UNIT III

Coverage particular act form the basis for any moral

judgment about the action
 Ethical Theories
 Virtue Ethics Utilitarianism
 Ethical Principles
 Most common form of consequence-oriented
 Autonomy
reasoning The act is right if its consequences
 Justice
yield happiness or pleasure to the greatest
 & Other Relevant Ethical Principle
number of people
Values Confrontation  Espouses the concept that if one is happy or
pleased with one's act, then one is a good
1. Ethical Humility-awareness of the limits of human person
one's own ethical insights  Two divisions of Utilitarianism: Act and Rule
2. Ethical Courage - willingness to assess fairly o Disregards the means if it’s for the
ideals, beliefs and viewpoints differing from our
greater number of people
own
 JEREMY BENTHAM (1748-1832)
3. Ethical Empathy - willingness to attempt to
o Hedonistic Utilitarian Philosophy
understand the opinions of others and try to
o Believes that it is nature which
see the issue from their position
demands that humans be moral
4. Ethical Fair-mindedness - to hold one's own
 JOHN STUART MILL (1806-1873
beliefs and opinions to the same standard of
o Eudaimonistic Utilitarian Philosophy
proof and evidence that we require for the
o Believed that pleasure cannot be
opinion of others
absolutely qualified as the greatest
Teleology good
o Believed that happiness is the most
 An approach to ethics focusing on the rightness
fundamental principle of morality and
or wrongness of actions by examining its
the source of moral obligation
consequences
o Interested in the degree of happiness
 From the Greek words "telos" meaning end and
achieved by the doer of the act
"logos" meaning reason; a.k.a. consequentialist
 Utilitarian: Good resides in the promotion of
ethics
happiness or the greatest net increase of
o Focuses on the consequence or the
pleasure over pain.
result
 Happiness - Set of higher-order pleasures such
 2 main types: Utilitarianism and a variety of
as intellectual, aesthetic and social enjoyments
ancient Greek Virtue ethics
rather than mere sensual pleasure (John Stuart
Teleological Theories (Consequence-Oriented) Mill)
o Contraceptives
 Right or wrong is based on predicted or actual
outcomes Act Utilitarianism
 This places emphasi. on doing what will
maximize benefits and minimize harm to
individuals and to society
 Right thing to do = Good thing to do
 Gertrude Elizabeth Margaret Anscombe (1919-
2001) -British analytic philosopher who
introduced the term consequentialism
 Consequentialism-refers to those theories
which hold that the consequences of a

 Decision is based on:
o listing of the possible alternatives for
action
o weighing each in regard to the amount
of pleasure or utility it provides
o selecting the course of action that
maximizes pleasure and gives the least
pain
o Common Application: Division of scarce
resources
Rule Utilitarianism
 Differs from act utilitarianism in that it
recognizes the need to abide by rules and moral
codes in order to decide the best action for the
greater number.
 It adheres to moral codes and general moral
rules to decide if the action (despite not being
the decision that benefits the greatest number)
is moral or not as long as it still creates great
utility.
 An action can be deemed to be right if it
conforms to a rule that has been validated by
the principle of utility.
 Principle Utility-Rule brings about positive
results when generalized to a wide variety of
situations
Deontology
 Term coined by Charlie Dunbar Broad (1857-
1971); derived from Greek words "deon"
meaning "obligation" or "duty" and "logos
meaning inquiry" or "study"
 It is an approach to ethics that puts focus on the
rightness or wrongness of actions
 The right or wrlig depends on its intrinsic nature
rather than on the situation or the
consequences
 An act in itself could be right or wrong, but not
both
 Immanuel Kant (1724-1804):
o Consequences of an action were
essentially Irrelevant
o We are rational beings; a central
feature was that principles derived from
reason are universal
o Morality is derived from rationality, not
from experience
o Obligation is grounded in pure reason,
not in the nature of the man or in the
circumstance
 Aristotle
o argued that the telos (end or purpose)
of life is to achieve happiness
o Happiness comes from good thought
and good actions which lead to good
habits which lead to a good character
which leads to happiness
 Kant
o argues that using our reason and good
will to guide us often leads to
discomfort.
o Therefore, happiness cannot be our
proper goal. If Nature (God) had
intended us to seek happiness, it is
more likely that we would have been
guided by instincts, not by Reason.
 Hume
o Vice and virtue are determined by the
way our hearts and feelings respond to
them.
o The function of reason is to tell us how
to achieve the goals that our sentiments
or emotions tell us are right.
o Hume gives the metaphor of a ship: -
our emotions are the sails; -our reason
is merely the rudder.
 Kant
o Kant disputes that: Reason is the guide;
it can tell us whether an action is one
that we think all people should do.
Deontology Principles:
1. Reason (foundation)
Ventures to know what is ethical not on the
authority of what is external to the self but
 grounded on reason itself. Tells the human
person to do the obligation that is doable for
the goodwill since it is their duty
2. Goodwill (source)
Relevant to the person who through their
reason know what one ought to do, is where
they can do and know as good. Implies the
achievability of what is known through reason.
3. Duty (motivation)
Follows what reason deems as the action which
is worthy of our humanity. Obligation is the
motivation for reason and goodwill of the
human per on. If one asks why he or she had to
do what he or she ought to do, the answer can
only be because it is his/her duty.