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Ethics Notes

The document provides an overview of ethics as a branch of philosophy, detailing its various branches including descriptive ethics, normative ethics, and deontological ethics. It discusses key concepts such as virtue ethics, moral absolutism, and divine command theory, along with contributions from philosophers like Plato, Aristotle, and Kant. The main focus is on the study of morality, right action, and the principles that guide ethical behavior in society.

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Jerica Napay
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2 views

Ethics Notes

The document provides an overview of ethics as a branch of philosophy, detailing its various branches including descriptive ethics, normative ethics, and deontological ethics. It discusses key concepts such as virtue ethics, moral absolutism, and divine command theory, along with contributions from philosophers like Plato, Aristotle, and Kant. The main focus is on the study of morality, right action, and the principles that guide ethical behavior in society.

Uploaded by

Jerica Napay
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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ETHICS which corresponds to the

traditional
- division of philosophy into:
Introduction to Ethics and formal, natural, moral
Different Branch and philosophy.
Advocacies in Ethics
Ethics
This can be turned into:
- is the philosophical study of
1. a general study of goodness,
morality.
2. right action,
- is one of the main branch of
3. applied ethics,
philosophy which
4. meta-ethics,
corresponds to the
5. moral psychology
traditional
6. metaphysics of moral
- division of philosophy into
responsibility.
formal, natural and moral
philosophy.
- The general study of goodness
- It can be turned into a
and right action is the main task
general study of goodness,
of ethics.
right action, applied ethics,
- meta-ethics, moral
Branches of Ethics:
psychology and
metaphysics of moral
1. Descriptive Ethics :
responsibility.
- It deals with what people
- The general study of
actually believes to be right
goodness and right action is
or wrong.
the main task of ethics.
- It has correlatively its
- It evaluates human actions
substantive question as;
on the basis of law and
1. How are we rational
customs.
beings?
2. What moral
- The societies have
principles should
structured their moral
govern our choice and
principles which are not
pursuit?
forever.
Meaning of Ethics:
- They change from time to
- is derived from the Greek
time and expect people to
word ‘ethos’ which means
behave accordingly.
Ethics is the philosophical
- study of morality.
Descriptive Ethics
- It is one of the main
- called as comparative
branches of philosophy
ethics, because it compares
the ethics of past and - these are all the typical
present. examples of Normative ethics.

- It also has some inputs from Virtue Ethics :


other disciplines such as; - The foundation of virtue
a. Anthropology; ethics was laid by Plato,
b. Psychology whose argument attempts
c. Sociology to
d. History - define justice as one
interlocutor proposes.
- to explain the moral - He said that justice and
rightness and wrongness. other 19 virtue as harmony
of the soul i.e. interior
- quality is independent of
any action.
Ethics:
- deals with norms that Aristotle - presents virtue as a
teaches how one should act mean between two vices (i.e.
and behave in society. bravery and generosity between
- called as Prescriptive Ethics. miserliness). Generosity between
miserliness and prodigality.
The ultimate principles of
‘Normative Ethics’ s doing to According to Plato - the internal
other as we want them qualities and brave man can be
to do to us. brave even if he
never has opportunity to show it.
Normative Ethics: anticipates
rational justification and teaches Aristotle does what he calls habbit
a lesson to a person who really of virtue. The idea is that
disturbs the social and moral someone who doesn’t have
order. correct virtue, internal disposition
might attain it gradually through
- The ultimate principle is doing to practice.
other as we want them to do to - He who is not naturally
us. generous can nonetheless
1. Aristotle ‘Virtue ethics’, practice and giving to the
2. Kant’s ‘Deontological poor
ethics’, - and eventually, to give and
3. Mill’s ‘Consequenlialism’ thus become generous.
and; - Through practice acquire a
4. Bhagwadgita’s hobbit or instinct s Aristotle
‘Nishkam’s Karmayoga’ - identified some of
- the moral virtues including
wisdom.
- Plato, Aristotle, Thomas
Aquinas were the major
advocates of virtue ethics.

2. Deontology Ethics/ Duty


Ethics :
- It focuses on rightness and
wrongness of the action rather
than consequences of those
actions.

Different Deontological theories:


1. categorical imperative
theory
2. moral absolutism theory
3. divine command theory
1. Immanuel Kant’s
Categorical Imperative: The - As per this theory, the
most famous deontology theory rightness of any action
depends upon that action
- The moral rules as per Kant being performed because it
follow from two principles is duty, not because of any
1. Principle of good consequences arising
Universality from that action.
2. Principle of reciprocity
4. Consequential and
- By Universality he meant Teleological Ethics:
that a moral law must be
possible to apply it to all - It says that morality of an
people. action is contingent with the
outcome of that action
- By principle of reciprocity
he meant “do as you would
be done by’. Such promise
of morality is found in all
religious system, including
Hinduism, Islam,
Christianity, Judaism,
Buddhism etc.

2. Moral Absolutism: The


Second deontological theory

- It believe that there are


absolute standards against
which moral question can
be judged.

- Against these standards


certain action are right
while others are wrong
regardless of the content of
the art.

- For example, theft is wrong.


It ignores that sometime
wrong act is done to reach
out a right consequences.

3. Divine Command Theory:


Third deontological theory

- It says that an action is


right if God has decreed it
to be right.

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