DEONTOLOGICAL THEORIES

Deon in Greek means duty Deontology is the science of duty It is not because of their consequences, but because we have a duty not to do bad Deontological theory denies that consequences are relevant to determining what we ought to do They hold that certain actions are right not because of some benefit but because of the nature of these actions or the rules from which they follow Non-consequentalist reasoning in ethics include argument based on principles such as the golden rule

KANTIANISM
Immanuel Kant (1724-1804)proposed the ethic of Duty This is in many ways diametrically opposite to Benthams Utilitarianism For Bentham happiness Kant goodwill An action is morally right, only if the person performing it is motivated by a good will. The possession of such a will, makes the action right

All actions are performed in accordance with some underlying maxim or principle Kant's ethics are founded on his view of rationality as the ultimate good and his belief that all people are fundamentally rational beings This led to the most important part of Kant's ethics, the formulation of the Categorical Imperative, which is the criterion for whether a maxim is good or bad The Formulation Rule of Kantianism:
Act only according to that maxim by which you can at the same time will that it would become a universal law. Act so that you always treat others as an end, and never as a means to an end only.

A good will means the action done for reasons of principle from a sense of duty Neither self interest nor kindness, loyalty, sympathy or any other laudable sentiment, should be the motive They do not constitute a specifically moral motivation for acting

How do we now as to when an act is done from a sense of duty? Kant says it is done in accordance with Categorical imperative or Law of Morality He meant that this framework should be applied to every moral issue regardless of
Who is involved Who profits Who is harmed by the principles once they have been implemented

DUTIES
Fidelity
To keep promises (implicit & explicit) To tell the truth

Reparation
To compensate people for injury, wrongfully inflicted upon them

Gratitude
To return favour that others to for us

Justice
To ensure that goods are distributed according to people, merits or demerits

Beneficience
To do whatever we can to improve the condition of others

Self improvement
To improve our own condition with respect of virtue and intelligence

Non malificence
To avoid injury to others

NATURAL LAW
Ethics of Rights and Justice Natural Law Natural law theory was traditionally about protecting people from unjust or tyrannical actions by governments The natural law was declaring that there were things they had a right to such as
Life Liberty Property

These were proclaimed as natural rights bestowed on people by natural law

Puts forward the existence of a law whose content is set by nature and that, therefore has validity everywhere Socrates and his philosophic heirs, Plato and Aristotle, put forward the existence of natural justice or natural right John Locke (1632-1714) conceptualised the notion of natural rights or moral claims that humans were entitled to Among the most important rights conceived are
Right to life Right to freedom Right to property

Aristotle is often said to be the father of natural law Aristotle notes that, aside from the "particular" laws that each people has set up for itself, there is a "common" law that is according to nature

The phrase natural law is opposed to the positive law (which is man-made) of a given political community, society, or nation-state Natural law theories have exercised a profound influence on the development of English Common Law The rise of natural law as a universal system coincided with the rise of large empires and kingdoms in the Greek world Stoics emphasized the universal ideas of individual worth, moral duty, and universal brotherhood

In terms of ethical theory, we could define rights along the following lines:
Natural rights are certain basic, important, unalienable entitlements that should be respected and protected in every single action

These rights typically result in the duty of others to respect them Since the rights of one person can result in a corresponding duty for other persons to respect, protect, or facilitate Rights and duties are therefore, usually seen as two sides of the same coin

The notion of rights is based on the claim on human nature that rests mostly on philosophical approach and backed up by certain religious views Natural rights or human rights are based on a consensus of all human beings about the nature of human dignity Because of its simple and plausible viewpoint the rights approach has been very powerful throughout history and has substantially shaped the constitution of many modern states