Modules 1-4: Morality

Prelim Topics

Conventional Morality

• The system of widely accepted rules and principles, that members of a culture or society use to govern their own lives

• The patterns of behavior to be found in the cultures, their accepted ideas about right and wrong, and the sorts of character traits that these cultures find admirable

• Can differ from society to society

Critical Morality

• It refers to the moral standards that are independent of conventional morality and can be used to critically evaluate its merits

• It is untainted by mistaken beliefs, irrationality, or popular prejudices

• It can serve as the standard for determining when conventional morality has got it right and when it has fallen into error

Value Theory

(3 Core Areas of Moral Philosophy)

• What is a good life?

• What is worth pursuing for its own sake?

• How do we improve our lot in life?

• What is happiness, and is it the very same thing as well-being?

Normative Ethics

(3 Core Areas of Moral Philosophy)

• What are our fundamental moral duties?

• What makes right actions right?

• Which character traits count as virtues, which as vices, and why?

• Who should our role models be?

• Do the ends always justify the means, or are there certain types of action that should never be done under any circumstances?

Metaethics

(3 Core Areas of Moral Philosophy)

• What is the status of moral claims and advices?

• Can ethical theories, moral principles, or specific moral verdicts be true? if so, what makes them true?

• Can we gain moral wisdom? is so, how?

• Do we always have a good reason to do our moral duty?

Law

• The fact that a law tells us to do something does not necessarily mean that it is the moral act to do

• Some immoral acts (like cheating on an exam) are not illegal. And some illegal acts (like voicing criticism against a dictator) are not immoral

• Certainly, many laws require what morality requires and forbid what morality forbids. But the fit is hardly perfect, and that shows that morality is something different from the law. That a legislature passed a bill is not enough to show that the bill is morally acceptable

Etiquette

• We see the same imperfect fit when it comes to standards of etiquette

• Forks are supposed to be set to the left of a plate, but it isn’t immoral to set them on the right

• Good manners are not the same thing as morally good conduct. Morality sometimes requires us not to be polite or gracious, as when someone threatens your children or happily tells you a racist joke.

• So the standards of etiquette can depart from those of morality.

Self-Interest

• The same is true when it comes to the standards of self-interest

• Think of all of the people who have gotten ahead in life by betraying others, lying about their past, breaking the rules that others are following

• Sometimes you can improve your lot in life by acting immorally. And those who behave virtuously are sometimes punished, rather than rewarded, for it

• Whistle blowers who reveal a company’s or a government official’s corruption are often attacked for their efforts, sued to the point of bankruptcy, and targeted for their courageous behavior

Tradition

• Finally, morality is also distinct from tradition

• That a practice has been around a long time does not automatically make it moral.

• Morality sometimes requires a break with the past, as it did when people called for the abolition of slavery or for allowing women to vote

• And some nontraditional, highly innovative practices may be morally excellent

• The longevity of a practice is not a fool proof test of its morality

Divine Command Theory

• The basic idea is that God decides what is right and wrong

• Actions that God commands are morally required; actions that God forbids are morally wrong; all other actions are permissible or merely morally neutral

• It arguably solves the old problem of the objectivity of ethics

Moral Reasoning

• This is the essence of morality. The morally right thing to do is always the thing best supported by the arguments

• If we want to discover the truth, we must let our feelings be guided as much as possible by reason

Impartiality

• This is the idea that each individual’s interests are equally important; no one should get special treatment

• Impartiality requires that we not treat the members of particular groups as inferior, and thus it condemns forms of discrimination like sexism and racism

• Almost every important moral theory includes the idea of impartiality.

The Minimum Conception of Morality

Morality is, at the very least, the effort to guide one’s conduct by reason—that is, to do what there are the best reasons for doing—while giving equal weight to the interests of each individual affected by one’s decision