Emily Unger

Question 1

Appiah uses the words thick and thin a lot when talking about the concepts of morality. Thin words are words such as good and bad. They are very vague and just gloss over the general meaning behind an action. Thin words do not give one too much detail on the act, plus thin words are much more general than thick words. Thick words have more meaning and depth behind them. They also put a lot more emotion and impact behind an action. For example calling an act brave or courageous paints a much more detailed picture than calling the same act good. The same goes for cruel or evil verses bad. Thick words are debated more on the fact that different people see situations differently. People are more likely to debate if an act was courageous or crazy than they would over whether it was good or bad. People from different communities often agree on thin words used to describe things and debate more on the thick adjectives. People's backgrounds greatly effect how one perceives an event on the thicker level. Thin words are much more universal, while thick words are more community based.