Why Study Ethics

What is Ethics?
What is Ethics?
• The term Ethics is often refer to a set of
standards of right and wrong established
by a particular group and imposed on
members of that group as a means of
regulating and setting of limits on their
behavior.
Subdivisions of Ethics
• Theoretical ethics is concerned with appraising the
logical foundations and internal consistencies of
ethical systems.
• Normative ethics are practical guidelines or norms
regarding which actions are right and which are wrong
• Theoretical ethics studies why we should act and feel a
certain way while normative ethics tells us how we should
act in particular situations,
•Determinism claims that all events,
including human actions are caused by
previous events (predetermined) and
that free will is an illusion.
•If there is no free will, then of course,
there is no such thing as moral
responsibility.
• Ethical Subjectivism states that what is morally right and
wrong is simply a matter of personal opinion. What may be
right for you may be wrong for others depending on our
respective feelings.
• Ethical subjectivism is not an ethics of tolerance for
individual difference. Tolerance is a universal moral
principle and ethical subjectivists reject the existence of
universal moral principles.
• Ethical subjectivism is not the same as observing that
people disagree on moral issues. The existence of
disagreement in itself, does not imply that there is no
objective truth.
Cultural relativism
• It is the metaethical theory that morals
standards and values are created by
groups of people or cultures and that
morality is nothing more than socially
approved customs.
• This is not the same as excusing a behavior
or tolerance for multicultural diversity.
The divine command
theory states that an act
is moral because God
commands it.
• Natural Law states that morality is autonomous; that is, it is
independent of religion and God’s commands.
• Aquinas has had four types of laws:
1. Eternal law is the uncreated reason of God that guides
the universe as it moves toward a particular goal or end
2. Divine law directs human and other creatures to their
supernatural end, which consists of a vision of God and
eternal blessedness
3. Natural law or moral law is the special way that rational
creatures such as humans, participate in eternal law and
are thereby directed toward their earthly happiness.
4. Human law is at the bottom, like legislation and cultural
norms.
• Conscience provide knowledge about right and wrong,
motivates us to do what is right and demands that we
act in accord with it.
• There are three main forces that shape our conscience;
heredity, learning or environmental factors and
conscious moral direction.
• Conscience involves both moral sentiments and reason.
• Lawrence Kohlberg identifies three levels of moral
development, each having two stages.
• Utilitarianism is a consequentialist theory. An action
is right or wrong depending on the consequences of
that action. The happiness of the community is the
proper goal of our actions.
• The principle of utility also known as the greatest
happiness principles states that actions are right in
proportion as they tend to promote happiness,
wrong as they tend to produce reverse of happiness
• Happiness is identified with pleasure, unhappiness
with pain. The only intrinsic good is pleasure.
• John Stuart Mill claimed that the pleasures of being
human are of superior quality to the pleasures of
being non human animal, because the pleasure of
the intellect are superior to the pleasures of the
body.
• Mill believes that protecting people’s autonomy or
liberty rights is the best way of maximizing happiness
in a society.
• Mill’s “no harm” principle, also known as non
maleficence, prohibits individuals and governments
from interfering with someone’s actions except to
prevent harm.
• Deontology is a popular approach which believes that for an
action to have amoral worth, it must be done from the sense of
duty.
• Immanuel Kant wanted to establish a groundwork or foundation
for morality that would explain why we ought to behave
morally. He claimed that reason provides the foundation of
morality.
• A hypothetical imperative tells us that we ought to do
something if we want to achieve a certain result.
• A categorical imperative states that we ought to do something
regardless of the consequences.
• Kant’s categorical imperative states that we should be willing to
universalize moral maxims and that we should never treat a
person only as a means to an end.
• Virtue ethics emphasizes character or right
being over right action.
• A virtue is an admirable character trait or
disposition to act in a manner that benefits
oneself and others.
• A vice is a character trait or disposition to act in
a manner that harms oneself and others.
• Virtue is essential to the achievement of
eudaimonia or psychological well-being and
inner harmony.
• Aristotle divides the human psyche into the rational
and non rational elements. In a virtuous person,
reason is in charge of the non rational elements.
Therefore, wisdom is the greatest virtue and
ignorance is the greatest vice.
• Aquinas regarded reason as the most important
human faculty. However, he thought that we could
not be virtuous without God’s help. Therefore, faith
is the greatest virtue and pride is the greatest vice.
• The doctrine of the means states that virtue in
general, entails moderation or seeking the middle
path.
Peter R. Go-Monilla
University of the East - Caloocan
Accredited CHED Trainer in
ETHICS

Why Study Ethics

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What is Ethics?

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