CHAPTER 8 - Philosophical Perspective of Ethics

Lesson 1 Aristotle

The Human Good and the Function

Argument
The principal idea with which Aristotle
begins is that there are differences of opinion
about what is best for human beings, and
that to profit from ethical inquiry we must
resolve this disagreement. He insists that
ethics is not a theoretical discipline: we are
asking what the good for human beings is not
simply because we want to have knowledge,
but because we will be better able to achieve
our good if we develop a fuller understanding
of what it is to flourish. In raising this
question—what is the good?
Aristotle's search for the good is a
search for the highest good, and he assumes
that the highest good, whatever it turns out
to be, has three characteristics: it is desirable
for itself, it is not desirable for the sake of
some other good, and all other goods are
desirable for its sake.

Aristotle's conclusion about the nature of happiness is in a sense uniquely his

own. No other writer or thinker had said precisely what he says about what it is to
live well. But at the same time his view is not too distant from a common idea. As
he himself points out, one traditional conception of happiness identifies it with
virtue. Aristotle's theory should be construed as a refinement of this position. He
says, not that happiness is virtue, but that it is virtuous activity. Living well consists
in doing something, not just being in a certain state or condition. It consists in those
lifelong activities that actualize the virtues of the rational part of the soul.

Lesson 2 St. Thomas Aquinas

“We call this man a dumb ox, but his

bellowing in doctrine will one day
resound throughout the world.” –
Albertus Magnus in defense of Aquinas

He was from a noble family in Naples and

early in his life he decided to join the
Dominican order. Under the Dominican Order,
he was mentored by Albertus Magnus who

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 defended him from those who made fun of him as a dumb ox because of his size
and his slow voice.

The moral philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas involves a merger of at least two
apparently disparate traditions: Aristotelian eudemonism and Christian
Theology. On the other hand, Aquinas follows Aristotle in thinking that an act is
good or bad depending on whether it contributes to or deters us from our proper
human end- the telos or final goal at which all human actions aim. That telos or
eudaimonia, or happiness, where “happiness” is understood in terms of completion,
perfection or well-being. Achieving happiness, however, requires a range of
intellectual and moral virtues that enable us to understand the nature of happiness
and motivate us to seek it in a reliable and consistent way.

NATURAL LAW. Aristotle had a strong influence in Aquinas’ philosophy

though Aristotle may be considered as Pagan. Aquinas respected Aristotle’s
empirical teaching and connected it with Christian teaching. For him, reality is
composed of the “natural” and the “revealed”.

Natural – the natural would be within the sphere of philosophy where one has to
observe first then make a conclusion.

However, another part of the reality cannot be known to man unless it is

revealed.

Revealed – means that out knowledge will come from God’s revelation and that
would be within the sphere of faith – where it mandates believing first.

Though they would come from different perspectives, these two should be
compatible and must conclude the same reality. On the other hand, Aquinas
believes that we can never achieve complete or final happiness in this life.
For him, final happiness consists in beatitude or supernatural union with God. For
this reason, we not only need the virtues but we also need God to transform our
nature – to perfect or “deify” it – so that we might be suited to participate in divine
beatitude. Moreover, Aquinas believes that we inherited a propensity to sin
from our first parent, Adam. While our nature is not wholly corrupted by sin, it is
nevertheless diminished by sin’s stain, as evidenced by the fact that our will are
enmity with God’s.

However, even though this beatitude is brought about supernaturally by the

power of God, it is not utterly foreign to human nature. In effect, the supernatural
power of God elevates or expands the powers of intellect and will to a kind of
completion beyond themselves and yet not foreign to them. So, this distinction of a
“two-fold happiness” should not be thought of as involving two fundamentally
distinct goals or ends of human life. The second supernatural happiness is seen as a
kind of surpassing perfection of the first.

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 THE CARDINAL NATURE VIRTUES:

 PRUDENCE – intellectual virtue since it bears upon the goal of truth in the
good ordering of action
 COURAGE – cardinal virtue that pertains to the resolve to act virtuously,
especially when it is most difficult. It is acting for the good, when it would be
much easier not to this time.
 JUSTICE – virtue of the rational appetite or will.
 TEMPERANCE - moderation or voluntary self-restraint. This includes restraint
from revenge by practicing non-violence and forgiveness, restraint from
arrogance by practicing humility and modesty, restraint from excesses such
as extravagant luxury or splurging by practicing prudence, and restraint from
rage or craving by practicing calmness and self-control

THE CARDINAL THEOLOGICAL VIRTUES:

 FAITH - strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on

spiritual apprehension rather than proof.
 HOPE - a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen
 LOVE - an intense feeling of deep affection.

MISERICORDIA – the virtue that pertains to suffering with others and acting to
alleviate their suffering. Thomas explicitly but unconvincingly claims that Aristotle
recognized it. And yet in the Summa Theologica he says that it is an effect of
charity. In that case, there is an acquired form of it and an infused form of it. As
infused, it is informed by the love of God and love of neighbor in God in which is
beatitude.

CHARITY – is the love of God and neighbor in God. It resides in the will. Hope is
the desire for the difficult but attainable good of eternal happiness or beatitude. It
too resides in the will. Faith is intellectual assent to revealed supernatural truths
that are not evident in themselves or thorough demonstration from truths evident in
themselves. So, it resides in intellect. It is divided into believing that there is God
and other truths pertaining to that truth, believing God, and believing “in” God. The
distinction between the last two is subtle. It is one thing to say you believe in me. It
is a different thing to say you believe in me. The latter connotes the relation of your
intellect to the will’s desire to direct yourself to me in love. Thus, believing in God
goes well beyond believing that there is a God. It suggests the other theological
virtues of Charity and Hope.

TEACHER’S INSIGHT

Thomas Aquinas broad account of virtues as excellences or perfections of the various

human powers formally echoes Aristotle, both with regard to the nature of a virtue and
many specific virtues. In beatitude and felicity, the fulfilment of intellect and will
respectively, the virtues of Faith and Hope fall away, and do not exist, for one now sees
with the intellect what one believed and has attained what one hoped for with the will.
Only Charity abides.
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 Note:
Please watch the video title “Aquinas’ Virtue Ethics” as to summarization of this
topic and an additional reference.

Self-Reflection:
Based from your readings of the above notes, answer the following as best as you
can. Please write your answers in your notebook and place the date of your
accomplishment.
1. Do you think that there is a reality that cannot be known to man unless man
is given divine revelation? Or this is just an excuse to not think and blindfold
follow certain religious doctrines? Explain your answer

Lesson 3 Immanuel Kant

Towards the end of his most influential work, Critique

of Pure Reason (1781/1787), Kant argues that all philosophy
ultimately aims at answering these three questions: “What
can I know? What should I do? What may I hope?” The
book appeared at the beginning of the most productive period
of his career, and by the end of his life Kant had worked out
systematic, revolutionary, and often profound answers to these
questions.

At the foundation of Kant’s system is the doctrine of

“transcendental idealism,” which emphasizes a distinction
between what we can experience (the natural, observable
world) and what we cannot (“supersensible” objects such as
God and the soul). Kant argued that we can only have knowledge of things we can
experience. Accordingly, in answer to the question, “What can I know?” Kant
replies that we can know the natural, observable world, but we cannot,
however, have answers to many of the deepest questions of metaphysics.

Kant’s ethics are organized around the notion of a “categorical

imperative,” which is a universal ethical principle stating that one should
always respect the humanity in others, and that one should only act in
accordance with rules that could hold for everyone. Kant argued that the
moral law is a truth of reason, and hence that all rational creatures are bound by
the same moral law. Thus, in answer to the question, “What should I do?” Kant
replies that we should act rationally, in accordance with a universal moral
law.

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 Kant also argued that his ethical theory
requires belief in free will, God, and the immortality of
the soul. Although we cannot have knowledge of
these things, reflection on the moral law leads to a
justified belief in them, which amounts to a kind
rational faith. Thus, in answer to the question, “What
may I hope?” Kant replies that we may hope that
our souls are immortal and that there really is a
God who designed the world in accordance with
principles of justice.

In addition to these three focal points, Kant also

made lasting contributions to nearly all areas of
philosophy. His aesthetic theory remains influential
among art critics. His theory of knowledge is required
reading for many branches of analytic philosophy. The
cosmopolitanism behind his political theory colors
discourse about globalization and international
relations. And some of his scientific contributions are even considered intellectual
precursors to several ideas in contemporary cosmology.

TEACHER’S INSIGHT

To act out of “good will” for Kant means to act out of a sense of moral obligation or
“duty”. In other words, the moral agent does a particular action not because of what it
produces (its consequences) in terms of human experience, but because he or she
recognizes by reasoning that it is morally the right thing to do and thus regards him or
herself as having a moral duty or obligation to do that action. In Kant’s terms, a good
will is a will whose decisions are wholly determined by moral demands or, as he often
refers to this, Moral Law. Human beings inevitably feel this law as a constraint on their
natural desires, which is why such laws as applied to human beings are imperatives and
duties. A human will, in which the moral law is decisive and motivated by the thought of
duty.

IMMANUEL KANT ON RIGHTS:

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 Immanuel Kant examined the idea of human rights within politics in such a
way that it “is only a legitimate government that guarantees our natural
right to freedom and from this freedom, we derive other rights”.

From this basis, it can be assumed that Kant looks at the development,
creation and implementation of rights as primarily dependent on the state and how
government within the state functions.

As Kant teaches, these righteous laws” are founded upon three rational
principles:

1. The liberty of every member of the society as a man.

2. The equality of every member of the society with every other, as a subject
3. The independence of every member of the commonwealth as a citizen

Kant believes that these principles are necessary above all, not only for the
founding of “righteous laws” but for the state to function in the first place. This is so
because without the acceptance of the people a state would not exist therefore
rights are necessary within states to keep support of the people of the state.

TEACHER’S INSIGHT

Kant differs contrasts between right and virtue. He thinks both relate to freedom but in
different ways: right concerns outer freedom and virtue concerns inner freedom being
master of one’s own passions. Right concerns “act themselves” independent of the
motive an agent may have for performing them. Virtue concerns the “proper motive” for
dutiful actions.
Relate to Practice:
In this respect, Kant’s view towards morality parallels the Christian’s view
concerning obedience to God’s commandments, according to which the Christian
obeys God commandments simply because God commands them, not for the sake
of rewards in heaven after death or from fear of punishment in hell. Is this rational
or not?

Note:

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 Please watch the video title “Kant and Categorical Imperatives” as to summarization
of this topic and an additional reference.

Self-Reflection:
Based from your readings of the above notes, answer the following as best as you
can. Please write your answers in your notebook and place the date of your
accomplishment.
1. What is the most important virtue do you think should be exercised and
developed in your chosen field of profession? Explain.

References:
 Leano, Gubi-on., “Ethics for College Students” 2018
 Palean, Nazario, Descartin, Mendoza, Valero., “Ethics: Exploring Moral
Philosophy”2019
 https://www.iep.utm.edu/kantview/
 https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/aristotle-ethics/

CHAPTER END EVALUATION

General Instruction: Place your answers at the given worksheet attached

at the back of this Instructional Learning Guide. Reproducing the worksheet is
strictly prohibited. Please write your answers legibly and neatly.

a. How does Kant’s categorical imperative apply to the case of the lying
promise?

b. Does Kant allow any exceptions to a categorical imperative? Would you

make an exception if it could save an innocent person’s life (and harm
no one else)? Why or why not?

John Stuart Mill: Utilitarianism

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 c. What is the chief difference between utilitarianism and Kant’s ethics?

d. Do you believe, with Rawls, that utilitarianism is a paternalistic violator

of human rights? Explain.

Aristotle: The Ethics of Virtue

e. What does Aristotle mean by “the function of man is activity of soul in

accordance with reason”?

f. According to Aristotle, how does a just man become just? If Aristotle is

right, what implications would his view have for the moral education of
the young?

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