Chapter 2

The Philosophical Foundation

of Ethics
hapter Outline
1. Consequentialism and Nonconsequentialism

2. Ethical Egoism

3. Utilitarianism

4. Kant Moral Theory

5. Natural Law Theory

6. Virtue Ethics
Chapter Objectives
After studying this chapter, you should be able to:

Define the consequentialist (teleological and

nonconsequentialist (deontological) views of
morality.
Differentiate psychological egoism from ethical
egoism, and explain both theories.
Distinguish the three types of ethical egoism.
Describe and critically analyze the two main
consequentialist theory, ethical egoism and
utilitarianism.
Distinguish between the two type of utilitarianism.
Introduction – Ethical Theory

Ethical Theory - defined:

• A systematic exposition or explanation of a particular
view about what is the nature and basis of good or
right.

Ethical Theory – Importance:

1. Provides reasons or norms for judging act to be right or
wrong and attempts to give justification for these
norms.

2. Provides ethical principles or guidelines that embody

certain values, that can be used to decide in particular
cases what action should be chosen and carried out.
Introduction – Ethical Theory… Cont’d
The relationship between ethical theories
and moral decision making:
3.
1. Ultimately and
Clarifying for ideally, we come to a
ourselves what we Ethical Theory basic justification, or
think are basic the elements of what
ethical values would be ethical
theory

2.
2.
We identify the
Trying to think
principles generated Ethical Principle through our own value
from the theory

1.
3. Facing a particular
We use the principle ethical choice or
to make ethical Ethical Judgment dilemma, we don’t
moral judgment know what we ought
to do
Introduction – Ethical Theory… Cont’d

Basis (Terms) that Theories Judge Actions

1. MOTIVES behind that

THREE (3)
TERMS TO JUDGE 2. ACT itself
ACTIONS

3. CONSEQUENCES of the act

Introduction – Ethical Theory… Cont’d

Three Terms to Judge Actions

MOTIVES:
What is the person’s intention
to do something
to the attitude object
(GOOD or BAD)
ACT:
What is the impact
of the person’ action
to the attitude object
(GOOD or BAD)

CONSEQUENCES:
What is the result or outcome
of the action
to the attitude object
(GOOD or BAD)
Introduction – Ethical Theory… Cont’d

Four Types of Morality Theories

4 1
Consequentalist
Contractarianism
Theories
(Not in syllabus)
(Person’s Motives)
4
TYPES OF
MORALITY THEORIES
2
3 Naturalistic
Care/Feminist Ethics Ethical Theory
(Human Nature)
1. Consequentialism & Nonconsequentialism
Theories of Morality:

Consequentalist
Theories that base
moral judgment
whether good or bad
on consequences

Consequentialist
Theories
Nonconsequentalist
Theories that hold that
actions can be right or wrong
regardless
of their consequences
1. Consequentialism & Nonconsequentialism… cont’d
CONSEQUENTALIST:

• Also known as teleological moral theory.

• The word teleo is the Greek word telos means goal or

end.

• This theories propose a person’s motive is relevant to

the overall moral judgment, and it reflect the moral
evaluation of the person. Thus, what we do and how
we act counts morally.

• Hence, actions can be right or wrong based on the

consequences or the outcomes of the actions.
1. Consequentialism & Nonconsequentialism… cont’d
NONCONSEQUENTALIST:

• Also known as deontological moral theory.

• The word deon is the Greek word means duty.

• This theories hold that action can be right or wrong

regardless of their consequences, therefore
consequences do not, should not, enter into our
judging of whether actions or people are moral or
immoral.

• Hence what is moral and immoral is decided upon the

basis of some standard or standards of morality other
than consequences.
2. Ethical Egoism
Egoism:
• A study of what people are like.

Psychological Egoism:
• Is not an ethical theory.
• A scientific, descriptive approach to egoism.
• To explain the differences between how people DO ACT and how
they SHOULD ACT.
• It is believed that people are basically selfish – e.g. a person may
do anything to ensure they attain good health, career prestige
and satisfaction, fine family and friends etc.
• Can be divided into two (2) forms:
1. The strong form – people always act in their own self-interest – and they
are psychologically constructed to do so
2. The weak form – people often, but not always, act in their own self-
interest.
• However, sometimes people may tolerate short-term gain for
long-term benefits, or they may appear to be concerned to others
for their sake.
2. Ethical Egoism
Argument to Discount Psychological Egoism:

• People do not always do what is best for them – e.g. eat too
much, choose the wrong career, waste time, etc.

• People sometime do not even know what are best for them – they
do not have sufficient knowledge to be good judges of what is in
their best interest.

• Human beings vary so much in the thoughts, feelings, motives,

and reasons for their actions, hence it is presumptuous to assume
that everyone “always” thinks, feels, is motivated, or reasons in
one way to the exclusion of others.

• There are proves that some people willing to sacrifice for others.
2. Ethical Egoism
Ethical Egoism:
• A philosophical-normative (prescriptive) theory of egoism.
• People may be self-interest but not selfish – e.g. it is for the people
self-interest not to be selfish because they believe that they may lost
family and friends if being selfish.
• Can take three (3) forms:
1. Individual Ethical Egoism – everyone ought to act in my best self-interest.
2. Personal Ethical Egoism – I ought to act in my own self-interest, but that I make
no claims about what anyone else ought to do.
3. Universal Ethical Egoism – everyone should always act in his/her own best self
interest, regardless of the interests of others, unless their interests also serve his
or hers.
• However there are problems with individual and personal ethical
egoism because they apply only to one individual and cannot be laid
down for humanity in general.
• Then Universal Ethical Egoism is the more popular version and
commonly presented by egoist because the theory is claimed can be
apply to all human beings.
1. Consequentialism & Nonconsequentialism… cont’d
Theories of Morality:
3. Utilitarianism
Introduction:
• Founded by Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mills.
• Derived its name from the word utility which means usefulness.

Concepts & Definitions:

• The believe that an act is right (moral) if it is useful in bringing
about a desirable or good end.
• Hence, everyone should perform that act or follow that moral
rule that will bring about the greatest good (or happiness) for
everyone concerned)
• The moral theory emphasizes that we ought to produce the most
happiness and pleasure that we can, and reduce suffering and
unhappiness.
• To compare the benefits and costs of each alternative that we
have.
• The easiest and closest theory to common sense.
3. Utilitarianism (cont’d)

TWO (2) forms of Utilitarianism: Act Utilitarianism

Everyone should perform
that act which will bring about
The greatest amount of good
over bad for everyone
affected by the act

Utilitarianism
Rule Utilitarianism
Everyone should always
establish and follow that rules
That will bring about
the greatest good
for all concerned
3. Utilitarianism (cont’d)
Act Utilitarianism vs. Rule Utilitarianism
Aspects Act Utilitarianism
Rule Unnecessary because each
Formulation in situation and each person are
Advance (on different
people’s action)
Responsibility Individual must assess the
on action situation he or she is involved
and try to figure out which act
would bring about the greatest
amount of good
consequences with the least
amount of consequences, not
only for himself (as in egoism)
but for everyone involved in
the situation.
Rule Utilitarianism
Necessary to be prepared in
advance to be the guidelines
for people’s action.
Everyone should follow the
rules that will bring the
greatest number of good
consequences for all
concerned. Individual will be
held responsible for acting the
rule. E.g. the rule of never kill
except in self-defense.
3. Utilitarianism (cont’d)

Act Utilitarianism vs. Rule Utilitarianism

Aspects Act Utilitarianism Rule Utilitarianism
Requirement for No absolute rules against killing, Absolute rules in almost all things for
absolute rules & stealing, lying etc. – the action can be the people well beings.
Example moral or immoral based on the
situation.
Telling the Truth – the person must
decide whether telling the truth is the
right thing to do in this situation at this
time.

Criticisms 1. Difficulty of determining 1. Difficulty of determining

consequences for others – no
time or opportunities to ask, so
we have io act in the best way
we can think of.
2. Impracticality to begin anew in
each situation, and decide what
will be moral in that situation.
3. Impossible to educate the
young and inexperienced to act
morally without rules or
guidance provided.
consequences for others –
especially with the human
diversity, and dealing with so
many actions and situations.
2. Some areas might not be
covered unless we have
referred cases about that.
1. Consequentialism & Non-consequentialism… cont’d

Theories of Morality:
CONSEQUENTIALIST
Intuitionist Divine Command Kant’s Duty Ethics
THEORIES OF MORALITY
Psychological Egoism
NONCONSE
CONSEQUE
QUENTIALIRul
ANTIALIST Act
In ST e
Non
di
Ethi Utili Non
con
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cal tari con
Ac seq
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Ego anis seq
t uen
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al m uen
Ut tiali
Et tiali
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hi st
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Pe an
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rs is
Eg R
on m
oi ul
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s e
Et
m Ut
hi
ilit
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U ari
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Eg
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Nonconsequentialism
NONCONSEQUENTALIST:

• Also known as deontological moral theory.

• The word deon is the Greek word means duty.

• This theories hold that action can be right or wrong regardless of

their consequences, therefore consequences do not, should not,
enter into our judging of whether actions or people are moral or
immoral.

• Hence what is moral and immoral is decided upon the basis of

some standard or standards of morality other than consequences,
e.g. the moral commands provided by supernatural being –
because such a being is all-good.
Nonconsequentialism (cont’d)
TWO (2) forms of
Nonconsequentialist Theories:
Nonconsequentialist
Theories
Act
Nonconsequentialist
Assume that there are no
general moral theories at all
(Intuitionist)
Rule
Nonconsequentialist
Believe that there are or can be
rules as basis for morality
(Divine Command &
Kant’s Duty Ethics)
Act Nonconsequentialist Theories
Introduction:
• Make the major assumption that there are no general moral rules or
theories at all.
• Hence, any particular actions, situations, and people can not be
generalized.
• In short, we must approach each situation individually as one of a kind
and somehow decide what is the right action to take in that situation.

Concepts:
• Decisions are “intuitionistic” – since there is no rules or standards, a
person will base his/her decision on what he/she believes or feels or
intuits as the right action to take.
• Highly individualistic – he/she must decide what he/she feels is the right
thing to do, and then do it – thing that make he/she feels good.
• No concern on consequences whether to the situations or other people
involved.
• Morality is not based on reasons and cannot be rationalized.
Act Nonconsequentialist Theories

Arguments for Intuitionism:

1. Any well-meaning persons seems to have immediate sense of right and
wrong.
2. Human beings had moral ideas and sincerity long before philosophers
created ethics as a formal study.
3. Our reasoning upon moral matters usually is used to confirm our more
direct perceptions or “intuitions”.
4. Our reasoning can go wrong in relation to moral issues, then we must fall
back upon our moral insights and intuitions.

Arguments against Intuitionism:

5. People consider ‘intuitions” as wild guess or irrational inspirations.
6. There is no prove that we have inborn or innate set of moral rules.
7. Intuitions differ from one person to another.
8. Human being without moral intuition either have no ethics or have to
establish their ethics on the other ground.
Act Nonconsequentialist Theories

Criticism of Act Nonconsequentalism:

Debate over conflicting intuitions among people – nobody has the right to
say other person’s intuition as wrong, hence the theory of morality based
on intuition is highly questionable.

• Difficulty to ensure what we intuit will be morally correct, without no

other guides.
• Difficulty to determine whether we have sufficient facts to make a moral
decisions.
• Difficult to ensure we are doing the best thing for anyone else involved in
the situation With morality so highly individualized,.
• Difficulty to justify our moral decisions by relying solely on our
momentary feelings.
• Difficulty to justify our actions except by saying “Well, it felt like the
right thing for me to do…”
Nonconsequentialism (cont’d)

TWO (2) forms of Act

Nonconsequentialist Theories: Nonconsequentialist
Assume that there are no
general moral theories at all
(Intuitionist)

Nonconsequentialist
Theories Rule
Nonconsequentialist
Believe that there are or can be
rules as basis for morality
(Divine Command &
Kant’s Duty Ethics)
Rule Nonconsequentialist Theories
• A believe that there are or can be rules as the only
basis for morality (and the consequences do not
matter).

• It is following the rules (the right moral command)

matters in judging the actions or people as moral or
immoral.

• The popular Rule Nonconsequentialist Theories are:

1. Divine Command Theory
2. Kant’s Moral Theory or Kant’s Duty Ethics
Rule Nonconsequentialist Theories – Divine Command Theory

Concepts:
• States that morality is based not upon the con sequences of actions or rules, nor
upon self-interest or other-interestedness, but rather upon something “higher”
than these mere mundane or ordinary events of the imperfect human or natural
worlds.
• In fact, it is based upon the existence of an all-good being or beings who are
supernatural and who have communicated to human beings what they should and
should not do in a moral sense.
• In order to be moral, then, human being must follow the commands and
prohibitions of such being or beings, without any concern or consideration to the
consequences, self-interest, or anything else.

Criticisms:
1. Lack of rational foundation for the existence of the supernatural being.
2. Lack of proof to support the capability of the supernatural being in providing the
complete or entirety of good ethical system.
3. Difficulty to prove that the supernatural being is morally trustworthy.
4. Question on the validity for those with no trust of supernatural beings.
5. Question whether human beings have the capability to interpret all the
supernatural commands correctly.
4. Rule Nonconsequentialist Theories – Kant’s Moral Theory

Introduction:
• Also known as Duty Ethics or Kant’s Duty Ethics.
• Formulated by Immanuel Kant (1724 – 1804).

Concepts & Definitions:

• The believe that nothing was good in itself except good will.
• Will is defined as the uniquely human ability to act in accordance with
moral rules, laws, or principles regardless of interests and consequences.
• Reasoning alone is possible to set up absolute moral values as that the
mathematical truths, that should be logically consistent and no self-
contradictory, and must be universalizable.
• There are two ways of evaluating whether an act is moral or immoral:
1. The Categorical Imperative – An act is immoral if the rule that
would authorize it cannot be made into a rule for all human beings
to follow.
2. The Practical Imperative – No human being should be thought of or
used merely as a means for someone’s else end but rather that
each human being is a unique end in himself or herself.
Rule Nonconsequentialist Theories – Kant’s Moral Theory

Duty rather than inclination:

• According to Kant’s Duty Ethics, once moral rules have been discovered
to be absolutes, human beings must obey them out of their sense of duty
rather than follow their inclinations.

Criticisms:
1. Kant does not inform which rules are morally valid, while the rules
become inconsistent when universalized.
2. Kant never showed how to resolve conflict between equally absolute
values.
3. Kant did not distinguish between making an exception to a rule and
qualifying a rule.
4. Kant seems to have emphasized duties over inclinations.
Introduction – Ethical Theory… Cont’d

Four Types of Morality Theories

4 1
Consequentalist
Contractarianism
Theories
(Not in syllabus)
(Person’s Motives)
4
TYPES OF
MORALITY THEORIES
2
3 Naturalistic
Care/Feminist Ethics Ethical Theory
(Human Nature)
Care Ethics
Introduction:
• Also known as Feminist Ethics.
• Established by Carol Gilligan (1936 - ) in her book In a Different Voice
(1982).
• Fit better under consequentialism than nonconsequentialism.
Concepts & Definitions:
• Men and women think differently in the context off ethics.
• However, even though women’s views are different from men’s, it
supposed to be considered equal and not inferior (as argued by
Lawrence Kohlberg) that those of men’s.
• Men’s views on ethics have to do with justice, rights, competition, being
independent, and living by rules.
• Women’s view on ethics, in contrast, more towards generosity, harmony,
compromising, and working to maintain close relationship.
Criticisms:
• The theory considered women as normal and men as inferior.
• Deny women’s opportunities for outside work because of they cannot
understand justice.
• Disruption to gender equality.
5. Natural Law Theory
Concepts & Definitions:

• Natural Law or the Law of Nature is a theory that put forwards

the existence of a law whose contents is set by nature and that
therefore has validity everywhere.

• Some use natural synonymously with natural justice or natural

right, although most contemporary political and legal theorists
separate the two.

• Aristotle is often said to be the father of natural law.

• Natural Law ethics starts with the observation that many things in
nature (including us) act for purposes, rather than merely at
random.
5. Natural Law Theory (cont’d)
Aristotle’s Naturalism:

• What we ought to do is determined by our nature as a human

being ( what is essential for us to function).
• Everything has an order in nature.
• A principle of order within human that directed them towards
their goal, their mature final form.
• Natural beings come in species where their essential
characteristics and key tendencies/capacities flow.
• Human beings are natural beings with a specific human nature.
• Have certain specific characteristics and abilities as humans.
• Human beings can choose to do what is good or act against it.
5. Natural Law Theory (cont’d)
Perfecting Human Capacities:

• Aristotle’s ultimate good of human: happiness, blessedness &

prosperity
• Human is unique compared to other natural beings because of its
‘rational element’
• Good for human is when their functioning is consistent & guided
by rational element.
• Two (2) functions: 1. to know 2. To guide choice & action
• Unique to a person are the capacity to know, understand &
choose freely.
• A certain amount of discipline applies.
• The essence:
We ought to further the intrinsic ends of human nature and not
do what frustrates human fulfillment or flourishing
5. Natural Law Theory (cont’d)
Natural Rights:

• Certain things are essential for us if we are to functions as

human.
• Ability to pursue life and liberty brings happiness.
• These are said to be rights because they are important to us as
human beings/person.
• Natural rights in Western philosophy:
1. Follow reason rather than human emotion (a law subjecting man)
2. Moral law determined by the right reason
3. Voltaire: natural law…which nature teaches all men.
• Specify rights as a virtue of their human beings regardless of
origin, race & religion
• Discussion - Can nature provide the basis of knowing what human
ought to be?
6. Virtue Ethics
Concept and Definitions:

• Character-based ethics

• Aristotle is regarded as main virtue ethicist

• Latin word : VIR = Strength/ manliness

• Virtue = moral excellence, righteousness, responsibility, or other

exemplary qualities considered meritorious.

• Virtue = the state that enables a thing to perform its function

well

• Virtuous person = morally good person

6. Virtue Ethics (cont’d)
Concept and Definitions:
• Rather than focus on consequences, rules, and/or intuitions,
Virtues ethics focuses on the development of human character –
the shaping or molding of a good or “virtuous” person
• Emphasize the character of the moral agent, rather than rules or
consequences as the key element of ethical thinking – contrast
with consequentialism, which hold that the consequences of a
particular act form the basis for any valid moral judgment about
the action, and deontology, which derives rightness or wrongness
from the character of the act itself rather than the outcomes.
• Human beings have a capacity for goodness – which need to be
developed by practice based on emulation of (by following) the
moral decision making of the ideal virtuous human beings.
• Virtue is a mean, relative to us, between the two extremes of
excess and deficiency (or defect)
- e.g. too little courage is cowardice (fearfulness)… too much is
foolhardy (hotheaded, confrontational)
6. Virtue Ethics (cont’d)
Advantages of Virtue Ethics:

• Attempts to create good human being rather than good acts or

rules.

• Unifies reason and emotion while other ethical theories tend to

separate reason and emotion.

• Emphasizes moderation and situatedness rather than absolutes or

grossly relativistic principles.
6. Virtue Ethics (cont’d)
Disadvantages of Virtue Ethics:

• Do human beings have an end or purpose – and how can we prove

if there is any?

• Are morals naturally implanted, or are they learned through

experience?

• What is virtue, and what constitute a virtues – there is a wide

variety of opinion and how to decide which is the real virtue?

• Who is the ideal virtuous human being – and how to determine or

to prove this?
Past Exam Questions
1. Explain the two types of ethical theory.

2. Compare consequentalist and non-consequentalist theories in

relation to their methods in reasoning ethical matters.

3. Describe briefly the epistemology of ethics.

4. Predict any four implications of Divine Command Theory in

relation to the ethical conduct of man.

5. Compare and contrast the view of ethical egoism and

utilitarianism relating to the judgment of morality and ethical
matters.

6. Elaborate on any one of the non-consequentialist Moral Theory