Ethics

Module I
Overview, Definition, and Division of Ethics

Scope of the Module:

This module consists of three lessons, namely:
Lesson 1. Place of Ethics in Philosophy
Lesson 2. The Imperatives of Ethics
Lesson 3. The Ultimate Purposes of Human Life

Overview of the Module:

This module is designed to provide you with a clear knowledge and understanding
of what ethics is and the postulates necessary for its study. The module also helps the
individual to determine the ultimate purpose of his life or of human life in general. It
differentiates human acts from acts of men. It gives a brief description of the four
schools of philosophy as fields of decisions from which man chooses.

Objectives of the Module:

After studying this module on the overview, definition, and division of
ethics, you shall be able to:
1. give the definition and division of ethics as well as its place in the
schools of philosophy;
2. explain why there ought to be three imperatives of ethics or postulates
of ethics whether one is a Christian or Hindu or Taoist; and
3. demonstrate understanding of what constitutes the happiness of man.

1
Module I

Lesson 1. PLACE OF ETHICS IN PHILOSOPHY

Lesson Objectives:
After having studied this lesson on the place of ethics in philosophy, the student
shall be able to:
1. give in writing the etymological and classical definitions of philosophy;
2. gain insight on why philosophy differs from other disciplines; and
3. demonstrate knowledge on general ethics and special ethics.

Terms as Defined in the Given Selection

1. definition of philosophy — from two Greek words: philos-friend;
sophia-wisdom philosophy-a friend of wisdom. It investigates the last
or ultimate cause of things.
2. classical definition — science which studies the final reasons for the
occurrence of things.
3. ethics — Greek ethos - a study of human customs or ways of doing
things ... a practical science of the morality of human acts.
4. general ethics — what an individual ought to do to live a happy and
fruitful life in this world.
5. morality — the quality of goodness or badness of a human act.
6. special ethics — the individual as a member of society.
7. the six disciples of philosophy
a. metaphysics - a study of the nature of the real world
b. theodicy - relates to the vindication of the ways of God
c. psychology - a study of man, particularly his mind, why he behaves
the way hedoes.
d. epistemology - a study of the world.
 e. ethics - a study of human customs or ways of doing things in a
systematic body of knowledge to guide men in their
pursuit of the good and happy life.
f. logic - the method of philosophy that fosters clarity of thinking
and effective communication.

Ethics is part of Philosophy. It is one of the six (or seven) parts that constitute
the discipline of philosophy.
Philosophy comes from two Greek words philos, meaning "friend," and sophia,
meaning "wisdom," hence the etymological definition of philosophy is "friend of
wisdom."
The classical definition of philosophy is that it is the science which studies the
final or ultimate reasons of all things. Over the centuries, however, this definition has
undergone different variations.
Philosophy differs from other disciplines in that philosophy always seeks the final
or ultimate reason of things, whereas other disciplines are only interested in proximate
or near reasons. For example, once a medical doctor discovers the reason for one's
illness, and prescribes the proper medicine, he rests his case. Or, once a mechanical
engineer finds that the locomotive runs because of wheels, his job is finished. Or the
biologist or the zoologist, upon discovering the behavior of plants and animals
respectively, they would have satisfied the requirements of their disciplines.
Philosophy, on the other hand, pursues the process of investigation until it
reaches the final or ultimate reasons. The philosopher pursues the reasoning
regarding illness until he reaches the last or ultimate reason, namely; man's
susceptibility to disease and his mortality. He further investigates why the wheels
of the locomotive run, and discovering that coal turns the wheels, he continues to
inquire why coal is able to do this, and finally discovering that coal is the product
of many years of decaying vegetable and animal matter. Unlike the biologist or
the zoologist who are satisfied by the knowledge of the behavior of plants and
animals respectively, the philosopher does not stop the process of reasoning until
it reaches the ultimate reason why plants and animals indeed act in that way. This
is why the philosopher is often called a wise man because he is able to discover
deeper or more fundamental reasons behind them.
Philosophy differs from religion or theology. Religion bases its truth on
faith, whereas philosophy accepts truths on the basis of reason. Sometimes
philosophy and religion may have the same subject matter such as God and the
afterlife, but the method of studying these topics differs. Philosophy proves the
existence or non-existence of God by way of logic and argumentation, whereas
religion assumes that God exists. For religion therefore, the existence of God is
an assumption, but for Philosophy it has to pass the test of reason. This is why
some thinkers are able to prove God's existence and some others are not able to.
Those who fail to prove the existence of God are called atheists. Those who fail
either way to prove the existence or non-existence of God are called agnostics.
The word "ethics" is derived from the Greek word ethos, meaning a
characteristic way of doing things, or a body of customs. From the etymology
of the word, one understands ethics to be a study of human customs or ways of
doing things.
Ethics is defined as the science of the morality of human acts. It is a
science because it is a systematic body of knowledge meant to guide men in
their pursuit of the good and happy life. Ethics is therefore a practical science;
it is not a speculative science that merely theorizes. Ethics is meant to be applied,
that is, it teaches how men ought to live.
Morality is the quality of goodness or badness of human acts. It is also the
rightness or wrongness of human acts as they conform or not to standards.
Human acts are those that are done with full knowledge and full willingness or
deliberation. Acts that are done without full knowledge or full willingness or
deliberation or both are termed acts of man. (See Chapter IV).
Human acts must conform to a standard to determine whether they are good or
bad, right or wrong, moral or immoral. This standard will be explained further in
Module 2.
Ethics can be divided into two: General Ethics and Special Ethics.
General Ethics concerns the individual and what he ought is to do to live a
happy and fruitful life in this world. Special Ethics concerns the individual as a
member of society. All problems concerning society and the social order are
taken up in Special Ethics.
 Philosophy is an extremely pure and abstract science as seen in the following
schools of phisolophy (Ryan/Cooper; pp.76-89, 1998)
1. Perrenialism — views nature, particularly human nature as constant.
Truth is constant and changeless and the intellect is nourished only by
truth. The rules that govern the world and the characteristics that make
up human nature stay the same. Immersion in great works and ideas
of the past aids man in reaching the perrenialist's goal which is a state
of human excellence characterized by enlightenment and goodness.
2. Progressivism — views nature as being influx, as ever-changing.
Knowledge must continually be refined and rediscovered. It views
the mind as a problem solver. It views the school as a small, democratic
society, a place where people are not simply preparing for life but are
living it. The problem solving activities involve community problems
and issues. Thus knowledge should be used to redesign the world.
3. Essentialism has its philosophical origins in two older philosophies:

a. Idealism - it takes as the view of the mind as the central element

of reality...that the mind is the tool for learning the
essential ideas and knowledge needed for an
individual to live well.
b. Realism - views that the mind learns through contact with the
physical world. Essentialists are practical and
pragmatic. They value the past but are not captured
by it. They believe that what is relevant is what helps
one invidividual live well.

4. Existentialism believes that man should not accept any

predetermined creed and from this, try to define who he is. He has to
take as his own responsibility to determine who he is...that whatever
meaning a person can make of life has to be his own or her own
meaning...that he is responsible for what he does and what he is.
Philosophy 2
Module I
Lesson 1

SELF-PROGRESS CHECK TEST

A. Enumeration: Write your answer on the blank before each number.

______________1. The two Greek words which are the bases of the
______________2. etymological definition of philosophy.
______________3. The two divisions of ethics
______________4.
______________5. The four schools of philosophy
______________6.
______________7.
______________8.
______________9. The school of philosophy that views man as a problem-
solver and therefore he learns by doing.
_____________10. The school of philosophy that views man as responsible
for what he does and what he is.

B. Match Column B with Column A. On the blank before each number,

write the letter representing your answer.

Column A Column B
______1. Philosophy a. the science of philosophy of human
action
______2. logic b. the quality of goodness or badness
of human acts
______3. general ethics c. pursues the process of investigation
until it reaches the final or ultimate
reason
______4. special ethics d. a method in philosophy
______5. philosopher e. what the individual ought to do for his
own happiness
______6. morality f. how an individual should live as a
member of society
______7. human act g. done with full knowledge, willingness
and deliberation
______8. acts of man h. done without full knowledge,
willingness and deliberation
______9. ethics i. a study of man, particularly his mind
_____10. psychology j. a study of God
l. a wise man because he is able to
discover deeper on fundamental
reasons behind occurrences.