Ethical Thought

What does DCT stand for?

Divine Command Theory

What kind of theory is DCT?

Meta-ethical, universal, objective

Who is DCT for?

Theists, specifically Christians

What does DCT define is a good action?

Anything God commands as good

What does DCT define as a bad action?

Anything God commands as bad

Give a quote to support the idea that morality wouldn’t exist without God

“If God doesn’t exist, everything is permissible.”

Where can we find the source of DCT?

The Bible/scripture

Summarise the Euthyphro dilemma

• Created by Plato

• Challenges DCT

• Asks whether moral actions are moral because God commands them or if God commands moral actions because they are moral

Explain the 2 horns of the Euthyphro dilemma

• God is not omnipotent or the highest authority because God gets his moral code from something else

• OR morality is arbitrary because even when God commands things that seem bad like murder, it is right because God commanded it

How does Robert Adams try to escape the Euthyphro dilemma?

• He reframes it to be based on God’s nature of omnibenevolent, meaning he can’t commit a cruel action because it would go against his nature

Give 3 strengths of DCT

• Robert Adams’ defence to try to escape the Euthyphro dilemma

• Universal and objective - clear response to moral dilemmas

• Easily accessed through the Bible/scripture

Give 3 weaknesses of DCT

• Issues of progression eg. homosexuality in Bible vs today - DCT outdated?

• Pluralism objection: God’s commands conflict between religions and within them - which is correct?

• Unhelpful for atheists do not useful as a universal moral code

Who came up with Virtue Theory and in what book?

Aristotle in his book “Nichomachean Ethics”

What kind of theory is Virtue Theory?

Normative (it tells you how to act)

What is eudaimomia?

Human flourishing/happiness, end goal of DCT

Give the Greek words for virtue and wisdom

Arête and phronesis

What two categories does Aristotle split his virtues into?

Moral and intellectual

What is the most important virtue according to Aristotle?

Phronesis (wisdom)

What do we have to do to be a virtuous person and reach eudaimonia?

Practise being virtuous and make it habitual (education and good deeds)

Give a quote for the need to practise virtue

“For one swallow does not make a summer and so too one day, as a short time, doesn’t make a man blessed and happy.”

What are sophrons, akrates and enkrates?

• Sophrons: easily live in the Golden Mean

• Akrates: Struggle to live in the Golden Mean

• Enkrates: Sometimes struggle to live in the Golden Mean but overall manage

What is the Golden Mean?

Additional guide on how to behave with vices of excess and deficiency which tell us how to stay virtuous

Give a quote from Aristotle about the importance of making virtue habitual

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”

What is the Sermon on the Mount?

The speech Jesus gave outlining his Beatitudes

What is the end goal of being virtuous for Christians?

Going to heaven with God after death

How many virtues/beatitudes did Jesus outline?

Eight

Give a quote by Frankena that criticises Virtue Theory

“Virtues without principles are blind.”

Is VT agent or act centred? Explain your answer

Agent centred, because instead of focusing on what acts you should do it focuses on what kind of person you should become

Give 3 strengths of Virtue Theory

• Easily applicable due to Golden Mean - not all theoretical

• Inclusive to atheists as well as religious people

• Human flourishing is a universal goal

Give 3 weaknesses of Virtue Theory

• Cultural relativism - different virtues are important in different cultures

• Virtues can conflict eg. kindness and honesty

• Vague, what does it actually mean to be virtuous

Give the vice of deficiency and excess for courage

Deficiency - cowardice

Excess - foolhardiness

Give an example of cultural relativism

Virtue of modesty being important in Islamic culture but not in South American

What is altruism?

The idea that your moral code should be based on how it will benefit others and putting others before yourself

What is psychological egoism?

Humans inherently act out of self-interest. Even if we do something that will benefit others, there is some aspect of selfishness - stated by Epicuras

Who came up with Ethical Egoism and in what book?

Max Stirner in “The Ego and its Own”

What is Ethical Egoism and what kind of theory is it?

A normative ethical theory that we should act out of self-interest all the time

Give a quote by James Rachel about Ethical Egoism

“Ethical Egoism endorses selfishness, but it does not endorse foolishness.”

What does Rachel’s quote suggest?

You should do what will benefit you the most in the long term and don’t commit foolish actions in the short term

What does Stirner say about psychological egoism?

Psychological egoism says we should act out of self-interest but Stirner says we can’t due to society’s restrictions

What is a Bible quote that could relate to EE and why?

“Treat others how you want to be treated.”

• We only treat people with kindness because we expect the same back, making it selfish

What does Stirner call the restraints and obligations society puts on us, and give examples of them

Spooks, eg. religion, morality, law

What does Stirmer suggest as a way to preserve society?

Union of Egoists

• No hierarchy or obligation

• Working together to achieve goals

• Can leave when it no longer serves you

Give 3 strengths of Ethical Egoism

• Focusing on self-development to improve as a person

• Psychological egoism says we are already this way so it is natural

• Community still exists through Union of Egoists

Give 3 weaknesses of Ethical Egoism

• No sense of community/helping others, can’t rely on anyone

• Social injustice - self-interest could lead to suffering of others

• Bigotry - ‘me vs everyone else’

What is einzig?

The uniqueness of an individual meaning they need to fulfill their own personal goals

What is eigenheit?

A person’s ownness which, once they realise, they can use to be free

What is einzige?

Our ego - the inner desire to behave out of self-interest

What is an absolutist ethical theory?

Certain rules apply to all situations and do not depend on anything

What does deontological mean?

Some actions are inherently good and some are inherently bad

What does teleological mean?

To assess whether an action is good or bad you must look at the consequences it brings

What does meta-ethical mean?

A study of ethical language, for example defining right and wrong.

What does cognitivist mean?

Claims made about knowledge and reality that can be verified or falsified.

What does non-cognitivist mean?

Expressions of emotion or want, cannot be verified or falsified.

Does Naturalism say ethical statements are cognitivist or non-cognitivist?

Cognitivist

Why does Naturalism say ethical statements are cognitivist?

We can prove them by observing the world around us.

What is the only thing needed to build a sense of morality?

Observation of the world around us - therefore rejects DCT.

Give a quote from Aquinas that supports Tabula Rasa

“Nothing was in the mind that was not first in the senses.”

What does empirical mean?

Based on evidence

What is realism?

The belief that the world around us actually exists and is not just in our minds.

Why is realism important for Naturalism?

Naturalists believe moral facts are out there in the world waiting to be proven the same way scientific ones are.

What is Tabula Rasa and which scholar advocated for it?

• The belief that we are born a blank slate and learn everything through experience.

• David Hume

What is the synoptic link between Naturalism and UT?

Rule UT also uses an observation of the world around us (consequences of an action) to determine right and wrong, the same way Naturalism does.

What do we mean by the jump from ‘is’ to ‘ought’?

Naturalists believe value can be derived from fact - e.g. murder is wrong so this means we ought not to murder.

Which scholar is associated with Naturalism, and which book?

F.H Bradley, ‘My Station and Its Duties’

Which two theories did Bradley combine?

Utilitarianism and Kantian ethics

What is the process of conflating contrasting meta-ethical ideas called?

Dialectical synthesis

Which aspects of UT and Kantian ethics did Bradley like?

• Liked the UT idea of individual morality serving the masses, but disagreed that we should disregard the self for the sake of the masses.

• Like Kantian idea of duty, but disagreed with its individualism.

How does Bradley propose we discover our station/duty?

Use empirical evidence to observe and study the world around us.

How do we satisfy our ‘self’?

Fulfilling our duty to the fullest extent - this is how we are moral.

Give a quote from Bradley about morality being discoverable in the world

“Morality is everywhere.”

Give two ways Bradley’s ideas tie in with Naturalism

• He supports the Naturalistic claim that knowledge can only be gained by observation.

• We should follow the ethics of the community, which we are not born knowing.

Give a quote from Bradley about how to be a good person

“To be a good person, we must know our station and its duties, once your position in life is decided, you have to perform the function of that station.”

Give a quote from Bradley about the importance of community

“To know what a man is you must not take him in isolation.”

How does Bradley self-criticise?

Lived when evolution was becoming widely accepted, so he acknowledged that this could mean we do have an inherited sense of morality, which goes against Naturalism.

Give a quote from Bradley about self-realisation

“We have found the end, we have found self-realisation, duty and happiness in one - yes, we have found ourselves, when we have our station and its duties, our function as an organ of the social organism.”