Deontological Ethics

Who came up with Natural Law and in what book?

Aquinas in Summa Theologica

What kind of theory is NL?

Deontological/absolutist, with teleological aspects (DoDE)

What are Aquinas’ 4 tiers of law?

Human, natural, divine, eternal

What is human law?

Laws constructed to organise society and make sense of Natural Law. It should be based on Divine Law

What is Natural Law?

Our reasoning (recta-ratio) that gives us a sense of what is right and wrong

What is Divine Law?

God’s law revealed in scripture like the Bible

What is Eternal Law?

God’s mind, it will never be fully accessible to humans

What is Aquinas’ synderesis rule?

Do good and avoid evil

What is human telos according to Aquinas?

Beatific vision (achieving fellowship with God)

What does Aquinas mean by primary precepts?

Five things that we, created in God’s image, are inclined to do, and will lead us towards our telos

What are the primary precepts?

Preserve human life, ordered society, worship God, educate, reproduce (POWER)

What are secondary precepts?

As the PP are quite vague, SP guide our day to day behaviour - they are the practical application of the PP

Give an example of a secondary precept

Do not use contraception - Reproduce

What is an apparent good?

Something that seems good, but goes against the PP and human ideal. Done through a misuse of recta-ratio

What is a real good?

An action that fits in with the PP and human ideal

What is an internal act?

The intention behind an action

What is an external act?

The action itself, performed by a moral agent

What are the three revealed virtues, and where do they originate from?

Love, faith, and hope. They are found in the Bible

Which of the three revealed is the most important, and give a quote to support this

Love - “Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.” -Corinthians

What are the four cardinal virtues, and where do they originate from?

Justice, prudence, temperance, fortitude. They come from Aquinas’ use of recta-ratio

What is the doctrine of double effect?

How we apply Natural Law to situations when two primary precepts conflict. The situation must meet a certain criteria, for example having the good outcome as the intention and the bad one as an unfortunate consequence

What is a Bible quote that goes against abortion?

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.”

“Parents shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall any children be put to death by their parents.”

What is the main conflict around the issue of abortion according to Mackie?

Whether the foetus is already alive and a human being therefore making abortion murder - when does life begin?

What are the three points people generally argue life begins?

• Conception: When the sperm fertilises the egg

• Ensoulment: (Islam) When the baby gets a soul around 46 days

• Birth: When the baby is born, life begins

How does the DoDE apply to the issue of abortion?

For example in the case of an ectopic pregnancy, the primary precepts of preserving the mother’s life and the baby’s conflict. NL would permit an abortion

How did Kainz add to the application of NL to abortion?

Preservation of life isn’t the only PP to consider, as in the case of rape the woman has unwillingly been made to reproduce and educate. It is most loving to allow an abortion

List the four issues surrounding the application of NL to euthanasia

Technical difficulties surrounding types and definitions of euthanasia, When does life end, Philosophical issue of quality of life, Patient refusing treatment

What is a quote from the Hippocratic Oath that goes against euthanasia, and which type does it go against?

“I will neither give a deadly drug to anybody who asked for it, nor will I make a suggestion to this effect.” - Active

What is the technical difficulties surrounding the definitions and types of euthanasia?

• Active, passive, and voluntary euthanasia

• Makes legislation surrounding euthanasia complicated

• What value is given to life?

What is the issue arising from when life ends?

Is a person in a coma, being kept alive artificially, still alive? Does a physical definition of life suffice?

What is the philosophical issue of quality of life?

Is there a point at which we can conclude that life has lost its value? If so, what is it and who decides?

What is the issue around a patient refusing treatment?

This is allowed by law, patients have the right not to prolong their lives. The issue is that where death is inevitable, humans are only allowed to starve it off, and not welcome it

Apply the DoDE to the issue of euthanasia

Whatever the consequences, the intention was not to kill the person, but to bring relief to their pain

Give 3 strengths of Natural Law

• It is universal, PP are common to all

• It is natural, based on recta-ratio within all of us

• Encourages virtuous behaviour such as love, justice, faith, temperance

Give 3 weaknesses of Natural Law

• PP are outdated - reproduction is no longer held in such high regard

• Naturalistic fallacy: hard to accept what simply exists as human nature has moral authority

• Against universal - is there one human nature? eg. Spartans encouraging violence