ETHICS: ITS MEANING, NATURE AND SCOPE
➢ Theory and action differs; thus, it
DEFINITION:
➢ It is a branch of philosophy and
a practical science of the
morality of human act or conduct
and of the good life.
➢ It constitutes the “good life” for
human beings; and
consequently teaches us to be
truly human.
➢ It is a philosophical discipline
which deals with ultimate
principles and truth concerning
morality of human conduct
through the use of human
reason alone.
Greek word- “ethos”
English word- “Behavior” or “character”
Latin word- “mos” or “mores”
According to Fedrich Nietzsche
Ethics - doing what is right because
you know that it is right; it stems from
the person’s consciousness and
common sense
Morality - stems from tradition, religion,
the law, constitution, and our
upbringing. A person does what is right
because someone taught them.
Ethics and Praxis (Fernandez)
does not mean when one knows
one also acts.
➢ Morality actualizes the theory in
ethics.
➢ We transform one’s ethics, not
only by knowing the theories but
treating it as a “way of life.”
➢ Ethics makes us human.
Importance of Ethics
➢ We become good or bad
persons depending on the
choices we make.
➢ Oftentimes, there are dilemmas
that are difficult to solve; and
ethical decisions must be met.
➢ It will enable us to examine our
moral beliefs rationally.
➢ It will widen one’s horizon to the
paradigm of justice.
Difference Between Ethics and Law
➢ Ethical Rules are necessary
even if laws implemented by civil
authorities exists.
➢ Legality is diff. from morality.
Importance
➢ Laws are concerned with the
“public.”
➢ Morality goes beyond legality.
 ➢ Theories in ethics are the Special (Applied) Ethics
foundations of law. 1. Applies the specific and
➢ Morality precedes legality. fundamental norms in the
specific areas of human life.
Distinction: Ethics and Religion
➢ Ethics solely rely on natural NORMS
reason, religion relies on super- ➢ It is the criteria of judgment
natural reason. about the sorts of person we
➢ The practice of morality need ought to be and sorts of actions
not be motivated by religious we ought to perform.
considerations. ➢ Norm of morality – standard of
right and wrong in human
Objects of Ethics actions
Types of Norms:
Material Formal
1. Technical Norm – man’s needs
The subject In the
matter of ethics is investigation of 2. Societal Norm – keeps
human conduct ethics flows the community
or human act. morality or the
moral rectitude of 3. Aesthetic Norm – considers
human act or beauty
human conduct.
4. Ethical/Moral Norm – ultimate
the deed the rightness or norm/ non-negotiable;
wrongness of
the deed subordinates other norms.

Division of Ethics Why do we need to know the Norms?

It is traditionally divided into two general It allows us to pinpoint our valuations;
areas: General Ethics and Special which leads us to do a more critical and
(Applied) Ethics meaningful assessment on issues.

General Ethics Moral Dimension of Human

1. Basic course in the study of Existence
ethics. ➢ Answers the application of
2. Deals with the morality of human morality to human existence.
acts.
Moga’s Three Positions
1. A-Morality
➢ Morality occupies only one area
of life; other areas [non-moral]
have their own meanings (or
rules).
2. Morality is ever
➢ present and necessary
➢ To be human is to follow the
moral rules.
3. Morality as found in every
situations in various ways; and
sometimes not.
Characteristics of Moral Principles
➢ Moral principles are important
feature of morality since it
outlines the importance of
morality itself.
➢ However, not all ethical
philosophers agree to all the
shortlisted principles.
1. Reasonability
➢ This means that primarily, moral
judgements must be backed by
good reasons and not with
unguided emotions.
➢ If it is not reasonable and appeal
to experience /common sense,
then it has to be viewed with
reservation.
2. Impartiality
➢ This means that an ethical or
moral rule should be neutral
regardless of who the recipients
are.
➢ This is also evident in John
Rawls “veil of ignorance”.
➢ In other words, moral standards
should be applied to all without
special treatment.
3. Prescriptivity
➢ Also known as “the commanding
aspect of morality.”
➢ Moral principles should be in a
form of imperatives for us to
know what to do and not to do.
4. Overridingness
➢ Moral standards must reign
above all other standards or
norms of valuation.
5. Autonomous from Arbitrary
Authority
➢ Moral standards should stand in
spite of the biases of the
majority.
6. Publicity
➢ Moral standards should be
made public for us to have a
guideline to our actions.
 ➢ After all, if an act is right, we will
not be ashamed of showing it to
the public.
7. Practicability
➢ Moral standards should be at
reach. Meaning to say, it must
be doable by human beings.
The Morality of Human Acts and Moral Accountability
Definition of Human Acts
“actions that proceed from insight into
the nature and purpose of one’s doing
and from consent of free will.”
● Specifically, human acts are
actions done by a person in
certain situations which are
essentially the result of his/her
conscious knowledge, freedom
and voluntariness.
Paul Glenn defines:
● It is an act which proceeds from
the deliberate free will of man;
this consciousness of an act
differentiates human acts from
the acts of man as well as the
acts done by animals.
● Acts of man are those that
humans share with animals
whose actions and movements
emanate from purely sensual
nature.
8. Universalizability
➢ It must be applied to all
regardless of the context or
situation.
➢ If a certain act is wrong [or right]
for this person, then this act
must also be wrong [or right] for
any other person.
Basic Elements of Human Acts
➢ as defined in the Book of
Agapay: Ethics and the
Filipino: A Manual on
Morals for Students and
Educators.
1. The Act must be deliberate
➢ It must be performed by a
conscious agent who is very
much aware of what he/she is
doing and of its consequences –
whether it may be good or evil.
2. The act must be performed in
freedom
➢ It must be done by an agent who
is acting freely, with his/her own
volition and powers. The person
acting should be free.
3. The act must be done voluntarily
➢ It must be performed by an
agent who decides wilfully to
perform the act.
Major Determinants of the Morality of
Human Acts
The various factors or elements that
would allow us to identify concretely
whether the act is good or bad.
1. The Act Itself or the Object of
the Act
“It refers to the action that is done or
performed by an agent.”
➢ It is the natural termination or
completion of an act, whether
the act is good or evil.
➢ This is the substance of the
moral act.
➢ More concretely the object of the
act is “that act effect which
action primarily and directly
causes. It is always and
necessarily the result of the act,
independent of any
circumstances or of the intention
of the agent.”
➢ Thus there are actions that are
intrinsically good/bad,
right/wrong, moral/immoral.
2. The Motive or Intention
It is the purpose that for the sake of
which something is done.
Four Principles:
1. An indifferent act can become
morally good or morally evil
depending upon the intention.
2. An objectively good act
becomes morally evil due to a
wrong or bad motive
3. An intrinsically (objectively)
morally good act can receive
added goodness, if done with an
equally noble intention.
4. An intrinsically evil act can never
become morally good even if it
is done with a good motive.
3. The Circumstances
Refers to the various conditions outside
of the act. They are not part of the act
itself.
Principles Governing Circumstances
(Agapay):
1. Circumstances may either
increase or decrease the
wrongfulness of an evil act.
2. Circumstances may either
increase or decrease the merits
of a good act.
3. Circumstances may exempt
temporarily someone from doing
a required act.
4. Circumstances do not prove the
guilt of the person.
Modifiers of Human Acts
These are factors and conditions that
affect man’s inner disposition.
IGNORANCE
➢ It is the absence of necessary
knowledge which a person in a
given situation, who is
performing a certain act, ought
to have.
Principles Governing Ignorance:
A. Invincible ignorance renders
an act involuntary.
- a person could not be held liable
if he or she is not aware of the
state of his or her ignorance
B. Vincible ignorance does not
destroy, but lessens the
voluntariness and the
corresponding accountability
over the act.
a person who is aware of the state of
ignorance has the moral obligation to
correct it through diligence.
Degree of the person’s responsibility:
1. The amount of effort spent to
obtain necessary information to
dispel ignorance.
2. The gravity of the matter
concerned where there is
ignorance
3. Obligation of the person
involved to acquire the proper
knowledge on the matter.
C. Affected or pretended
ignorance does not excuse a
person from his/her bad
actions; on the contrary it
actually increases their
malice.
- This happens when the person
chooses to be ignorant in order
to escape accountability arising
from the wrongfulness of the act
later on.
PASSION OR CONCUPISCENCE
➢ Understood here as a strong or
powerful emotion. It refers more
to bodily appetites.
➢ Also known as an inclination
towards a desirable object;
which makes it indifferent.
Principles Governing Passion:
1. Antecedent
➢ Those that precede the act.
➢ “Antecedent passion does not
destroy voluntariness, they
diminish accountability for the
resultant act.”
 2. Consequent
➢ “Consequent passion do not
lessen voluntariness, but may
even increase accountability.”
➢ These are direct results of the
will which [the agent] fully
consents to instead of
controlling them.
Principles Governing Violence:
FEAR
➢ It is defined as “the disturbance
of the mind of a person who is
confronted by an impending
danger or harm to himself or
loved ones.”
➢ May be considered as [special]
passion: avoidance to threat.
Principles Governing Fear:
1. Acts done “with” fear
➢ Voluntary
➢ The agent acting with fear is
acting in spite of his fear and
thus in control of the conduct;
which makes the agent
responsible for the action.
2. Acts done “because” or “out
of” of fear
➢ Involuntary
➢ A person when acting out
extreme fear is not morally
accountable.
VIOLENCE
➢ It refers to “any physical force
exerted on a person by another
free agent for the purpose of
compelling [the] said person to
act against his will.”
➢ Any act with brutal force is
inflicted.
➢ Any action resulting from
violence is involuntary. However,
even if one is compelled to do
something one must not consent
to it.
➢ Active resistance should always
be offered to an unjust
aggressor. But if resistance is
impossible, or there is a serious
threat to one’s life, a person is
confronted by violence can
always offer intrinsic
resistance by withholding
consent; that is enough to save
one’s moral integrity.
➢ Absolute violence excludes
voluntariness from the forced
action.
➢ Relative violence does not
impair voluntariness
completely but lessens it.
HABIT QUOTES:
➢ A constant and easy way of
doing things acquired by the ❝Without moral perception, man is only an
repetition of the same act.
animal. Without morality, man as a rational
➢ It is also the readiness, born of
being is a failure.❞
frequently repeated acts, for
action in a certain manner.
Principle Governing Habit: ❝The Unexamined life is not worth
➢ Actions done by force are living❞– Socrates
voluntary in cause, unless
reasonable effort is made to
❝The experience of morality is part of every
counteract habitual inclination.
person’s life. It is found in the various
➢ A deliberately admitted habit
does not lessen voluntariness obligations that arise, the experience of
and actions resulting therefrom actions which should be either performed or
are voluntary at least in their
avoided.❞ – [Moga, 1993, 1]
cause.
➢ Habits are voluntary in cause,
❝To be human is to balance out all these
because they are the result of
previously willed acts done areas… without neglecting any. Thus avoid
repeatedly as a matter of fact. focusing on one area and fail to justify
➢ An opposed habit weakens
others❞
voluntariness and sometimes
precludes it completely.
➢ When a person decides to fight
his habit, and as the effort
towards this purpose continues,
actions resulting from such habit
may be regarded as
unaccountable.