Conscience

quote from aquinas

conscience is the mind of man making moral judgements

what does aquinas say about ratio (reason)

• Did not believe conscience was special power or part of mind- linked with reason

• Ration distinguishes us from animals- only humans deliberate over moral matters and therefore ration is fundamental part of how humans were created

• Helps us connect to eternal law, to divine truth (ref to hierarchy of moral code- divine and eternal law)

What does aquinas say about morality (developing on his theories on reason)

• Morality is not just following laws, it reaches beyond what is socially acceptable to a higher morality

• Example- Jesus trial also can be linked to acts of social disorder when conscience can be over ruled or ignored- holocaust

What does aquinas say about synderesis

• directs towards good and away from evil

• Fall means there is sensuality within us that strays us

• Unlike augustine, aquinas believed that humans lean towards goodness before evil

• Can use reason to cultivate

• Essentially synderesis is the process of conscience

What is conscientia

conscience in action

• ratio is used to inform syneresis and results in acting upon your conscience to do the right thing = conscientia

What does aquinas say about ignorance

• must follow your ration and conscience at all times, even if leads to wrong choice

• Using ratio inline with synderesis whatever it is directing u towards is right

• Did recognised that mistakes can be made, as sometimes knowledge is incorrect (warped by sensuality)

• If mistake is made based on the right ignorance you are morally blameless

what is vincible ignorance

• lack of knowledge for which u can be held responsible for - you should have known better

• Not an excuse

• Morally culpable for acts

what is invincible ignorance

• lack of knowledge for which a person is not responsible

• Person acts in the best of knowledge with reasonably informed information but nevertheless makes a mistake

• Aquinas believes god would not then condemn such an act

EX- ‘if a mistaken reason bids a man to sleep with another man’s wife, to do this will be evil based on ignorance of divine law he ought to know; but if the misjudgement is occasioned by thinking the woman really is his own wife and she wants him, then his will is free from fault’

summary of aquinas’ thoughts on conscience

• conscience can be mistaken- apparent goods followed not real goods

• Therefore conscience is fallible

evaluation of aquinas - strength

• highly influential view- supported by Catholic Church- ‘conscience formulates its judgement according to reason’

• Explains why conscience can sometimes be incorrect- wrong use of reason, following apparent goods.

• Clear set authority/ guidance- supported by bible

• Everyone can experience reason

• Included knowledge and reasoning as well as religions so everyone can apply it

evaluation of aquinas- weakness

• some acts can never be morally blameless - acts may still break the law entitle punishment- regardless of right intention/ following conscience

• Assumes good and evil are not the same for everyone- Kai Nielson- culturally subjective

• Can conscience conflict with reason- which to follow in ethical decisions. Drowning in pond example- rational - not strong swimmer- conscience- need to save life

• developmental psychology of thinkers like Piaget found experimental evidence that abstract moral reasoning developed in stages of cognitive development during childhood. If true, then the claim that moral law is innate faculty of syneresis may be questioned.  Morality may be behaviourally trained into use through stimulus response conditioning from social interactions with parents and teachers

• Human nature might behaviourally orient us, but this too can be explained by evolution.

• Evolution in a herd species will generate instincts like empathy. These are not intrinsically ‘moral’ behaviours from a God, they are just what were evolutionarily advantageous to our species. 

• So again, science can explain everything about us without the need for the concept of telos – making it an unscientific concept.

• Human nature is not the result of anything God-given like telos.

What are Freuds five psychosexual stages?

oral

Anal

Phallic- crucial for development of super-ego - oedipus complex occurs

Latency

Genital

What is the oedipus complex

little hans experiment- asked his mum to touch him

Occurs during the phallic stsage

Frued concluded- all boys are sexually attracted to their mothers, but recognise that their fathers have their mums. In fear of castration from fathers (bc they are bigger and stronger) they take on the mannerisms of the father in attempts to eventually win over mother- development of super ego . As progress through life, this gets buried deep.

what are the three aspects of the human personality

id, ego and superego

what is id

• entirely unconscious

• Since birth

• Central component of personality

• Powerful, instinctive and primitive

• Driven by pleasure

• Seeks immediate gratification

what is Ego?

• bc not socially acceptable to seek immediate gratification for all desires children learn to keep in check

• Learned from teachings of parents and wider society

• Thsi develops into ways to satisfy desires that are more acceptable

• Ego mediates desires v social acceptability

• Reality principle

• Horse (ID) and rider (ego)

• Good conscience= effective operation of ego over ID, where desires are achieved whilst avoiding punishment from social authorities

What is the super ego (ego ideal)

• last part develop- around 5 yo

• Stores all internalised moral standards of right and wrong acquired from parents from society

• Based on behaviourism- basically when you are rewarded this is in your superego as a good act and vice versa

• Stops us from breaking rules bc of fear of receiving punishment, criticism or feelings of guilt

• When talk about conscience not discerning moral thing to do, simply feeling guilty bc of super ego

• Conscience is act of super ego

quote about super ego from freud

‘Observes the ego, gives it orders, judges and threatens it with punishment, exactly like the parents whose place it has taken’.

Strengths of freud

• very much like plato’s three parts of the soul- repetitive - ID, rational - super-ego, spirited - ego.

• Psychoanalysis still used today- influential!

• Fundamental in development of dreams, mind (ID ego and super ego) and conscious, sub- conscious and unconscious idea)

• Clear that parents and environment do affect morals

• Recognises importance of childhood and role of parents in moral development

• Explains why all our morals are so different because they are affected over time/ cultures/ society/ influence of parents

what are weaknesses of freud?

• What about children from single parent families or modern families- two fathers, to mothers, freud implies they are immoral- illogical

• What happens if parents are immoral- implies little free will over morals if inbuilt by parents

• Does this means parents are to be held responsible if their children are immoral/ break the alw

• Ignores later life experiences - super ego develops around age of 5

• Karl Popper presented Freudianism as a perfect example of psuedo-science that was unfalsifiable. Unlike the behavioural psychologists such as their watson or skinner, who made the experimental method central to their studies, Freud’s sample of case studies was too small to be representative or methodical, and his claims seem more anecdotal than scientific. Additionally, rejection of the theory could be seen as repression of traumatic subconscious memories a strategy which simply verifies Freudianism in a circular manner. Falsifiability and prediction are tests of the scientific method, and neither are present in Freud theory.

• educational psychologists such as Karen Reivich see Freud as unduly pessimistic about our ability to change ourselves radically, our personalities having been largely developed by the time we were five years of age. Maybe a more reasonable default setting for human psychology would be blank slate theory of empiricists like Locke or Rousseau.

• Jung presents a more positive role of religion as the shared or collective unconscious of human minds. F saw the role of religion as oppressive and damaging to the personality but Jung saw aspects of RE that were more positive and liberating for personal development arguing they were more positive and liberating for personal development, arguing f had been too blinkered in his psycholoanalytic approach by his preoccupation with his sick patients whose anxieties were often rooted in religious upbringing or outlook.

what is guilt

internal conflict in the mind- struggle between what you desire and what you feel you should do

what is guilt for freud

inner turmoil and guilt that can lead to people doing bad things

• it is not a consequence of wrongdoings- its a cause

what is aquinas’s thoughts on guilt

• gods grace banishes guilt from person

• Confessions

What are augustines views on conscience

• voice of god

• considered seriously

• ‘ see god as your witness’

• People are able to sense right and wrong bc God reveals it to us personally

what are problems to augustines view

• voice of god- can you stop it - questions free will?

• Does everyone hear the same voice/ same god- why do people do things differently then?

what does joseph butler say about conscience

• essential part of being human

• Separates us from animals

• Like aquinas- what we use to judge whether smth is good or bad

• Automatic and authoritative

• Exerts itself spontaneously ‘w/o being consulted’

• Has final say in moral choices

• God given guide

• ‘Natural guide… assigned to us by the author of our nature’

What does John Henry Newman say about conscience?

• we know what is right through illative sense (guilt and responsibility)

• Rather than through use of reason/ conditioning

• Our conscience is the ‘voice of lawgiver’

• Conscience is the messenger from God’

what does Jean Piaget say about conscience

• most comprehensive theory of intellectual (cognitive) developmental pyschology

• Proposed universal series of stages throughout childhood

• Observed marble games

• Recognised two stages

• Heteronomous morality- 5-9- looks beyond self for moral authority- rules must be obeyed/ rules set by higher authority/ immoral acts are punished

• Autonomous- 10+ personal code of conduct develops based on social perceptions and punishments in proportion with actions

• Most adults use a mixture of two

what does fromm say about conscience?

• influenced by external authority- parents, teachers, church leaders

• Rules internalised by person

• Rules taken on board by person

• Disobedience causes guilt= weakens our power = makes us submissive to authority

• E.G nazi government

• This is called the authoritarian conscience

• Later developed the humanistic approach: healthier approach, assess the evaluate our behaviour

• Its our real self- leads to reaching full potential