PHILO 10: ETHICS

MODULE 1

The Ethical Dimension of Human Existence

Overview

This module guide and helps asserts that the main strands found in common moral opinions are
the idea of morality as obedience to laws and the notion that moral action is concerned with
obtaining goods. Hence, the primary goal of this module is to study the nature of and relations
between rightness and goodness.

Lessons in this Module

What is Ethics?
Lesson 1: The Value
Lesson 2: Sources of Authority
Lesson 3: Senses of the Self

At the end of this module, you must be able to:

Exhibit and examine the general understanding of Ethics
Demonstrate ethical awareness and the ability to do ethical reflection
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What is ?
Are you the type of person who usually ‘does the right thing’?
How do you know what the ‘right thing’ is?
What do we mean by the term ‘ethics’?

 Before you read on, take a few moments to reflect the given questions
provided.
 Write down a definition of what you think the term Ethics mean.

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Introduction
Ethics (or Moral Philosophy) is concerned with questions of how people ought to act, and the
search for a definition of right conduct (identified as the one causing the greatest good) and
the good life (in the sense of a life worth living or a life that is satisfying or happy).

The word "ethics" is derived from the Greek "ethos" (meaning "custom" or "habit"). Ethics differs
from morals and morality in that ethics denotes the theory of right action and the greater good,
while morals indicate their practice. Ethics is not limited to specific acts and defined moral codes,
but encompasses the whole of moral ideals and behaviors, a person's philosophy of life.
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Ethics is a term. Many people think ethics has to do with a set of

social conventions or a religious decree. In professional philosophy
we do not typically consider this to be the definition of ethics.
Philosophical ethics could be called the study of what is good and
bad. Generally, philosophical ethics concerns itself with discovering
a system one may use to determine who or what is good, or with
evaluating systems that others have proposed.
The pursuit of moral knowledge dates back to Ancient Greek
philosophers, but it is mostly the influence of Enlightenment moral
thought that continues to shape ethics today. There are many well-
known figures in the history of ethics, including the Greek
philosophers Plato and Aristotle, but some of the most important
modern influences include such people as Immanuel Kant, Jeremy Socrates
Bentham, John Stuart Mill, D.W. Ross, C.L. Stevenson, Alasdair A founding father of Western
MacIntyre, and John Rawls. Philosophy and Ethics

In ethics, a premium is placed upon defining "the good". Different

approaches to defining the good, the nature of moral properties, the source of moral knowledge,
and the status of moral facts have played an important role in shaping various branches of moral
theory. The three major divisions of ethical philosophy may be called Virtue Ethics, Deontology,
and Consequentialism.
Ethical mandates from society and church do not qualify as genuine philosophical ethics.
This last statement causes concern in that it reeks of negative presuppositions. First of all, ethical
mandates ALWAYS have ethical undertones. It is inescapable. An ethical mandate may not fit
certain schools of thought, but then certain schools of thought can be erroneous. All ethics are
religious by nature, if one defines religion as an attempt to discover the good. Ethics stem from
the question "What is right?" Whoever decides the answer to that question is a law maker. Laws
are always expressions of religious thought be they theonomic or autonomous.
Ethics is the philosophical attempt to answer Socrates' question of how one should live. This is
a very general question, which could for any individual translate to "How should I live?" It is
important however to note that not all answers to this question are answers of the ethical type.
One could conclude that one should live a self-indulgent life without any kind of logical
contradiction. Moral philosophers study this idea, known as “egoism,” as well, and the question
"Why be moral?" is because of this distinct from Socrates' question.
It is also important to note that Socrates' question not only allows for non-ethical answers but
also answers from different ethical theories. His question is not the same as Kant's question
"What is my duty?" or the egoist/utilitarian question of "How can we be happy?" There are many
different ways of answering Socrates' question, and answers from the Categorical Imperative to
the imperative "Sit on the couch and watch television" are equally answers to it, but Ethics
attempts to find through reason the best answer to the question.
Ethics, often called Morality interchangeably, tries to answer "How should one live?" given that
we already live in a society. Everyone is born with a place in society even if it is only "Stranger,"
and accordingly everyone has expectations for action placed upon them. One is expected to act
a certain way as a brother, a friend, and a passer-by. Ethics primarily concerns itself with this
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realm of individual action. For the most part, ethical theories attempt to develop a system of
obligations that we have towards others. Obligations that are common among different theories
are the obligation to tell the truth, the obligation to help those in distress, and the obligation not
to murder. Of course, most of the theories allow for flexibility based on the situation such as the
ability to help in this circumstance and whether one has any other, higher obligations.
The ethical theories of the past have been of many types. Aristotle proposed a theory of virtue,
a notion that was already a part of Greek culture. He espoused the view that the good man is
one who lives in a way as to allow him to move towards the goal of man-as-such, the telos, and
the way to reach the telos is to live a life of virtue.
Another prominent theory has been consequentialism. This theory includes John Stuart Mill’s
utilitarianism, and its focus is, from its name, on the consequences of one’s actions. General
consequentialism will say we have obligations to help people because helping people produces
a better result than not helping people. Utilitarianism goes beyond this to mathematize ethics. It
quantifies the utility, which it defines as “happiness” or “pleasure,” a given action will produce
and weighs that number against the amount of utility produced by another action. Whichever
action produces the most utility is the one that is obligated.
A third common ethical theory is deontology, and its main supporter has been Kant. Deontology
is the study of obligations in a very narrow sense. It attempts to divine from reason alone the
obligations every man holds simply because he is a rational being. Kant first argues for what he
calls the Categorical Imperative, and from that it is possible to derive other universal maxims,
which follow the formula “When in situation X, do Y.” Kant has two formulations of his Categorical
Imperative. The first is Act only according to that maxim by which you can at the same time will
that it should become a universal law. The second, which Kant claims carries the same meaning,
is "Act in such a way that you always treat humanity, whether in your own person or in the person
of any other, never simply as a means, but always at the same time as an end."
When considering ethics, it is also important to note that the Enlightenment project of justifying
morality is judged by some prominent contemporary moral philosophers to have been a failure.
These contemporary philosophers take it to be that morality cannot be grounded in reason alone.
Three important alternatives are the philosophies of Alasdair MacIntyre, Richard Rorty, and
Bernard Williams. MacIntyre advocates a return to the Aristotelian tradition of living out the
virtues in reference to the telos, or goal, of man. Rorty is a pragmatist and argues that the
question we must ask of every moral obligation is “Is this useful?” He would argue that treating
strangers with distrust and keeping promises are good moral principles because they are
primarily useful for building a better society. Finally, Williams critiques ethical theory on the whole
and the notion of obligation. He also asks why ethics is taken to be a better answer to Socrates’
question than non-ethical answers.
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Lesson 1: The Value

Intended Learning Outcomes

 Define and explain the definition of the terms.

 Understand the ideas of values, ethics, and morality in a multicultural context.
 Identify and differentiate the use of the words “ethics” and “morals”.
 Distinguish between a descriptive and a normative study of ethics

Introduction:
Greetings! You are now starting with Lesson 1. Recognizing the notions of good and bad, and
right and wrong, are the primary concern of ethics. The Value is a discussion to define different
kinds of valuation which would help you, as learner, to have a clearer understanding of
terminologies.

Time Frame: 3 days

Activity

From the funny cartoon illustartion, analyze and write your answer below from the analysis
questions provided.

Descriptive Ethics Normative Ethics

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Analysis

1. What do the two pictures depicts?

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2. Discuss the two ethical valuations the pictures presents.

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3. As a learner, how and which ethical discussion influnces you most?

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4. As an ethical agent, what specific action you can do to demonstrate these moral valuations?
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Abstract

Ethics, generally speaking is about matters such as the good thing that we should pursue and
the bad thing that we should avoid; the right ways in which we could or should act and the wrong
ways of acting. It is about what is acceptable and unacceptable in human behavior. It may
involve obligations that we are expected to fulfill, prohibitions that we are required to respect, or
ideals that we encouraged to meet. Ethics as a subject for us to study is about determining the
grounds for the values with particular and special significance to human life.

Understanding the notion of good and bad, it would be better and useful to clarify the following
valuations.
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Ethics and Morals

Ethics and Morals relate to “right” and “wrong” conduct. While they are sometimes used
interchangeably, they are different: ethics refer to rules provided by an external source, e.g.,
codes of conduct in workplaces or principles in religions. Morals refer to an individual’s own
principles regarding right and wrong.

Ethics Versus Morals Comparison Chart

Ethics Morals

What are they? The rules of conduct recognized in Principles or habits with
respect to a particular class of human respect to right or wrong
actions or a particular group or culture. conduct. While morals also
prescribe dos and don'ts,
morality is ultimately a
personal compass of right
and wrong.

Where do they Social system – External Individual - Internal

come from?

Why we do it? Because society says it is the right Because we believe in

thing to do. something being right or
wrong.

Flexibility Ethics are dependent on others for Usually consistent, although

definition. They tend to be consistent can change if an individual’s
within a certain context, but can vary beliefs change.
between contexts.

The "Gray" A person strictly following Ethical A Moral Person although

Principles may not have any Morals at perhaps bound by a higher
all. Likewise, one could violate Ethical covenant, may choose to
Principles within a given system of follow a code of ethics as it
rules in order to maintain Moral would apply to a system.
integrity. "Make it fit"

Origin Greek word "ethos" Latin word "mos" meaning

meaning"character" "custom"

Acceptability Ethics are governed by professional Morality transcends cultural

and legal guidelines within a particular norms
time and place
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Source of Principles
Ethics are external standards that are provided by institutions, groups, or culture to which an
individual belongs. For example, lawyers, policemen, and doctors all have to follow an ethical
code laid down by their profession, regardless of their own feelings or preferences. Ethics can
also be considered a social system or a framework for acceptable behavior.
Morals are also influenced by culture or society, but they are personal principles created and
upheld by individuals themselves.

Consistency and Flexibility

Ethics are very consistent within a certain context, but can vary greatly between contexts. For
example, the ethics of the medical profession in the 21st century are generally consistent and
do not change from hospital to hospital, but they are different from the ethics of the 21st
century legal profession.
An individual’s moral code is usually unchanging and consistent across all contexts, but it is
also possible for certain events to radically change an individual's personal beliefs and values.

Conflicts Between Ethics and Morals

One professional example of ethics conflicting with

morals is the work of a defense attorney. A
lawyer’s morals may tell her that murder is
reprehensible and that murderers should be
punished, but her ethics as a professional lawyer,
require her to defend her client to the best of her
abilities, even if she knows that the client is guilty.
Another example can be found in the medical field.
In most parts of the world, a doctor may not
euthanize a patient, even at the patient's request, as per ethical standards for health
professionals. However, the same doctor may personally believe in a patient's right to die, as
per the doctor's own morality.

Origins
Much of the confusion between these two words can be traced back to their origins. For
example, the word "ethic" comes from Old French (etique), Late Latin (ethica), and Greek
(ethos) and referred to customs or moral philosophies. "Morals" comes from Late
Latin's moralis, which referred to appropriate behavior and manners in society. So, the two
have very similar, if not synonymous, meanings originally.
Morality and ethics of the individual have been philosophically studied for well over a thousand
years. The idea of ethics being principles that are set and applied to a group (not necessarily
focused on the individual) is relatively new, though, primarily dating back to the 1600s. The
distinction between ethics and morals is particularly important for philosophical ethicists.
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Descriptive and Normative

The main difference between normative ethics and descriptive ethics is that normative ethics
analyses how people ought to act whereas descriptive ethics analyses what people think is right.

Basically, normative ethics is the study of ethical action whereas descriptive ethics is the study
of people’s views about moral beliefs. Descriptive ethics, as its name implies, describes the
behaviour of people and what moral standards they follow. In contrast, descriptive ethics is
concerned with what is morally right and wrong. The other two well-known branches of ethics
are metaethics and applied ethics.

What is Descriptive Ethics?

Descriptive ethics or comparative ethics is the study of people’s views about moral beliefs. In
other words, it analyses ‘what do people think is right?’ Thus, the study of descriptive ethics
involves describing people’s moral values and standards as well as their behaviour.

Furthermore, descriptive ethics is a type of empirical study that incorporates research from the
fields of psychology, sociology, anthropology, and history. Such empirical studies observe that
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all cultures and societies have their own moral standards that advocate or forbid certain types
of actions. Descriptive ethics also analyse the differences and similarities between the moral
practices of different societies, and evaluate the development of the standards behind these
practices.

According to Karen L. Rich (Introduction to Ethics), descriptive ethics is often referred to

as a scientific rather than a philosophical ethical inquiry. It is an approach used when
researchers or ethicists want to describe what people think about morality or when they want
to describe how people actually behave-that is, their morals.

What is Normative Ethics?

Normative ethics is the study of ethical action. In simple words, it analyses how people ought to
act, in terms of morality. It is also concerned with the criteria of what is morally right and wrong.

Moreover, the core concept of normative ethics is how to arrive at basic moral standards and
how to justify basic moral standards. Teleological and deontological theories are the tools that
help to determine this concept. In teleological ethics, the goodness or badness of action is
determined by examining the consequences of that action, whereas, in deontological theories,
the goodness or badness of action is determined by examining the action itself.

There are four major normative ethics theories as Kantianism, Utilitarianism, ethical intuitionism,
and virtue ethics. Furthermore, Kantianism and intuitionism are non-teleological theories, while
utilitarianism and virtue ethics are teleological theories.

In addition, normative ethics is an attempt to decide or prescribe values, behaviors, and ways of
being that the right or wrong, good or bad, admirable or deplorable. When using the method of
normative ethics, inquiries are made about hoe humans should behave, what ought to be done
in certain situations, what type of character one should have, or how one should be.

Issue, Decision, Judgement, and Dilemma

A moral issue is an issue that concerns ‘right’ and ‘wrong’. How this differs to ethics, is that an
ethical issue is one that is external, and based in institution and is often legalized and regulated
(for example, a state of cleanliness in the kitchen at a restaurant would be an ‘ethical’ regulation).
A moral issue is one that concerns the internal, your own values, your beliefs, feelings, and
leanings, it is often more subjective and concerns yourself to discover your own morality. For
example: a moral issue would your internal stance on ‘is murder wrong’, whereas an ethical
issue would have the same question but concern the rules regarding it. We should add that
“issue” is also often used to refer to those particular situations that are often the source of
considerable and inconclusive debate (thus, we could often hear topics such as capital
punishment and euthanasia as moral “issues”)
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A moral decision is a choice made based on a person's ethics, manners, character, and what
they believe is proper behavior. These decisions tend to affect not only our own well-being, but
the well-being of others.

A moral judgment is an evaluation/s or opinion/s formed as to whether some action or inaction,

intention, motive, character trait, or a person as a whole is (more or less) Good or Bad as
measured against some standard of Good. The moral judgments of actions (or inaction) are
usually the primary focus of any discussion of Moral Judgments in particular, and Ethical analysis
in general. This is because the judgments of intentions, character traits, and persons are
generally based on the judgment of actions that the intention, motive, character trait, or person
does or might potentially do or not do. So limiting the discussion to the moral judgments of
actions (or inactions) will also, with suitable obvious modifications, address the moral judgment
of intentions, motives, character traits and people. Moreover, moral judgments are judgments of
certain choices, or potential choices, where the one who chooses is aware that there is a choice,
and has the capability to choose. A person has the freedom to choose alternatives, then that
person's intentional, or unintentional actions or inaction can be subject to moral judgments.

A moral dilemma is a situation in which the decision-maker has to give priority to one moral
value over another (Brinkmann, 2005; Maclagan, 2003; Toffler, 1986). Such dilemmas “arise
when, faced with a difficult situation (e.g. fair treatment for some versus job security for others),
two or more such values conflict in the perception of a decision-maker, or when one is assessing
another’s moral choice” (Maclagan, 2003, p. 22). A person who faces a dilemma must decide
which moral duty to prioritize; “whichever action is taken … will offend an important moral value”
(Maclagan, 2003, p. 23).

Reasoning

Reasoning is the use of abstract thought processes to think creatively, to answer questions, to
solve problems, and to formulate strategies for one’s actions and desired ways of being. When
people participate in reasoning, they do not merely accept the unexamined beliefs and ideas of
other people. Reasoning involves thinking for oneself to determine if one’s conclusions are
based on good or logical foundations. More specifically, moral reasoning pertains to reasoning
focused on moral or ethical issues. However, how could one maintain as such reasoning is valid
or either right and wrong. How exactly do we arrive at any of the claims: that such action is right
or wrong, acceptable or unacceptable, and avoidable or pursuable? This is where we turn to
theory. A moral theory is a systematic attempt to establish the validity of maintaining certain
moral principles. Insofar as a theory is a system of thought or of ideas, it can also be referred as
framework. We can use this term, framework, as a theory of interconnected ideas, and at the
same time, a structure through which we can evaluate our reasons for valuing a certain decision
or judgement.

There different frameworks that can be make us reflect on the principles that we maintain and
thus, the decisions and judgements we make. By studying these, we can reconsider, clarify,
modify, and ultimately strengthen our principles, thereby informing better both our moral
judgements and moral decisions.
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Application

Let us challenge your critical reasoning from the given scenario and discuss what
moral valuation/s is possible can be applied.

Imagine you are walking to a store with your friend Gia. She tells you that Kayla, a
student at your school, stole money from the cafeteria and blamed Gia for it. As a
result, Gia was suspended for two weeks and had to pay the money back.
As you and Gia walk into the store, you see Kayla. Gia pushes Kayla slightly and drops
a pair of earrings into Kayla's purse. The alarm sounds once Kayla tries to walk out
of the store. She is pulled aside by security for shoplifting, and they call the police.
Kayla tells them that she is innocent and that Gia dropped the earrings in her purse.
Gia calls Kayla a liar and asks you to back her up.
If you tell the truth, Gia will get in trouble again and will face consequences from
the law and her parents. Kayla will go unpunished for originally stealing money from
the cafeteria. If you do not tell the truth, Kayla will finally be punished for stealing,
and Gia will have her revenge. However, you may be committing a crime by lying to
the police officers, and Kayla's punishment will be more severe than it would have
been for stealing money in the cafeteria.
The police arrive and ask for your version of the story. What do you say? (Support
your answer)

Congratulation!
You made it.
Be prepared for the next ethical challenge.