A Review on the Types of Ethics

1. Metaethics
o descriptive in nature; aims to understand the nature and dynamics of ethical
principles; asks questions about the nature and origin of moral facts, as well
as the way in which we learn and acquire moral beliefs
2. Normative Ethics
o prescriptive in nature as it seeks to set norms or standards that regulate right
and wrong or good and bad conduct; normally attempts to develop
guidelines or theories that tell us how we ought to behave
3. Applied Ethics
o the actual application of ethical or moral theories for the purpose of deciding
which ethical or moral actions are appropriate in a given situation
Lesson No. 9

Virtue Ethics
This is a STUDY AREA. Please Observe Silence.

NO SITTING ON STEPS.

VANDALISM is punishable by EXPULSION.

 Virtue Ethics is a normative moral theory which emphasizes right
disposition and character of the agent over right action.
 Instead of asking the question “What is the right thing to do?”, it asks
“How ought I to live my life?” or “What kind of person ought I to be?”.
 Though a normative ethics, virtue ethics does not set up rules or
principles for moral behavior but instead stresses the importance of
cultivating the right character, disposition, attitude, reason and
emotion without which a moral agent can hardly do the right thing,
follow moral rules and do his moral duties.
 Some people who support virtue ethics claim that the development
of moral virtues is more fundamental than the establishment of norms
or principles based on duty (deontological ethics) or consequences
(consequentialist ethics).
 Thus, the strength of virtue ethics as a normative moral theory hinges
on character formation and moral education.
 There is a need to know how virtues are formed in the life of its
possessor, how they are acquired, how they are cultivated, what
circumstances are conducive to virtue formation, what is the effective
way to train or educate a person to become virtuous, among others.
 There are, however, issues raised against this stand of virtue ethics.
 Most often, the issue raised against virtue ethics is its inability to
guide actions.
 According to this criticism, virtue ethics cannot provide definite
rules for moral behavior.
o However, this criticism seems to overlook the fact that what is
fundamental in the virtue ethics approach is not following
rules.
o Rule-following will only work if the moral agent has the
character and disposition to follow rules.
 Another criticism is that it is self-centered.
 According to this view, virtue ethics focuses on the agent's
character and not, for example, on the duty one owes to another
or the promotion of another person's benefit.
o Virtue ethics is self-centered because it is basically about
acquiring virtues for the moral agent's well-being or
flourishing.
o However, not all virtues are self-regarding (e.g. courage,
perseverance) because there are other virtues which are
other-regarding (e.g. kindness).
 Aristotle on Virtue and the Good Life

 Aristotle argued that through an understanding of human nature, one

is able to discern his purpose in life.
 He claimed that the attainment of this purpose is at the same time
the living of the good life.
 But this purpose can only be achieved by living well, that is to say,
by acquiring and possessing those good qualities and excellences
that enable a person to function well as a human being.
 Hence, a well-functioning human being is a good human being.
 But what is meant by a well-functioning human being?
 Aristotle thus offers a theory of human nature which became the
basis for the good life.
 According to Aristotle, human beings by nature seek the good.
The good is the aim of every human endeavor.
 Thus, every human action, whatever it is, always tends towards
some end and that end is somehow good.
 The good is sought either because it is a means to another end
or it is an end in itself. The good as a means is subordinate to the
good as an end in itself.
 The good as a means is considered as such primarily because of
its usefulness to attain another good.
 Aristotle however argues that good which is desired for its own
sake and because of which all other goods are pursued is the
highest, which he calls ‘supreme good’.
 This, for him, is the good as an end itself.
 The good as an end in itself is the highest good because man no
longer seeks beyond it; this highest good is man’s happiness.
 Thus, the good life is a happy life. Happiness is man’s ultimate
purpose in life.
 For Aristotle, men seek happiness either in pleasure, honor, and
contemplation.
 Happiness derived from pleasure and honor is not lasting. Both of
these forms of happiness largely depend on external things.
 What gives man true happiness, according to Aristotle, is that
which befits human nature. For man to live the good life, he must
function well as a human being.
 If reason is the distinguishing characteristic in man which
separates him from plants and animals, then it is reason which
must be developed and cultivated in order for man to be happy.
o This is to say that man must not only develop the basic
functions that sustain his biological life; he must also employ
his reason in order to know what the good life is and how to
live it.
o Simply, man must not only focus on physical activities but
must give importance on intellectual, moral, and spiritual
activities, for these activities spring from man’s reason.
 For Aristotle, it is a fact however that man does not live alone; he
lives with others in a community.
 This implies that man can only pursue the good life in
cooperation with his fellow men.
 Thus, promoting the well-being of the community therefore is
more important than promoting the well-being of an individual.
 Though it is not bad to promote one’s well-being, promoting the
well-being of the community is more noble and important.
 Since the good life is connected with the cultivation of virtues in life,
then man must use his reason to acquire them.
 Aristotle argues that man must acquire both intellectual and
moral virtues in life.
o The main intellectual virtues are understanding, science and wisdom for the
speculative part, and art and prudence for the practical part. Understanding
is knowledge of first principles and self-evident truths. Science is the virtue that
enables man to draw conclusions based on and derived from first principles.
Wisdom is knowledge of things in their ultimate explanations and causes
whereby all principles, truths and conclusions are synthesized into a unity or
coherent whole. Art is knowledge of how to produce and make things.
Prudence is knowledge of how to perform actions in the right way, how to
make good choices and decisions.
  Intellectual virtues are cultivated and acquired through
education while moral virtues through habit and training, guided
by prudence.
 Virtues are dispositions which develop a man’s character and
attitude. They are traits in man that makes him into a fully
developed person thereby making him attain the good life.
 In conclusion, if a person is able to cultivate the intellectual and
moral virtues, then he functions well as a human being. Only then
can he live the good life. But again, he only acquires these virtues
through education and practice since virtues are not acquired
immediately.