AN OVERVIEW
WHAT AM I TO DO?
WHAT IS THE RIGHT
CHOICE?
IS IT RIGHT?
IS IT WRONG?
Might is right
Morals are mores
The individual is the measure
The human race is the basis of right
Right is moderation
Right is what brings pleasure
Right is the greatest good for the greater number
Right is what is desirable for it's own sake
Right is indefinable
Right is what God wills
Etymology Ethics from the greek “Ethos” Morals from the latin “Mos”
Which means: customs or practices
Morality refers to the rightness or wrongness of an action.
Ethics refers to the study concerned with what is morally good and bad, right and wrong
Encyclopedia Brittanica 1994-2002
Relativism Right or wrong, good or bad is variable and relative,
depending on the person, circumstance or social situation.
Cultural Relativism – Moral standards are a product of culture. What is right in one culture may be wrong in another.
Morality changes through time.
Secular HumanismEmphasis on the human. “A search for viable individual, social and
political principles of ethical conduct, judging them on their ability to enhance human well-being and individual responsibility”
- (Council for Secular Humanism)
Virtue Ethics: Happiness is achieved through the development of “good habits:” intellectual (for example knowledge) and practical action and emotion(for example courage).
“Golden Mean” –neither excess nor deficiency.Seeks to develop individual character. A good person will make a good decision.
What brings pleasure to an individual is what is good.
Ethical
Egoism:Focuses on the
pursuit of self-
interest in human
conduct.
Teleological Ethics From the Greek “telos” meaning “end” or “goal.” Concerned with the end-point or results of an
action
Consequentialism
ETHICAL SYSTEMS
Utilitarianism (Universal Hedonism)
The greatest good or happiness for the greatest number of people.
Deontology The good is found in the action itself and not based
on its consequences or results. Thus it is our duty to do the right action
Kantian Ethics “Act as if the principle on which your action is based
were to become a universal law of nature.”
Determinism Everything is caused and determined (even human
actions and choices) by previously existing causes that preclude free will and the possibility that humans could have acted otherwise. Fatalism Stoicism
Theonomous Ethics:Morality and religion
go together
Divine Command:Being good is doing whatever a sacred text tells you.
Christian Ethics:Looking at the person of Christ as the norm of all thoughts and actions.
Absolutism
It is not limited by exceptions or restrictions.
It is not to be doubted or questioned – positive, certain and unconditional.
Cultural absolutism There exists moral absolutes that do not vary from culture to
culture.
Might is right Relativism Hedonism / Egoism Absolutism
Morals are mores Cultural Relativism
The individual is the measure Relativism / Subjectivism Egoism
The human race is the basis of right Secular Humanism
Right is moderation Aristotle’s “Golden Mean”
Right is what brings pleasure Hedonism / Egoism
Right is the greatest good for the greater number Utilitarianism
Right is what is desirable for it's own sake Deontological Ethics
Right is indefinable Ethical Relativism Determinism
Right is what God wills Theonomous Ethics Absolutism
Ismael Ireneo Maningas. Filipino Christian Morality. St. Pauls, 1998.
Karl Peschke. Christian Ethics.
Professor Dean R. Bork. Fundamentals of Ethical Systems. Lecture Notes. http://www.lar.arch.vt.edu/Resources/courses/LAR-3034/Notes/Ethics.html
Louis D. Whitworth. Measuring Morality: A Comparison of Ethical Systems. Probe Ministries, 1995. http://www.leaderu.com/orgs/probe/docs/measmor.html
“Ethics” Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia Deluxe 2004.
“What is Secular Humanism?” Council for Secular Humanism. Last updated 8/11/2004. http://www.secularhumanism.org/intro/what.html
Asst. Prof. Donna Roman-Osicki
UST Institute of Religion