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AQA A2 Philosophy 2 PHLS2 - 05 Jun 2017 [Exam Discussion]

Hi all,

I thought I'd make this thread for anyone currently studying for AQA A2 Philosophy.

Link to the spec.

Note that this is the course that is one 3 hour exam and studies Philosophy of Mind (dualism, MBIT, behaviourism, funct, eliminative materialism, etc) and Ethics (Util, Kant, Aristotle, applied ethics, ethical lang).

This year's 2017 A2 exam date: Monday 5th June PM
(first monday after half term)

Feel free to discuss anything about it!! I'm certainly looking for people to go over things with ....

Link to the AS thread (epistemology + phil of religion) that I started last year and have recently revived.

Thanks & good luck
(edited 6 years ago)

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Really needed this, I've been studying the course from the textbooks at home but struggling to gauge my exam technique and essay skills. Does anyone have model answers on any tips on structuring the longer questions?
Original post by hatedigi
Really needed this, I've been studying the course from the textbooks at home but struggling to gauge my exam technique and essay skills. Does anyone have model answers on any tips on structuring the longer questions?


Do you need help in general or are struggling to answer essay qs for certain topics?
Hiya! This is a nice exam thread - I've added it to the Exam Thread Directory 2017

If you see any other exam threads threads that aren't in the directory yet - let me know by either tagging me in, or linking it in the directory and I can add it in! You can also find discussions for your other exams there.

If any of your other exams aren't on there yet - feel free to make the exam thread for it yourself

Good luck in your exams
Reply 4
Anyone up for doing knowledge recall questions?
Reply 5
Original post by hatedigi
Really needed this, I've been studying the course from the textbooks at home but struggling to gauge my exam technique and essay skills. Does anyone have model answers on any tips on structuring the longer questions?


Look at the examiners report for last years paper on the AQA website. It's really helpful and pretty much tells you what you should and shouldn't do.

Also, if you have Philosophy for A2 by Michael Lacewing then there's an exemplary essay at the back of the book with lots of helpful tips

http://www.routledgetextbooks.com/textbooks/9781138793934/ethics.php
http://www.routledgetextbooks.com/textbooks/9781138793934/philosophy.php
These might help if you want to brush up on your knowledge
Reply 6
Does anyone have any predictions for the exam in a few weeks? :smile:
Reply 7
Original post by Tasha G
Does anyone have any predictions for the exam in a few weeks? :smile:


Utilitarianism for the 25 marker
Original post by Tasha G
Does anyone have any predictions for the exam in a few weeks? :smile:


The likelihood for ethics is that they'll ask 'is x useful for making moral decisions' for either Utilitarianism or Kant, as they've already done Virtue Ethics. They could also very easily ask 'are there moral facts' for Meta-ethics.

For mind, you could have the standard 'is the mind the brain' and all it's variations. But I prepared a Eliminative Materialism one which I thought could be very sneaky, as it's the only one about the language used. I can send it to whoever asks.

There aren't really that many essays they can ask, so I recommend you prepare at least all of these. If there are any possibilities you think I missed out, tell me.
Reply 9
Original post by johnnysmithy98
The likelihood for ethics is that they'll ask 'is x useful for making moral decisions' for either Utilitarianism or Kant, as they've already done Virtue Ethics. They could also very easily ask 'are there moral facts' for Meta-ethics.

For mind, you could have the standard 'is the mind the brain' and all it's variations. But I prepared a Eliminative Materialism one which I thought could be very sneaky, as it's the only one about the language used. I can send it to whoever asks.

There aren't really that many essays they can ask, so I recommend you prepare at least all of these. If there are any possibilities you think I missed out, tell me.


Hey could you please send me the eliminative materialism exam prep, thank you.
Also, Kant was last years 25 marker and they asked about Aristiotle's doctrine of the mean in the specimen paper
They could also very easily do an applied ethics 25 marker - they could specify a topic like simulated killing, lying, animals, etc and you'd have to discuss each response to the area.
Also could well be metaethics.
Original post by 221Breezeblocks
They could also very easily do an applied ethics 25 marker - they could specify a topic like simulated killing, lying, animals, etc and you'd have to discuss each response to the area.
Also could well be metaethics.


That would be extremely unlikely. A question like 'Is lying ever wrong' would lead too many candidates away from the syllabus, and it wouldn't really allow for proper evaluation with the knowledge we have. But of course it's not impossible.

And, as I said, the meta-ethics question will likely be 'are there moral facts?'
Original post by Estarrre
Hey could you please send me the eliminative materialism exam prep, thank you.
Also, Kant was last years 25 marker and they asked about Aristiotle's doctrine of the mean in the specimen paper


Sure I will. You're right that makes Utilitarianism the most likely normative ethics essay.
I feel vaguely alright w philosophy of mind but am dreading ethics. IF I had to do last years wthics paper I would've failed literally all the questions, does anyone have any ethics revision advice ? My teacher is awful.
Also how would you answer an eliminative essay / moral language essay? I could write a non cog essay but that's it
Reply 14
Hi everyone, how would you guys go about answering this?

Compare and contrast Aristotle and Mill on pleasure

Is the main difference the fact that Mill claims that only those who have experienced the two can judge what is better, while Aristotle has more of an absolutist view an claims that true pleasures are those which are part of eudaimonia, and therefore those derived from the actions performed by the virtuous man?
Original post by PJ151
Hi everyone, how would you guys go about answering this?

Compare and contrast Aristotle and Mill on pleasure

Is the main difference the fact that Mill claims that only those who have experienced the two can judge what is better, while Aristotle has more of an absolutist view an claims that true pleasures are those which are part of eudaimonia, and therefore those derived from the actions performed by the virtuous man?


would that be a 12 marker??
Reply 16
Original post by pollyycatherine
would that be a 12 marker??


I was thinking 5.
Original post by PJ151
Hi everyone, how would you guys go about answering this?

Compare and contrast Aristotle and Mill on pleasure

Is the main difference the fact that Mill claims that only those who have experienced the two can judge what is better, while Aristotle has more of an absolutist view an claims that true pleasures are those which are part of eudaimonia, and therefore those derived from the actions performed by the virtuous man?


For clarity, I would first identify that Mill considers pleasure the sole ultimate good, whereas Aristotle's is eudaimonia. Then, you can go into how pleasure fits into Aristotle's view (i.e. eudaimon find pleasure in acting virtuously). Not too such what you mean by 'Aristotle has more of absolutist view' in this context though - you would need to justify it.

For similarities, you should talk about how Aristotle and Mill value pleasure qualitatively, for they both identify the intellectual pleasures as superior. For mill they are higher pleasures and for Aristotle they are things like theoritical reasoning, which activate the rational part of the soul.
Original post by johnnysmithy98
The likelihood for ethics is that they'll ask 'is x useful for making moral decisions' for either Utilitarianism or Kant, as they've already done Virtue Ethics. They could also very easily ask 'are there moral facts' for Meta-ethics.

For mind, you could have the standard 'is the mind the brain' and all it's variations. But I prepared a Eliminative Materialism one which I thought could be very sneaky, as it's the only one about the language used. I can send it to whoever asks.

There aren't really that many essays they can ask, so I recommend you prepare at least all of these. If there are any possibilities you think I missed out, tell me.


Hey, could you poss. send me the eliminative materialism one? Thanks x
me too please if thats okay :smile:

Original post by ohmyameliajane
Hey, could you poss. send me the eliminative materialism one? Thanks x

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