Chapter One

Ethics and Ethical Reasoning

Why Study Ethics/What is
Ethics
 Why study ethics?
 There are differing views of moral rights and
wrongs.
 Matters are not always easy to judge.
 What is ethics?
 The set of values or principles held by individuals
or groups
 A study of the various sets of values that people
have
 Ethics is a branch of philosophy: moral
philosophy.
 Normative ethics
 Metaethics
 Philosophical questions can be asked about many
subjects.
Ethical Evaluation and Terms
Ethicaland Other Types of
Evaluation
 Descriptive judgments
 Normative judgments
 Differences between the two
 Ethical Terms
 Right/Wrong
 Good/Bad
 Ought/Ought not
 Hume’s Law/Naturalistic Fallacy
Ethical Reasoning and Arguments
Ethics and Reasons
 Inituitionism, emotivism
 Objectivist, subjectivist
Structure
of Ethical Reasoning and
Arguments
 Premises
 Conclusions
Evaluating and Making Good Arguments
 Soundness
 Value-based claims
 Conceptual matters
 Factual assertions
Ethical Theory
Connection among ethical theory,
ethical principles, and ethical
judgments: ladder structure
Types of ethical theory:
consequentialist vs.
nonconsequentialist
Can ethics be taught?
Matter of knowledge and motivation