FYS 101 Scott Davison The Hunger Games and Philosophy

Module Day 1 “It’s the thought that counts”: Intentions, Morality, and Luck

Matthew 15: Peter said, “Explain the parable to us.” “Are you still so dull?” Jesus asked them. “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.”

Luke 18:9-14 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people— robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Luke 21:1-4 And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites. So He said, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.”

“I don’t know how to say it exactly. Only…I want to die as myself. Does that make any sense?” he asks. I shake my head. How could he die as anyone but himself? “I don’t want them to change me in there. Turn me into some kind of monster that I’m not.” I bite my lip, feeling inferior. While I’ve been ruminating on the availability of trees, Peeta has been struggling with how to maintain his identity. His purity of self. “Do you mean you won’t kill anyone?” I ask. “No, when the time comes, I’m sure I’ll kill just like everybody else. I can’t go down without a fight. Only I keep wishing I could think of a way to…to show the Capitol they don’t own me. That I’m more than just a piece in their Games,” says Peeta. (10.71)

Immanuel Kant ( ) The consequences of our actions do not determine whether they are good or bad, because those same consequences could be produced by machines. What makes an action good or bad is the intention behind it. Even if we can do nothing, as long as we have a good will, we are as good as we can be – there is no luck involved in being good.

Moral Luck: Some philosophers have argued that Kant is wrong here, and that luck determines whether we are better or worse people, morally speaking.

4 Kinds of Possible Moral Luck: 1. Resultant Moral Luck: the consequences of our actions often depend on luck.

4 Kinds of Possible Moral Luck: 2. Circumstantial Moral Luck: the extent to which we are good or bad people is often influenced by our circumstances.

4 Kinds of Possible Moral Luck: 3. Constitutive Moral Luck: our personality affects the extent to which we are good or bad, but it is shaped by many factors beyond our control.

4 Kinds of Possible Moral Luck: 4. Causal Moral Luck: our actions are often caused by factors beyond our control.

Is Katniss morally lucky?

Is it always up to us to be morally good, or sometimes is this a matter of luck?