Comprehensive Study Notes on Ethics (ETH 101)

Introduction to Philosophy

Perspectives on Philosophy

Philosophy can be understood through four major disciplines or views, each approaching truth, human existence, and thinking from a distinct perspective:

• Etymological View

• Scholastic View

• Existential View

• Phenomenological View

All four views share a central concern with understanding, critical thinking, truth, and human existence.

Etymological View

• Etymological Origin: The word "Philosophy" comes from two Greek words:

  • PHILEIN / PHILO: meaning "love of"

  • SOPHIA: meaning "wisdom"

  • Combined definition: PHILOSOPHY means "Love of Wisdom".

• Nature of Wisdom: Wisdom is not simply knowing many facts. It emphasizes that wisdom should be deeply rooted in TRUTH.

• Core Concept: Philosophy means having a love or desire to gain wisdom and understand the truth. A person practicing philosophy does not accept assertions immediately or passively; they ask questions and think carefully.

• Core Philosophical Activities:

  • Asking big questions

  • Thinking carefully

  • Seeking truth

  • Developing wisdom

  • Being curious about things normally taken for granted

• Illustrative Example (Cheating on an Exam):

  • Instead of simply making a surface judgment like "Cheating is bad," an etymological philosophical approach asks deeper underlying questions:

  • Why is cheating wrong?

  • What makes an action morally right or wrong?

  • Is something still wrong if nobody finds out?

  • What is honesty?

  • These are philosophical questions because they seek to understand the underlying reason and truth behind an idea.

Scholastic View

• Definition: The Scholastic View understands philosophy through reason and faith together. It uses logical thinking to search for truth.

• Formal Definition: A science of beings in their ultimate causes, reasons, and principles, which can be known and understood through human reason.

• Central Query: "Why does something exist, and what is the reason behind it?"

• Illustrative Example (Moral Action):

  • When asking "Why should humans do what is right?", the Scholastic approach rejects circular answers such as "Because I said so." Instead, it examines:

  • What is "right"?

  • Why should people follow morality?

  • What reason supports this?

  • How can reason and faith help us understand it?

• Key Thinkers:

  • Thomas Aquinas: Emphasized that human reason and faith can work together in understanding truth.St. Augustine of Hippo: Emphasized the search for truth through faith, reason, and reflection.

Existential View

• Definition: The Existential View focuses on the meaning of life, human freedom, choices, and responsibility.

• Central Question: "What is the meaning of my life?"

• Primary Questions Asked:

  • Who am I?

  • Why am I here?

  • What gives my life meaning?

  • What should I do with my life?

  • Am I responsible for my choices?

• The Meaning of "Search": The meaning of life is called a "search" because it is not something automatically known. A person discovers what matters to them through:

  • Experiences

  • Choices

  • Relationships

  • Responsibilities

  • Successes and failures

• Illustrative Example (Academic Motivation):

  • Imagine a student asking: "Why am I studying if I don't know what I want to do in the future?"

  • This question is existential because the student is reflecting on: MY LIFE, MY CHOICES, MY PURPOSE, MY MEANING.

  • Different individuals find meaning through various paths, such as family, helping others, a career, or personal growth.

• Key Thinkers:

  • Søren Kierkegaard: Focused on individual choice, faith, and personal responsibility.

  • Friedrich Nietzsche: Focused on individual freedom, values, and creating meaning in life.

  • Fyodor Dostoevsky: Explored freedom, moral choices, faith, and human existence.

  • Jean-Paul Sartre: Emphasized freedom, choice, and responsibility in creating the meaning of one's life.

  • Martin Heidegger: Focused on human existence, self-awareness, and our being in the world.

Phenomenological View

• Definition: The Phenomenological View focuses on lived experience. Instead of immediately judging or explaining something, it first tries to understand what the experience is actually like for the person experiencing it.

• Philosophy as an Attitude and Encounter: Rejects purely hypothetical or abstract situations in favor of concrete lived experience.

• Central Question: "What is this experience actually like?"

  • Example: Instead of asking "What is happiness according to a textbook?", phenomenology asks "What does being happy actually feel like when you experience it?"

• Philosophy as an Attitude: Philosophy is understood as an attitude toward real, concrete experiences—the way we approach and understand our lived experiences. When an event (such as a hardship) occurs, rather than reacting with "This is terrible," a philosophical attitude prompts self-examination:

  • "Why did this affect me this way?"

  • "What can I understand from this experience?"

  • "What does this experience reveal about me?"

Comparative Analysis of the Four Philosophical Views

Application to a Specific Situation: "You failed an important exam."

• Etymological View: Asks, "What can I learn from this? What is wisdom?" (Focus: learning and wisdom).

• Scholastic View: Asks, "What is the reason I failed? What is the right thing to do now?" Uses reason, while faith may also be part of understanding the situation. (Focus: reason, principles, and truth).

• Existential View: Asks, "What does this failure mean for my life? What choice should I make next?" (Focus: meaning, freedom, and responsibility).

• Phenomenological View: Asks, "What did I actually experience when I received my score? What did I feel and how did I experience failure?" (Focus: lived experience).

Divisions of Philosophy

Major Philosophical Fields

Philosophy is divided into two major philosophical fields, each serving distinct purposes:

1. Speculative Philosophy: Concerned with knowing and understanding things as they are. Its ultimate goal is knowledge rooted in truth.

2. Practical Philosophy: Concerned with gaining knowledge and wisdom, as well as how that knowledge can be applied or put into practice in everyday life.

Speculative Philosophy

• Definition: Speculative Philosophy enriches the mind with principles that can be speculated upon, thought about, or known. It directs itself toward knowing things as they are without primarily thinking about their practical application, relying on the use of reason alone.

• Ultimate Aim: KNOWLEDGE rooted in TRUTH.

• Core Method: Contemplates or reflects on the truth of nature and considers the relationship of all things.

• Primary Questions Asked:

  • What is this?

  • Why does it exist?

  • What is its nature?

  • What is the truth about it?

  • How is it related to other things?

• Example: Asking "What is reality?" involves trying to understand the nature of reality itself rather than seeking practical utility.

Branches of Speculative Philosophy

• Metaphysics:

  • Meaning: Investigates the fundamental nature of Reality, Being, and Existence.

  • Greek Origin: TA META = "Beyond", TA PHYSIKA = "Nature". Therefore, METAPHYSICS = BEYOND NATURE.

  • Questions: What does it mean to exist? What is reality? What is being? What is the fundamental nature of existence?

• Ontology:

  • Meaning: Closely related to Metaphysics; focuses specifically on the study of the essential characteristics of existing things, ultimate being (God), status of reality, order of reality, and structure of reality.

  • Greek Origin: ONTA = "really existing things". Referred to as the THEORY OF BEING.

  • Questions: What exists and what does it mean to be? What are the essential characteristics of something that exists?

• Cosmology:

  • Meaning: Study of the Universe as a rational and orderly system.

  • Greek Origin: KOSMOS = "Universe". Known as the THEORY OF THE WORLD OR THE UNIVERSE.

  • Focus: Understanding the universe as an orderly and rational system.

• Psychology:

  • Meaning: Focused on the study of Mind, Soul, and Spirit. Concerned with soul or consciousness and its role in the functioning of the human body and in a social group.

  • Greek Origin: PSYCHE = Mind, Soul, or Spirit. Known as the THEORY OF THE MIND.

• Epistemology:

  • Meaning: Study of the origin of knowledge, nature of knowledge, extent of knowledge, and veracity (truth, reliability, or validity) of knowledge.

  • Greek Origin: EPISTEME = Knowledge. Known as the THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE.

  • Questions: How did you know it? Where did that knowledge come from? Is the knowledge reliable? Is it actually true? How can we determine whether it is valid?

• Theodicy:

  • Meaning: Studies the Nature of God, Being of God, Goodness of God, Justice of God, and the God-Man relationship, as well as doctrines related to Divinity.

  • Greek Origin: THEOS = God, DIKE = Justice / Right. Therefore, GOD + JUSTICE.

• Philosophy of Man:

  • Meaning: Focuses on the study of the nature and essence of MAN as MAN.

  • Questions: What is the nature of man? What makes man what he is?

  • Sub-branches:

  1. Social Philosophy: Studies society, human relationships, and values like justice and rights using moral reasoning.

  2. Political Science: An empirical social science that studies how governments, power, and political systems actually operate in the real world.

Practical Philosophy

• Definition: A kind of philosophy concerned with the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom and the "HOW" of applying this knowledge in practice.

• Purpose: Helps a person acquire things needed and eliminate difficulties and anxieties in daily living. Perfects the human will with principles meant to be acted upon.

• Function: NORMATIVE AND DIRECTIVE. It provides guidance, laws, rules, and regulations that serve as patterns or guides for moral actions and decisions.

• Core Contrast: If Speculative Philosophy asks "What is true?", Practical Philosophy asks "How can this knowledge be applied?"

  • Example: Knowing that honesty is important is speculative understanding; practicing honesty in daily actions and decisions is practical philosophy.

Branches of Practical Philosophy

• Semantics:

  • Meaning: Study of the meaning of words, linguistic forms, functions of words as symbols, and the role of words in human thought and behavior.

  • Greek Origin: SEMANEIN = To signify, SEMANTIKOS = Significant, SEMA = Sign or token of identity.

  • Example: Analyzing what the word "Freedom" means and how it functions as a symbol.

• Axiology:

  • Meaning: Practical philosophy that investigates or analyzes reasons why something (a thing, person, place, or event) is considered desirable, valuable, important, and significant.

  • Greek Origin: AXIOS = Worthy. Deals with value and worth.

• Aesthetics:

  • Meaning: Philosophical study dealing with Beauty and Arts, studying the nature of beauty and critical standards used in judging what is beautiful.

  • Greek Origin: AESTHETIKOS = Perceptive of things through Sensation, Feelings, and Intuitions.

• Logic:

  • Meaning: Practical study of the correctness and validity of reasoning. Investigates, discovers, and applies laws and rules of correct thinking.

  • Greek Origin: LOGOS = Inward thought expressed.

  • Example: All humans are mortal. Socrates is human. Therefore, Socrates is mortal.

• Ethics:

  • Meaning: Practical philosophy dealing with the MORALITY OF HUMAN CONDUCT. Investigates right and wrong actions and the pursuit of the GOOD LIFE.

  • Greek Origin: ETHOS = A characteristic way of acting.

Summary Matrix of Philosophical Branches

Introduction to Ethics and Human Acts

Definition of Ethics

Ethics is defined as a PRACTICAL STUDY dealing with the MORALITY of HUMAN CONDUCT. It is concerned with determining and understanding the morality of human actions.

Human Act and Human Conduct

Human Conduct refers to the Human Act. A Human Act is an action that flows from the deliberate FREE WILL of a person. The person is consciously aware of what they are doing, intentionally performs the action, and has the ability to choose whether or not to perform it. An action is a Human Act when performed knowingly and willingly.

Three Essential Elements of a Human Act

1. Knowledge: The doer is fully aware of his or her actions. The action is done deliberately. A person cannot perform a deliberate Human Act without awareness.

   • Example: A student intentionally copies an answer from another student's paper while knowing it is against the rules. The student has knowledge because they know what they are doing, know it is cheating, and act deliberately.

2. Freedom: The action is done without coercion, meaning the person is not forced or controlled by someone or something. The action is performed according to the dictates of one's own reason.

   • Example: Deciding to apologize to a friend after realizing a mistake involves freedom. If threatened and forced to apologize, freedom is compromised due to coercion.

3. Voluntariness (Kusang-Loob): Present when both knowledge and freedom are present—the person knows what they are doing and freely chooses to do it.

   • Example: Deciding to help a classmate with an assignment voluntarily.

Moral Responsibility

A Human Act entails Moral Responsibility. Moral Responsibility means that the doer is liable for any consequences or results of the action. When a person knowingly and freely performs an action, they are held morally accountable for the outcome.

• Filipino Principle: "Anumang kahihinatnan o resulta ng kilos na nagawa ay may kaakibat na pananagutan." (Whatever consequence or result comes from an action has an accompanying responsibility/accountability.)

• Example: A student who knowingly and freely cheats on an examination is held morally responsible for all consequences of cheating.

Ethics in the Context of Humanism

Humanism addresses the core question: "WHAT MAKES A MAN TRULY HUMAN?" Various models explain human existence and fulfillment:

1. The Greek Ideal of Full Human Development

Man is composed of potentialities and abilities for growth and development. Achieving fullness of existence requires developing these abilities to the level of excellence:

• Physical Abilities: The body plays an important role in carrying out daily activities. It must be maintained in best condition. Even if the mind is willing, if the body is not able, action fails. Expressed in Latin: "MENS SANA IN CORPORE SANO" ("A HEALTHY MIND IN A HEALTHY BODY").

• Mental Abilities: Man is gifted with thinking and reasoning, allowing humans to THINK, REASON, DECIDE, INVENT, and INNOVATE to make life easier.

• Communication Skills: Ability to speak, read, write, express ideas, and persuade with wit and intelligence.

• Social Skills: Humans live and interact with others. A person develops by fulfilling specific roles (good son, brother, friend, father, professional) and contributing to the betterment of the community.

2. Oriental View of Human Existence

Living a full life means living as PART OF SOMETHING GREATER ("GREATER REALITY"). Human existence has an underlying purpose:

• Hinduism:

  • Greater Reality: BRAHMAN (the Hindu God, holy, sacred, source of all things, the only true reality; apart from Brahman, man is meaningless and useless).

  • Human Soul: ATMAN (holy, sacred gift from God possessing sanctity).

  • Sin: Separates man from God and destroys soul sanctity.

  • Sacrifice: Required to regain soul sanctity. Means seeking others' needs before oneself, helping without expecting return, and selflessness. Prepares and cleanses the soul for death when it returns to God.

• Confucianism:

  • Greater Reality: THE HUMAN SOCIETY, divided into three units: 1. Family, 2. Circle of Friends, 3. Community or State.

  • Principle: Full human existence is achieved through social responsibility and fulfilling obligations, duties, and responsibilities to these social units.

• Taoism:

  • Greater Reality: TAO ("THE WAY"), the source of all things and an all-encompassing reality.

  • Virtues: Humility and discipline. To be humble is to live in harmony with nature, allowing a person to live a moral, peaceful, and full life.

3. Hebrew Understanding of Human Life

Life is composed of CHALLENGES AND SITUATIONS requiring worthy and noble responses. Man draws meaning by overcoming challenges, which helps discover internal strength, develop self, and become a better person. Expressed in the Filipino proverb: "NASA DIYOS ANG AWA, NASA TAO ANG GAWA."

4. Humanism of Morality

Founded on directly following all moral laws of religion and society to develop self-discipline, right decisions, and a righteous life.

5. Humanism of Creativity

Founded on being creative in all aspects of life to make experiences and everyday life interesting, meaningful, and worth living.

6. Humanism of Religion

Defines man as a CHILD OF GOD. Human life centers on following God's will, loving others as loving God, prayer, and worship.

7. Humanism of Love

Founded on establishing deep relationships through acceptance of the whole person, sensitivity to others' needs, and empathy toward others' experiences.

Ethics vs. Morality and Types of Ethics

Conceptual Distinction

While "Ethics" and "Morality" are often used interchangeably, explicit distinctions are made in rigorous philosophical contexts:

• Ethics: Standards of good and bad, right and wrong imposed by an external group, society, profession, or organization (e.g., Legal Ethics).

• Morality: An individual's personal sense of right and wrong, based on personal beliefs rather than external imposition.

Philosophical Dynamics of Ethics

• Etymology: Derived from Greek ETHOS (custom, manner, character).

• Definition: Branch of philosophy studying the rightness and wrongness of human actions, asking "HOW DO HUMAN PERSONS OUGHT TO ACT?"

• Goal: Traditionally seeks the GOOD through reason.

• Contextual Nature: There is no single absolute definition of Ethics because it is continuously shaped by socio-cultural and political contexts:

  • Greek Tradition: Connected to the good life and discovering the nature of happiness (e.g., Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics).

  • Judeo-Christian Tradition: Emphasized righteousness before God and love of God and neighbor.

  • Dilemma: Reconciling "doing what is right" and "being happy" reveals that doing what is right is not always identical to being happy.

• Relationship: ETHICS is the SCIENCE or STUDY of MORALS, whereas MORALITY is the PRACTICE of ETHICS.

Types of Ethics

Case Study Application: Police Officer Shooting a Terrorist

Scenario: A police officer shoots a terrorist who is about to detonate explosives in a crowded shopping mall.

• Meta Ethics Approach: Examines the fundamental nature of the moral principle itself: "Is killing inherently or morally wrong?" Evaluates the act as intrinsically wrong because killing is immoral.

• Normative Ethics Approach: Asks what ought to be done: "Shooting the terrorist is morally right in this situation because it protects the lives of many innocent people."

• Applied Ethics / Casuist Approach: Evaluates the officer's specific duty in the concrete scenario: "The officer is fulfilling his professional duty to protect as many innocent lives as possible under specific real-world circumstances."

Classifications of Ethics

Teleological vs. Deontological Ethics

Ethics is classified according to the primary basis used to determine the moral status of an action:

1. Teleological Ethics

• Etymology: Greek TELEOS / TELOS = End or Purpose.

• Core Rule: Morality is based entirely on the outcome, result, consequence, or end purpose of an action.

• Focus: Evaluates what happened as a result of the act. If the outcome is good, the action is morally justified.

• Example: A man steals $\text{₱}1,000$ to buy life-saving medicine for a dying loved one. Teleological ethics evaluates the life-saving outcome/purpose rather than judging the act of stealing in isolation.

2. Deontological Ethics

• Etymology: Greek DEON / DEONTOS = Duty or Responsibility.

• Core Rule: Morality depends strictly on the nature of the action itself. An act is right or wrong in itself (intrinsically).

• Focus: Consequences are NOT considered. Judgment relies solely on moral laws, standards, and duty.

• Example: Stealing is intrinsically immoral regardless of intention. Stealing money to buy medicine for a sick family member remains morally wrong under Deontological Ethics because the act itself is wrong.

Act Ethics vs. Rule Ethics

1. Act Ethics

• Basis: Morality depends on the action itself in a specific context. Asks: "Is THIS ACTION itself right or wrong?"

2. Rule Ethics

• Basis: Morality appeals to an established set of rules or principles (e.g., The Ten Commandments). An action contradicting the rule is inherently immoral. "Follow the rules."

Ethical Schools of Thought

Ethical Relativism (Moral Relativism)

• Definition: The belief that there are no universal or absolute moral principles. What is right/wrong or moral/immoral depends on a specific culture, society, or social group.

• Cultural Examples:

  • Marrying a brother's widow (early Israelites and Muslims)

  • Execution of twin infants in certain African cultures

  • Offering virgins in sacrifice to volcanoes

  • Lending one's wife to a guest as hospitality (traditional Eskimo culture)

  • The Ifugao Olog (trial marriage)

  • Pre-marital live-in arrangements in American culture

• Strengths: Encourages recognition of cultural differences and avoids dogmatic claims of knowing absolute truth.

• Criticisms and Objections:

  1. Contradicts common moral beliefs regarding universal right and wrong.

  2. Fails to account for universal condemnation of atrocities (e.g., the Nazi Holocaust and Hitler's execution of millions of Jews).

  3. Moral duty transcends culture (e.g., a doctor's duty to treat an injured person exists regardless of cultural rules).

  4. Principles apply universally across humanity (e.g., Confucius' Golden Rule: "Do unto others what you want others do unto you").

  5. Self-Contradiction: Stating "There are no absolute moral principles" as a universal truth is logically self-contradictory.

Situation Ethics (Situationism)

• Main Thinker: Dr. Joseph Fletcher (American Protestant medical doctor).

• Core Principle: Moral decisions depend entirely on the specific situation, guided by Christian Love (Agape).

• Fletcher's Types of Love:

  1. Philia: Love of a child / personal affectionate love.

  2. Eros: Sexual or romantic love.

  3. Agape: Care, concern, charity, respect, responsibility, and love of God toward others.

Fletcher's Six Propositions of Christian Love

1. Only one thing is intrinsically good: Love itself.

2. Love is the ultimate norm of Christian decision.

3. Love and justice are the same (Justice is love distributed).

4. Love seeks the good of your neighbor, regardless of whether you like them.

5. Only the end justifies the means.

6. Decisions should be made situationally, not prescriptively.

Comparison: Ethical Relativism vs. Situation Ethics

Pragmatism

Philosophical Foundations

• Origin: Attributed to Charles Peirce and William James; expanded by John Dewey. Considered one of America's major contributions to philosophy.

• Core Perspective: Evaluates truth, knowledge, and moral reasoning through practical consequences.

Criteria of True and Valid Knowledge

1. Practical: Can be practiced and produces practical results.

2. Workable: Can be put into practice and actually works.

3. Beneficial: Produces beneficial results for people.

4. Useful: Can be used to attain good or desired outcomes.

$\text{Criterion of Truth} = \text{Practicality} + \text{Workability} + \text{Usefulness}$

William James on Truth

William James asserted that truth is dynamic: "Truth happens to an idea—an idea becomes true and is made true by events." Truth is inextricably linked to experience, life, action, and practical behavior.

Four Methodological Assumptions of Pragmatism

• Experimentalism: Truth must be tested and verified through experiment.

• Instrumentalism (John Dewey): Ideas serve as tools and instruments for action and problem-solving. Ideas are true if they effectively help people adapt to the world.

• Reconstructionism: Ideas serve as instruments to rebuild and reconstruct human experiences through learning and education.

• Progressivism: Ideas are true insofar as they help an individual progress, grow, and develop intellectually and morally through self-activity.

Utilitarianism

Theoretical Framework

• Founders: Founded by Jeremy Bentham; developed and popularized by John Stuart Mill.

• Principle of Utility: Evaluates whether an action is morally right or wrong based on its consequences.

  • An action is GOOD / MORALLY RIGHT if it promotes happiness.

  • An action is BAD / IMMORAL if it produces pain or unhappiness.

• Principle of Happiness: An action is morally right when it produces the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people.

Role of Consequences (Robin Hood Example)

From a Christian Deontological perspective, Robin Hood stealing from the rich to give to the poor is immoral because stealing deprives people of their property. Under Utilitarianism, the act may be judged morally good because it yields maximum benefit and happiness for the impoverished majority.

Jeremy Bentham's Quantitative Model

Bentham defined happiness as the absence of pain. He proposed measuring pleasure using the Felicific Calculus (Utility Calculus / Hedonistic Calculus), evaluating seven quantitative factors:

1. Intensity: How strong is the pleasure?

2. Duration: How long will the pleasure last?

3. Certainty: How likely is the pleasure to occur?

4. Propinquity: How soon will the pleasure occur?

5. Fecundity: How likely is it to lead to further pleasures?

6. Purity: How free is the pleasure from pain?

7. Extent: How many people experience the benefit?

$\text{Net Balance} = \text{Happiness} - \text{Pain}$

• If Happiness > Pain, the action is morally right.

• Numerical Example: An action yielding $12\text{ pleasures}$ and $5\text{ pains}$ produces a positive balance of $+7$, making it morally right.

John Stuart Mill's Qualitative Model

Mill rejected Bentham's purely quantitative approach, arguing that pleasures differ in quality:

• Qualitative Utilitarianism: Higher intellectual and moral pleasures are significantly more valuable than lower sensual pleasures.

• Famous Dictum: It is better to be a dissatisfied Socrates than a satisfied pig.

Act Utilitarianism vs. Rule Utilitarianism

• Act Utilitarianism: Applies the Principle of Utility directly to a specific action in a specific situation. Asks: "For this specific situation, which action will produce the most happiness?"

• Rule Utilitarianism: Focuses on general moral rules. Evaluates whether a rule is justified based on whether following it generally produces the greatest happiness for the greatest number. Asks: "What rule should we follow?"

Application: Condemning a Terrorist to Death

• Act Utilitarian Approach: Evaluates the immediate harm vs. benefit of executing the specific terrorist. If executing this individual directly protects the majority, it is morally right.

• Rule Utilitarian Approach: Evaluates whether maintaining a general law permitting capital punishment for terrorism consistently protects societal stability and yields overall public utility.