Virtue Ethics

Introduction
Virtue
• Behavior showing high moral standards
• A quality considered morally good or desirable in a person
• The good result that comes from something

Ethics
• the branch of knowledge that deals with moral principles
• a set of moral principles, especially ones relating to or affirming
a specified group, field, or form of conduct.
 Ethics

Meta Ethics Normative Ethics

Applied Ethics

Deontology
Consequentialism Virtue Ethics

Eudaimonism Agent-Based Theory

Ethics of Care
Approaches in Ethics
Meta Ethics does not address how we ought to behave;
rather, meta-ethics is related more to the study of ethical theory
itself
Applied Ethics describes how we apply normative theories to
specific issues, usually related to work or belonging to an
organization
Normative Ethics tell us not only what we ought to do, but
also why we do things that in some instances may appear
counterintuitive to what we think an ethical decision would be
 Applied Ethics

Normative Ethics

Meta Ethics
Branches in Normative Ethics
Consequentialism is an ethical theory that judges whether
or not something is right by what its consequences are.
Utilitarianism an ethical theory that determines right from
wrong by focusing on outcomes.
Deontology is an ethical theory that uses rules to distinguish
right from wrong.
Virtue Ethics is an ethical theory that focuses on the
character of the person rather than the details of a single action
Virtue Ethics
• the oldest ethical theory in the world, Ancient Greece
• character-based ethics
• deals not only with the rightness or wrongness of individual
actions, it provides guidance as to the sort of characteristics
and behaviors a good person will seek to achieve.
• is an approach to ethics that emphasizes an individual's
character as the key element of ethical thinking, rather than
rules about the acts themselves or their consequences.
Main Strand of Virtue Ethics
1. Eudaimonism is a moral philosophy that defines right action
as that which leads to the "well-being" of the individual.

2. Ethics of Care is a feminist philosophical perspective that uses

a relational and context-bound approach toward morality and
decision making

3. Agent-Based Theory is a unitary normative theory according

to which the moral status of actions is entirely dependent upon the
moral status of an agent's motives and character traits.
Principles of Virtue Ethics
Virtue Ethics Teaches:
• An action is only right if it is an action that a virtuous person
would carry out in the same circumstances.
• A virtuous person is a person who acts virtuously.
• A person acts virtuously if they "possess and live the virtues.
• A virtue is a moral characteristic that a person needs to live
well.
List of Virtue Ethics
Traditional List Modern List
• Prudence • Justice
• Justice • Fidelity
• Fortitude / Bravery • Self-care
• Temperance • Prudence
Modern List
Justice requires us to treat all human beings equally and impartially.
Fidelity requires that we treat people closer to us with special care.
Self-care have different ways to execute which each of us have a
unique responsibility to care for ourselves, affectively, mentally,
physically, and spiritually.
Prudence must always consider Justice, Fidelity and Self-care. The
prudent person must always look for opportunities to acquire more
of the other three virtues
Good Points of Virtue Ethics
• It centers ethics on the person and what it means
to be human

• It includes the whole of a person's life

Bad Points of Virtue Ethics
• It doesn't provide clear guidance on what to do in
moral dilemmas
• There is no general agreement on what the virtues are
Summary
• Virtue ethics is a moral theory that emphasizes the role of an
individual's character and virtues in evaluating the rightness
of actions.
• Virtue ethics is the rival of consequentialism and deontology.
• Virtue ethics provide sufficient guidance as what a good
person would be.
• virtue ethics is focused on character rather than on specific
actions.
Summary
• Virtue ethics also strongly emphasizes that individuals can be
trained in the virtues so that they develop excellent habits of
mind.
• Virtue ethics mainly deals with the honesty and morality of a
person. It guides a person without specific rules for resolving
the ethical complexity.
• Virue ethics shows that goodness is prior to rightness
References
• https://ethicsunwrapped.utexas.edu/glossary/virtue-ethics
• https://study.com/academy/lesson/virtue-ethics-principles-application-
examples.html
• http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/introduction/virtue.shtml
• https://www.iep.utm.edu/virtue/#H3
• https://www.philosophybasics.com/branch_virtue_ethics.html
• https://bigthink.com/scotty-hendricks/virtue-ethics-the-moral-system-you-have-
never-heard-of-but-have-probably-used
• http://people.wku.edu/jan.garrett/ethics/virtthry.htm
• https://oxfordre.com/internationalstudies/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780190846626.0
01.0001/acrefore-9780190846626-e-107
Quizzzzzzzzzz Time!
Answer the following questions
1. Where is the origin of
Virtue Ethics?
2-4. What are the three branches of
normative ethics?
5. What is virtue ethics?
 6. It is a feminist philosophical
perspective that uses a relational and
context-bound approach toward
morality and decision making
 7. A moral philosophy that defines
right action as that which leads to the
"well-being" of the individual.
8. An ethics which the moral status of
actions is entirely dependent upon
the moral status of an agent's motives
and character traits
9-10. Give two principles of virtue ethics
 11. Which virtue states that a person
must always look for opportunities to
acquire more of the other three virtues?
12. Which virtue requires that we treat
people closer to us with special care?
13. Which virtue requires us to treat all
human beings equally and impartially?
14. Give 1 good point of virtue ethics.
15. Give 1 bad point of virtue ethics.
 16-20. Essay Form.
Compare Meta-Ethics, Applied Ethics and
Normative Ethics
 21-25. Using Venn diagram, show the
similarities and differences of
consequentialism, deontology and virtue ethics.
Pass your papers