Week 3: Morality

Morality

It pertains to the rightness or wrongfulness of an act and what is the basis of the judge concerned.

Meaning of life

It is about human existence’s summum bonum (ultimate good)

Morality

In a nutshell, those two questions are leated (Morality and the meaning of life) - Ethics is about ______ which is the basis of good, every time we decide on dilemmas using morality, men experience happiness, and that is ‘‘good’’ The more we attain happiness by being good - the closer we are to the Ultimate Good.

goodness and purpose

To sum it up, both questions (what is morality and what is the meaning of life) boil down to two words, ‘‘______’’ and ‘‘_______’’, a thing that is of use is good for it has served its purpose.

For example, a politician is good if he has fulfilled his promise to the people after serving his term of office. In doing so by being useful to his constituent, he felt that he livged a worthy life. This will then be a step to reaching his ultimate goal - the ultimate good. A good life will ultimately leat to ultimate happiness.

nature

Rationally speaking, man acts according to his ______, which human nature quantifies as justification as to why an act, good or bas, is performed. In doing so, it conflicts with the higher intelligence endowed to men

Proximate and ultimate norm

Is man basically good? We can say yes but in what context of goodness is a man supposed to follow? Man’s morality follows a ____________, so where does human nature come in?

• The proximate norm- there is to follow human nature, which is the low end of a human being.

• As mentioned earlier, man has baser tendencies that are human nature equivalent to brutes that may come in the form of stimuli.

ultimate norm

On the other hand, the ________ - is to follow divine nature, making decisions based on morality. For example, the stimulus of hunger based on proximate norm means to eat the food regardless of whether it is so,mebody else, spoilt or poisonous.

• Human nature dictates that man has to satiate his hunger no matter what and may be considered moral if we are to consider human nature

• If the man decides to study the situation by not initially grabbing the ‘‘oppurtunity’’, then he acts in relation to the ultimate norm.

proximate norm

The ______ - there is to follow human nature, which is the low end of a human being.

social animal

We are not discarding human nature as a basis of human existence. Man is a ______ which is the nature of man’s need for the association. in truth, we can never reach divine status, but we must remember that there is no conflict between the Natural and Eternal laws (The Law of God). The Natural is patterned after the Eternal Law. Man must adhere to his nature of man, which is using his intellect, unlike human nature, which is only to follow his passions.

Hedonism

this is also known as the Philosophy of Pleasure that pleasure alone is the primary purpose of man's existence. Man indeed desires happiness, but a happy life need not be composed of pleasure alone. True happiness is seeking good, but wallowing in pleasure made man's life baser than brutes.

Utilitarianism

is simply the end of action must be good. If it is not, then the action is unjustified. The word "utility" means that anything that is of use to the agent is moral. There are two types of this, and they are:

• individual utilitarianism - the first is known as egoism which is the definition given – the agent is the one who will gain

• social utilitarianism –. Altruism is the other term for social utilitarianism, but the receiving factor is the society where the agent belongs.

Altruism

It is the other term for social utilitarianism, but the recieving factor is the society where the agent belongs.

individual utilitarianism

known as egoism which is the definition given – the agent is the one who will gain

social utilitarianism

Altruism is the other term for for this, but the receiving factor is the society where the agent belongs.

Moral Rationalism

It states that human reason is the only foundation of morality as postulated by German Philosopher Immanuel Kant which he dubbed as "Categorical Imperative."

• However, as Kant further explained, we must do good because we ought to be good.

• He is implying blind obedience. In his philosophy, "autonomy of reason," since reason creates the law, it is "reasonable" for men to obey it without question or ambiguity.

• The general rule is that everyone thinks the same, for men, are reasonable, so conflict is a remote possibility.

German Philosopher Immanuel Kant

Who postulated Moral Rationalism

Moral Positivism

It states that morality is adherence to State Laws as philosophized by the English sage Thomas Hobbes. The State is the foundation of morality since laws are geared toward the common good.

• An act is moral if he obeys the law and evil if he disobeys it.

• Compared to Moral Rationalism, where reason is the law, Moral Positivism only has the State Law as its source of morality.

English sage Thomas Hobbes

Who Philosophized Moral Positivism

Moral Positivism

Compared to Moral Rationalism, where reason is the law, ________ only has the State Law as its source of morality

Moral Evolutionism

In relation to Sociologist Herbert Spencer, morality, just like evolution, is ever-changing until it reaches its perfect form. Friedrich Nietzsche added that man was born with hardly any basis for right and wrong, and their collective lives are a never-ending struggle for change until they reach perfection

Moral Sensism

Contrary to Moral Evolutionism, It states that men are born with a special moral sense (not reason) that is comparable to the five senses.

• For example, man can easily differentiate noise from music, salty from sweat, and pleasant and unpleasant, which may also serve as a means to moral judgment.

Communism

Although this is more of an economic theory, its social implication cannot be denied and is geared toward a classless society.

• They believed in the philosophy of material dialectics, which means two material things are the only ingredients necessary for change.

• They deny the existence of God, free will, and immortality, for they do not matter is immaterial. Ergo, anything that will.