Intrductin t the Ethics (Overview f Majr Theries- Part I) Ahmed Kulanić
Chapter Overview Intrductin Review f ethical theries
Mst everyne shares cre values, desiring Life Happiness Intrductin Ability t accmplish gals Tw ways t view wrld Selfish pint f view: cnsider nly wn self and its cre values Ethical pint f view: respect ther peple and their cre values
Mrality A sciety s rules f cnduct Defining Terms What peple ught / ught nt t d in varius situatins Every sciety has rules f cnduct describing what peple ught and ught nt t d in varius situatins. We call these rules mrality. Ethics Ratinal examinatin f mrality Evaluatin f peple s behavir Ethics: ratinal, systematic analysis Ding ethics : answers need explanatin Explanatins: facts, shared values, lgic Ethics: vluntary, mral chices Wrkable ethical thery: prduces explanatins that might be persuasive t a skeptical, yet pen-minded audience Ethics is the philsphical study f mrality, a ratinal examinatin int peple's mral beliefs and behavir.
Types f Ethical Inquiry Nrmative ethics is an atempt t decide r prescribe values, bahavirs, and way f being that are right f wrng, gd r bad, admirable r deplrable Meta-ethics is cncerned with understanding the language f mrality thrugh an analysis f the meaning f ethically related cncepts and theries such as the meaning f gd, happiness and virtuus character. Descriptive Ethics is ften reffered t as a scientific rahter than a philsphical ethical inquiry.
Determinism Genetic determinism: A persn s eventual character and behavir is inevitable given the genetic DNA within that persn. Psychlgical determinism: Certain desires within yu are s strng that they always determine hw yu behave and think. (Think Freud: Yu re always mtivated in sme way by sex!) Thelgical determinism: If Gd is mniscient, Gd knws what yu will d frm yur birth t yur death predicting everything befre yu actually d it. Or perhaps Gd has decreed everything that will ever happen, making everything yu d set in stne befre yu d it. Causal determinism: If yu re a purely physical being in a physical universe, accrding t science, everything yu d r think fllws frm the exact way that physical things are rdered in the universe and the ways in which thse things interact in accrd with set physical laws.
Subjective Relativism Relativism N universal nrms f right and wrng One persn can say X is right, anther can say X is wrng, and bth can be right Subjective relativism Each persn decides right and wrng fr himself r herself What s right fr yu may nt be right fr me
Case fr/against Subjective Relativism Cases fr: Well-meaning and intelligent peple disagree n mral issues Ethical debates are disagreeable and pintless Cases againts: Blurs distinctin between ding what yu think is right and ding what yu want t d Makes n mral distinctin between the actins f different peple SR and tlerance are tw different things Decisins may nt be based n reasn Nt a wrkable ethical thery
Cultural Relativism What is right and wrng depends upn a sciety s actual mral guidelines These guidelines vary frm place t place and frm time t time A particular actin may be right in ne sciety at ne time and wrng in ther sciety r at anther time
Case fr/againts Cultural Relativism Cases fr: Different scial cntexts demand different mral guidelines It is arrgant fr ne sciety t judge anther Cases Against: Because tw scieties d have different mral views desn t mean they ught t have different views It desn t explain hw mral guidelines are determined What if there are n cultural nrms? It desn t accunt fr evlutin f mral guidelines. It prvides n way ut fr cultures in cnflict Existence f many acceptable practices des nt imply all practices are acceptable (many/any fallacy) Scieties d, in fact, share certain cre values Only indirectly based n reasn Nt a wrkable ethical thery
Divine Cmmand Thery Gd actins: thse aligned with Gd s will Bad actins: thse cntrary t Gd s will Hly bks reveal Gd s will We shuld hly bks as mral decisinmaking guides
Case fr/against Divine Cmmand Thery Cases fr: We we bedience t ur Creatr Gd is all-gd and all-knwing Gd is the ultimate authrity Cases Against: Different hly bks disagree Sciety is multicultural, secular Sme mdern mral prblems nt addressed in scripture The gd Gd (equivalence fallacy) Based n bedience, nt reasn
Ethical Egism Each persn shuld fcus exclusively n his r her self-interest Mrally right actin: that actin that prvides self with maximum lng-term benefit Philsphy espused by Ayn Rand, authr f The Funtainhead and Atlas Shrugged Case fr Ethical Egism: It is practical since we are already inclined t d what s best fr urselves The cmmunity can benefit when individuals put their well-being first Other mral principles are rted in the principle f self-interest Case Against: An easy mral philsphy may nt be the best mral philsphy Nt true that peple naturally act in their wn lng-term self-interest Scial injustices have ccurred when individuals have put their wn interests first Other mral principles are superir t principle f self-interest Ethical egism is a frm f bigtry