SOCRATES: It would be wrong to repay certain
ETHICS WITH TAXATION
MORAL STANDARDS involve the rules people have
about the kinds of action they believe are morally
right and wrong.
EX. Tell the truth, do not kill, play fair
MORAL VALUES are guidelines that assist a person
in deciding between right and wrong. In order to
create honest, credible, and fair judgments and
relationships in daily life, the awareness of one's
morals - along with self-awareness - is crucial.
EX. Honesty, respect, courage
MORAL PRINCIPLES are guidelines that people live
by to make sure they are doing the right thing.
EX. Tell the truth, respect others property
FIVE PRINCIPLES
Autonomy, justice, beneficence, non-maleficence and
fidelity
NON-MORAL STANDARDS refer to the rules that
are unrelated to moral or ethical considerations
EX. Fashion standards, standards of living, rules in
games, house rules.
DILEMMA refers to a situation in which a tough
choice has to be made between two or more options,
especially more or less undesirable ones.
EX. Cleaning the house first before studying for an
exam
ETHICAL DILEMMA OR MORAL DILEMMA are
situations in which a difficult has to be made between
two courses of action, either of which entails
transgressing a moral principle.
EX. Reporting an accident wherein you are
involved, medical care versus religious beliefs
CEPHALUS: JUSTICE as speaking the truth and
paying one’s debts
debts
CONFLICT is common to moral dilemma
THREE LEVELS OF MORAL DILEMMAS
1. PERSONAL DILEMMA those experienced and
resolved on the personal level.
EX. Report an accident wherein you are involved
and will be put to jail or escape but you are going
to leave your family worrying about you
2. ORGANIZATIONAL DILEMMA refers to
ethical cases and resolved by social organization.
EX. Performing euthanasia to a dying patient will
be decided by the medical organization
3. STRUCTURAL DILEMMA refers to cases
involving network of institutions and operative
theoretical paradigms.
EX. Lowering the budget for agriculture and
infrastructure and increasing the budget for
education
“ONLY HUMAN BEINGS CAN BE ETHICAL”
Only humans have the ability to understand moral
values, rules, and principles, which is why
humans are referred to as “Moral Creature.”
Humans are able to reflect, make judgments and
anticipate the result of their actions unlike other
animals.
A. ONLY HUMAN BEINGS ARE RATIONAL,
AUTONOMOUS, AND SELF-CONSCIOUS
The qualities of rationality, autonomy, and
self-consciousness are believed to confer a full
and equal moral
status to those that possess them as these beings
are the only ones capable of achieving certain values
and goods. These values and goods are something
that outweigh the types of values and goods that
non-rational, non-autonomous, and
non-self-conscious beings are capable of realizing.
EX. To attain the kind of dignity and self-respect that
human beings have, one must be able to conceive of
him/herself as one among many, and must be able to
consciously select his/her actions rather than be led
by blind instincts
B. ONLY HUMAN BEINGS CAN ACT MORALLY OR
IMMORALLY
Strictly speaking, an animal which devours another
animal cannot be said to be immoral. In the same
manner, no matter how good an animal's action
seems to be, it cannot be technically said to be
moral. This is important in ethics because only beings
that can act morally can be required to sacrifice their
interests for the sake of others. Not able to truly act
morally, animals could not really sacrifice their own
good for the sake of others, but would even pursue
their good at the expense of others.
EX. Animal’s good action cannot be technically said
that it is moral unlike the actions of humans
C. ONLY HUMAN BEINGS ARE PART OF THE
MORAL COMMUNITY
The so-called moral community is not defined in
terms of the intrinsic properties that beings have, but
rather in terms of the essential social relations that
exist between or among beings. Distinctively, only
human beings can possess or practice values such
as love, honor, social relationships, forgiveness,
compassion, and altruism. Only human beings can
communicate with each other in truly meaningful
ways, can engage in economic, political, and familial
relationships with each other, and can also form deep
personal relationships with each other. These kinds
of relationships require the members of such
relationships to extend real concern to other
members in order for the relationships to continue.
These relationships are what constitute our lives and
the values contained in them.
EX. Humans are the one’s that possess or
practice values such as love, respect, honor
CULTURE is a complex word that reflects in a
collective way of life especially in terms of beliefs,
values, music, literary, arts, dance, science,
religion, ritual, technology.
Derived from the Latin word “cultus” which
means care - a care and attention provided to a
human person as he grows into a mature person.
CULTURE SHAPES MORAL BEHAVIOR
TYPES OF CULTURE THAT INFLUENCE THE
PERSON’S MORAL BEHAVIOR
1. MATERIAL CULTURE refers to the tangible
things that man creates and uses such as
weapon, tools, clothing, artifacts, relics.
2. NON-MATERIAL CULTURE refers to the
intangible things that man uses in its everyday
way of living that includes laws, knowledge,
teachings, ideas, moral behavior and language.
PROVIDERS OF MORAL BEHAVIOR IN A
CULTURE
1. FAMILY is the smallest unit in the society that
plays a very important role in terms of personal
development especially when it comes with
personality and values formation.
EX. Parents are our first teachers and we first
learn at home.
2. SCHOOL is a unit in the society that helps to
preserve, promote, integrates and modify the
conditions of human life through teaching and
learnings.
EX. School organizations or clubs help us mold
how we act and the school corrects or widens our
learnings especially those related to moral
behavior.
3. CHURCH is a unit in the society that promotes
interaction to its member in order to acquire unity
and integrate solidarity.
EX. The teachings from the bibles and homily and the
outside the church activities that promotes unity and
solidarity.
4. GOVERNMENT the people benefits from the
existence of this unit wherein it promotes economic
and sociocultural well-being of the people.
EX. The laws implemented
5. WORKPLACE is the environment which is
influenced by computerization and high technology
that influence the personal moral behavior of an
employee.

EX. The development of our actions with out

colleagues and how we earn.

CULTURAL RELATIVISM is about understanding

someone’s belief, values, traditions rather than
judging one’s culture based on your own criteria of
what is right or wrong, normal or strange, different or
similar.

CULTURAL APPROACH is used to avoid judging the

cultural practices of others.

CULTURAL RELATIVISM IN ETHICS cultural

relativism also a theory and most famous form of
moral relativism which holds ethical judgement; either
cultural or individual standard.

MORAL RELATIVISM essentially believes that no act

is good or bad and there is no certain criteria, single
objective, and universal standard which we can
evaluate and judge the truth of moral.

MORAL STANDARDS CHANGE OVER TIME