Slides on Ethical Concepts & Definitions(2)

Page 1: What is Ethics?

  • Ethics: The systematic, organized study of concepts of right and wrong, good and bad, along with theories that explain these concepts.

Page 2: Basic Questions of Ethics

  • Ethics addresses three primary questions:

    • How should one act?

      • Focus on determining if actions, decisions, or policies are morally good or bad, or better or worse.

      • Approaches include Utilitarianism and Kant's duty-based ethics, each offering tests for right and wrong actions.

Page 3: Goals and Character in Ethics

  • How should one live?

    • Involves life goals and what one finds important.

  • What sort of person should one become?

    • Focus on character traits, cultivating virtues, and avoiding vices.

    • Explored through Virtue Ethics and Ethics of Care.

Page 4: Socratic Inquiry

  • Socrates asks, How ought we to live?

    • Emphasized the importance of living well over personal safety, wealth, or reputation.

    • Considered this question as paramount to one’s existence.

Page 5: Everyday Ethical Decisions

  • Ethical decisions are common in daily life, including:

    • Helping others or not.

    • Managing leisure time.

    • Issues of honesty vs. deception (e.g., telling a lie for someone’s perceived benefit).

    • Gossip and exaggeration about oneself.

Page 6: Descriptive vs. Normative Ethics

  • Purely Descriptive Ethics:

    • Describes people's moral behaviors without passing judgment on their correctness.

    • Few adhere to this practice; often social scientists.

  • Normative Ethics:

    • Philosophical approach prescribing how people ought to think and act in moral contexts.

    • Sets norms and standards for behavior, similar to medical prescriptions.

Page 7: Normative Ethics Continued

  • Normative ethics focuses on what people should believe regarding moral issues.

  • Concerned with prescribing criteria for determining right from wrong behavior.

Page 8: Instrumental Value

  • Instrumental Value:

    • Valuable as a means to achieve something else. Also known as extrinsic value.

    • Examples include technology: computers (tasks) and cars (transportation).

    • Items often valued for their utility, not intrinsic worth.

Page 9: Evaluating Instrumental Value

  • To assess pure instrumental value:

    • Consider what you’d do with it if it breaks or wears out.

    • If the answer is disposal, it likely has only instrumental value.

Page 10: Intrinsic Value

  • Intrinsic Value:

    • Value in its own right, independent of any external purpose.

    • Defined by the entity's nature itself.

Page 11: Human Intrinsic Value

  • Human beings exemplify intrinsic value:

    • Recognized in laws and societal values – a life has worth regardless of utility.

    • Dignity and worth are inherent, not contingent upon productivity or capability.

Page 12: Principle of Impartiality

  • Each person's interests should be treated equally when formulating ethical theories.

  • Variations exist in different ethical frameworks (e.g., maximizing happiness or duty-based ethics).

Page 13: Critique of Impartiality

  • Over-application of impartiality may disrupt normal human relationships.

  • Critics suggest it could harm emotional bonds and social connections.

Page 14: Relationships and Impartiality

  • Impartiality may demand equal emotional investment in family and strangers.

  • Real-life relationships naturally involve preferential treatment of close ties.

Page 15: Balance in Impartiality

  • While complete impartiality may be undesirable, most people lack sufficient impartiality in decisions.

  • Striving toward impartiality in ethics can correct biases.

Page 16: Morality Beyond Personal Preference

  • Moral judgments are not merely personal taste; individuals provide arguments to validate their positions.

  • This implies an underlying sense of moral truth that transcends personal preference.

Page 17: Surveys and Moral Truth

  • Surveys may reveal public opinion but do not answer whether actions are morally right or wrong.

    • The truth of moral claims exists independently of popular belief.

Page 18: Changing Moral Opinions

  • Public opinion on moral issues can shift without altering the actual truth.

    • Example: Historical misconception of the Earth’s position in the cosmos does not change factual inaccuracies.

robot