What is ethics?

“Ethics is about my feelings” Agree or disagree?

“Ethics is about religious beliefs” Agree or disagree?

‘We are discussing no small matter, but how we ought to live.’ Socrates in Plato’s Republic

“Ethics is about following the Law” Agree or disagree?

“Ethics is about standards of behaviour society accepts” Agree or disagree?

“Ethics is all about sex” Agree or disagree?

What are we studying What is it to live a morally good life? Why is morality important? Are moral principles valid only as they depend on cultural approval or are there universal moral truths? Why should I be moral? Is there a right answer to every problem in life? What is the relationship of religion and morality?

The issues Many claim to be moral relativists (promoting tolerance) but when questioned perhaps “Is capital punishment ever morally justified” many hold a deontological position. People are very far from having an articulate moral theory of their own to match their understanding of literature, science, maths..

Why study ethics? Paramount with onset of pluralism and the loss of confidence in traditional authorities. Practical benefits… Can free us from prejudice and dogmatism Sets forth comprehensive systems from which to orient our individual judgments Carves a moral landscape so we can think more clearly about moral issues Helps us clarify in our minds just how our principles and values relate to one another Gives guidance on how to live

Ethical theory and Applied Ethics Ethics is a branch of philosophy concerned with morality. It explores actions and consequences, motives, moral decision-making and human nature. Ethics can be broadly divided into two: Ethical theory, which covers philosophical systems or methods for making moral decisions or analysing moral statements. Practical, or applied, ethics, which focuses on debates about specific dilemmas, such as abortion or euthanasia.

Ethics is about… What human ought to do: prescribed by rights, obligations, benefits to society, fairness, virtues. Refraining from actions that hurt others, encourage: honesty, compassion. Using well founded reason e.g Human rights – freedom from injury, privacy. Development of one’s own morality – reasonable and well founded.

Absolutism / Relativism? Is truth different for different people? Are there situations where an action might be right and other situations where the same action might be wrong? Is one culture or religion’s view of morality as good as that of another culture or religion? Are there some actions that are always right? Are there certain moral rules that exist for all times and for all places? Is each individual equally good so long as each person does what he/she believes in? Are enduring principles expressed to us by some transcendent or godlike authority?

A father’s choice. You are an inmate in a concentration camp. A sadistic guard is about to hang your son who tried to escape and wants you to pull the chair from underneath him. He says that if you do not do it, he will not only kill your son but ten other innocent inmates as well. What should you do?

A friends choice A friend confides to you that he has committed a crime and you promise never to tell anyone. Discovering that an innocent person has been accused of the crime, you plead with your friend to give himself up. He refuses and reminds you of your promise. What should you do?

Ethical relativism Morality is relative to the norm’s of one’s culture.

Task Imagine that you are a cultural relativist. Try to construct an argument to convince an absolutist that there are no absolute truths in ethics. How would you answer their criticisms and examples such as young African girls being mutilated during the practice of female circumcision.

Questions Does ‘morality’ itself change if a culture or a society changes its mind, for example, in one era slavery is right and the next era it is wrong? What if society disagrees about a moral issue? What proportion of society does it take to make something right or wrong? Is it plausible that each culture or society is equally good or bad? Are we really no better than the Ancient Romans whose idea of entertainment was throwing Christians to the lions?

4) Is each individual equally good so long as each person does what he or she believes in? 5) What is the difference between doing what is right and doing what you feel like?

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