria used in assessing the essays.
The assignment
First paragraph
Paul Camenisch provides a moral principlePreview the document meant to be used to evaluate the products and services offered by a company. This principle is most clearly stated in the bottom half of page 64. Restate the principle in your own words. (Note, however, that you shouldn't feel the need to shy away from using some of the specific terms he uses. For example, don't feel the need to avoid using "human flourishing" and use something less specific or perhaps incorrect like "human happiness.")
Second paragraph
Remember Richard Kraut's conception of human flourishingPreview the document? You talked about that in Essay 1. Dust it off and get ready to use it again. First, review Kraut's definition. Be sure to read the definition on page 137 (top). But it's also important to take time to read carefully Kraut's more detailed examples of how this definition is realized in concrete ways. So be sure to take another look at the specific examples on pages 138-141 and 143-144.
Now having reviewed Kraut's conception, pick some product available on the market today that would clearly be considered (by most people) to be a good one when using Camenisch's principle. That is, identify and discuss a product available for purchase that would pretty clearly contribute to human flourishing (when using Kraut's conception). Discuss this by identifying at least two human powers that are typically affected through the using (or otherwise interacting with the product in the intended way). Describe how these powers are affected. This could be because the product helps the consumers develop these powers. Or because they help the consumer exercise them. Or both.
Third paragraph
Now identify and discuss a product that many people (not necessarily you) might or do consider to be a product that is detrimental to human flourishing (using Kraut's definition again). Try to imagine the case that critics of the product might make against it in terms of Kraut's conception of human flourishing. What powers might the consistent use of this product in its intended way prohibit or erode its possession, development, or exercise? Identify two powers or two ways that the same power is affected.
Fourth paragraph
John Waide criticizesPreview the document a pervasive form of advertising that he calls "associative advertising." What is this form of advertising and what is Waide's primary objection to it? How does Waide's objection connect with Camenisch's principle about evaluating products and services? (Of course, Waide is concerned with how many products and services are marketed and not with the products themselves - but nonetheless there is a commonality in their criticisms.)
Fifth paragraph
Find and discuss an advertisement that satisfies Waide's description of associative advertising. Provide a link in You Tube to that advertisement. What is the marketed product? What non-market good is being associated with that product? What non-market skills, character traits, capacities, or knowledge does one need to acquire in order to truly and really experience that non-market good?
Sixth paragraph
Finally, Michael Sandel is concerned (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. with the effect of market-style thinking as applied to traditionally non-market realms of human culture and society. Try to states in your own words what his primary objection is. Then illustrate this objection by explaining his example involving wedding toasts. What, exactly, in the problem with the buying and selling of wedding toasts?

Essay Sample Content Preview:
Markets and the Good Life Markets are theoretically understood as places where people buy and sell goods in exchange for money. This has created a conceptual definition of free markets. Free market should promote the welfare of community by allowing people to choose what they want to buy or sell. If markets were really free, then one would not anticipate some of the advertisements or promotions that appeal for buyers to buy a substitute product in the market. Advertisements could be used only to create awareness of a new product or service in the market, but not to minimize the freewill of the buyer. When a person goes to the market, the person is often prepared to buy a particular product or service. However, due to promotions and marketing appeals used by businessmen, the original purpose of free markets has been diluted and markets no longer serve the purpose of public good. Businesses seek to maximize sales and profits at the expense of morality. Associative advertising has emerged to be one of the best strategies of maximizing sales and profits while at the same time taking advantage of the audiences’ freewill and autonomy in choosing what they want to buy. The advertiser often wants people to buy and buy more at the expense of moral purpose of selling goods to improve people’s life (Waide 2). The primary limitation of associative advertising is that it convinces the buyer that a particular product is essentially important compared to the substitute in the market. A person taking a moral point of view on associative advertising will find that businesses do not work in the best interest of the buyer, but they seek to achieve selfish interests. This has increased the costs of doing business, especially for small businessmen who are forced to research the market and compete with rivals that have enough money to advertise. One of the questions that one would ask is whether free markets have an ethical responsibility to play. The simple answer is “Yes,” and this is why we have institutions in place to check on moral behaviors, safety standards, and ethical standards on consumer goods and advertisements. One cannot imagine how the market would look like in the absence of ethical and moral standards. Even though the ethical responsibility of the free market has won out and is becoming weak every day, there are some elements that are still available to guide in decision making. Consider for instance, a business that gives back to society, promotes social welfare, and does not engage in illegal activities that interfere with the will of the buyer. The company may be selling at fair competitive prices in the market, but when one evaluates its activities, one finds that it buys third-party personal data from online telecommunication companies. The business in the example above may be considered morally responsible when viewed from corporate social responsibility perspective, but it can also be considered irresponsible for manipulating personal data to maximize and gain sales. This cannot be considered good life, considering that businesses should promote good life. What about the example of giving discounts and selling at lower prices? The primary...
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