CHAPTER 3

FRAMEWORKS AND
PRINCIPLES
BEHIND OUR MORAL
DISPOSITION FRAMEWORKS
Decisions about right and wrong permeate in everyday life,
and it can be very difficult to do. Making ethical decisions
requires sensitivity to the ethical implications of problems
and situations. It also requires practice. Understanding
the framework for ethical decision- making is therefore
essential.
 LESSON 1: VIRTUE ETHICS : ARISTOTLE

WHAT IS VIRTUE ETHICS AND WHO IS ARISTOTLE?

Virtue ethics is the general term for theories that put emphasis on the role of character
and virtue in living one’s life rather than in doing one’s duty or in acting to bring about good
consequences. For virtue ethicists, their moral code would be: “ Act as a virtuous person would
act in your situation”.

Most virtue ethics theories take their inspiration from Aristotle who declared that a
virtuous person is someone who has ideal character traits. There is also St. Thomas Aquinas
who asserted that no human act is morally good ( or “right”, in the sense of “not wrong”) unless
it is in line with love of self and neighbor ( and thus with respect for the basic aspects of the
wellbeing of each and all human beings) not only: in the motives or intentions with which it is
chosen , and in the appropriateness of the circumstances , but also in its object ( more
precisely the object , or closest - in intention of the choosing person)
ARISTOTLE

Aristotle was born in a small colony of Stagira in Greece. That was

fifteen years after the death of Socrates, the teacher of Plato. His
father was Nicomachus, who happened to be the court physician
during the reign of King Amyntas. Because of this affiliation, Aristotle
became the tutor of Alexander the Great, who was the grandson of
the king. When Aristotle’s father died, he left Stagira and went to
Athens to join the Academy, a famous school of Plato, and became
student of Plato for twenty years. He joined the school at the age o
seventeen. His known works that are related to moral philosophy are:
Nicomachean Ethics (NE), Eudemian Ethics (EE), and the Magna
Moralia. Most of the ideas related to the framework he conceived are
taken from his first two works.
 TELOS

Aristotle's ethical framework emphasizes the importance of awareness in every action we take, as it leads
to our desired end, which can be good or bad. In his Nicomachean ethics, the end is good, and humans
pursue it to feel good. Aristotle's understanding of good is based on finality and self sufficiency, with the
dominant view suggesting every act is good, the inclusivist view asserting good is the result of all human
acts, and the second view arguing that the dominant good is inconsiderate and cannot be achieved
without personal acts.

VIRTUE AS HABIT

In the second book of NE, Aristotle discusses the acquisition of character excellence through
habituation. Character excellence refers to the development of personality through virtues, while habit
refers to frequently carrying out certain human acts. Virtues are good acts, while vices are bad habits.

TWO KINDS OF VIRTUES:

Moral Virtue
Intellectual Virtue
The INTELLECTUAL VIRTUE, categorized into wisdom and understanding,
complements moral virtue, governing ethical behavior and helping us
determine the appropriate moral virtue to apply in specific
circumstances.

Aristotle argues that MORAL VIRTUE are acquired through constant

practice, developing character excellence. They should be put into action
habitually or frequently, as they will be lost if not practiced regularly.
Aristotle suggests that moral virtues should be moderate, avoiding excess
or defect, and are referred to as the Doctrine of the Mean.
 HAPPINESS AS VIRTUE

Aristotle believes that all human actions have an ultimate telos or end,
which is happiness or eudaimonia, or the supreme good. He argues that
happiness is not about emotion but about pleasant activities or excellent
rational actions, where one judges their life as successful and worth living. The
understanding of happiness is subjective, as it can be interpreted according to
personal needs. Aristotle suggests that happiness is exclusive to humans and
can be enjoyed by the gods if it permits.

Aristotle's concept of happiness as a rational activity based on virtue

suggests that living a virtuous life is the best way to achieve happiness, as it is
not an immediate result of certain actions.
ST. THOMAS AQUINAS

St. Thomas Aquinas, born in Roccasecca,

Italy, is known as the Doctor of the church
for his significant contributions to Catholic
theology and doctrine. He is credited with
the "Summa Theologica" and "Summa Contra
Gentiles," which combined philosophy and
theology, discussing the role of natural law,
virtues, and happiness in moral philosophy.
 NATURAL LAW

St. Thomas Aquinas' philosophy of virtue ethics is based on natural law,

which he links to eternal law. He believes that rational creatures, like humans, must
obey God's will and obey natural law. The text argues that rational creatures must
discover and obey this law, which governs the community and guides actions. Human
positive law, including civil and ecclesiastical law, is enacted by lawmakers and
religious people to maintain the realm of natural law.

THE NATURAL AND ITS TENET

In his book Ethics: A class manual in moral philosophy, Reverend Msgr. Paul J. Glenn
distinguishes natural law in broad and narrow senses for rational and irrational creatures.
Glenn's philosophy is based on the belief in God as the highest good and establishes eternal
law for his creatures. The natural law is discoverable by rational creatures and unknowable for
irrational ones. For rational beings, natural law is present in them and they are called to
participate in the divine life of the highest being for a fullness of being. For irrational beings,
natural law guides their actions towards something good, such as food or sleep. In the broad
sense, natural law guides both rational and irrational creatures towards their realization of their
beings.
 HAPPINESS AS CONSTITUTIVE OF MORAL AND CARDINAL VIRTUES

Aquinas' moral philosophy emphasizes virtues as frequent, easily executed human

actions that follow the dictates of reason, or conscience, which is the proximate norm of
morality. Conscience is formed through continuous education by parents, community
members, the church, and society. Virtues are defined as moral frequent acts, while
vices are immoral acts. The proximate norm of morality is based on divine eternal law.

Among the frequent moral good acts, there are some virtues that standout among
other virtues. These are the known four moral cardinal virtues. It is called cardinal from
the Greek word cardo, means hinge because when these virtues are being practiced, the
rest of the virtues follow.

The four cardinal virtues are prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance.
 PRUDENCE
The virtue of understanding helps us find the best way to solve moral problems, guiding
us to act with certainty. It's a one-step backward and two-step forward technique, ensuring
we consider pros and cons before committing an immoral act.

JUSTICE
Moral life involves respecting and treating others as one's own property, whether intellectual
or material. This includes fair wages for laborers and ensuring that students do not steal belongings.
Robbers, burglars, and thieves often violate this rule, as they are not responsible for the property left
behind by classmates.

FORTITUDE
This habit is an exercise of courage, to face any dangers one encounters without fear,
especially when life is at stake.

TEMPERANCE
This habit is an exercise of control in the midst of strong attraction to pleasures. The key word here
is moderation. Getting indulged into strong pleasures has undesired consequences, either excess or
disorder. Becoming beautiful or handsome is not a bad idea, but if one is willing to spent thousands
of pesos in order to achieve it is already vanity.