UNIT 2:

FOUNDATION OF THE PRINCIPLES OF

BUSINESS ETHICS

LESSON 3:
Classical Philosophies and the
Evolution of Business Ethics
OBJECTIVES
 Describe the classical philosophies of Socrates, Plato and
Aristotle.
 Discuss the meaning of Virtue ethics
 Trace the History of Business Ethics
Socrates

Plato

Aristotle
 SOCRATES
 Born in 469 B.C.
 Son of a Mason and sculptor.
 Credited as one of the founders of
Western philosophy, and as being
the first moral philosopher of the
western ethical tradition of
thought.
 Father of Ethics
SOCRATES
 One of his most important
contribution to Western thought is
his dialectic method of inquiry,
known as the Socratic method,
which he largely applied to the
examination of key moral concepts
such as the Good and Justice.
 Focus on giving the students
questions rather than answer.
 SOCRATES

 Self-knowledge is sufficient to achieve a good life.

 Virtue can be taught just like knowledge.
 True happiness is gained by doing what is right.
 Knowledge is the propagation of what is good, a virtue, or excellence;
whereas ignorance is the focus on what is bad, evil and not useful.
 We are responsible for what we know and what we do not know.
 PLATO
 Born In 427 B.C.
 A philosopher in Classical Greece
and the founder of the Academy in
Athens, the first institution of higher
learning in the Western world. He is
widely considered the most pivotal
figure in the development of
philosophy, especially the Western
tradition.
ARISTOTLE
 An ancient Greek philosopher and scientist.
 His writings cover many subjects – including physics, biology,
zoology, metaphysics, logic, ethics, aesthetics, poetry, theatre,
music, rhetoric, psychology, linguistics, politics and government –
and constitute the first comprehensive system of Western
philosophy.
VIRTUE ETHICS
 Virtue
 Comes from the word arete, means
excellence.

 In ancient Greek philosophy did not

include moral virtues, therefore, an
excellent human should include
moral virtues in order to achieve
happiness.
VIRTUE ETHICS
 Defined as a person based ethics which looks at the moral character
of the person carrying out a particular action.
 Focus on helping people become good members of society.
ACTIVITY
 Express in any form (song, dance, poem, skit, drawing, etc.)
what have you understand in the statement below:

“Virtue Ethics does not focus on the rules to follow but the
development of good traits which will help the person make
decisions in life.”
 HISTORY OF BUSINESS ETHICS
 Aristotle
 Fair treatment
 John Locke
 Defense of property as a natural right
 Adam Smith
 Common good is associated with values
 John Stuart Mill
 Immanuel Kant
 G.W.F Hegel
 Contributors to the emergence of Business Ethics
 John Rawls
 Propagated the difference principle
 Equality in Society
OBJECTIVES
 Describe the classical philosophies of Socrates, Plato and
Aristotle.
 Discuss the meaning of Virtue ethics
 Trace the History of Business Ethics
Assignment

BUSINESS ETHICS AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

 Answer page 34-35
 Key words
 Review questions