Ross quiz study

• Ross was a 20th century British Philosopher

• Ross was a deontologist and opposed to consequentialism - like Kant in that way

• Differences between Kant and Ross: Kant has very rigid rules: ex: you can never lie. Even if it meant saving your friend from getting murdered, because lying is wrong. 

• However, Ross was a Pluralist -  humanity cannot be reduced to one supreme principle. 

• Ross, like Kant, thinks you should follow duties, however he doesn’t think that humanity can be reduced to one supreme principle. 

• Specifically in the case of lying to the murderer, Ross believes that it would be better to lie in that case to protect your friend. He says we do have a duty to tell the truth, however we also have a duty to friends and duties to safeguard other people’s wellbeing. 

• Ross introduces Prima Facie duties. There are seven of them, and no one duty absolutely overrides the other.

• Some of the suits count in favor of an action, and some count against 

• Seven Basic Prima Facie Duties

• 1: Duties of fidelity (promise keeping)

• 2: Duties of reparation for harm done (make a wrong right) 

• 3: Duties of gratitude - returning favors or repaying people for helping us

• 4: Duties of Justice - distributing benefits among people according to merit

• 5: Duties of beneficence - actions that increase others’ pleasure and decrease their pain. Or helps others improve their character - like utilitarianism. 

• 6: Duties of self-improvement - Complete actions that would improve our character or intelligence. 

• 7: Duties of nonmaleficence - avoid injuring others. Avoid action that could do so.

• Any other Prima Facie duties would derive from these seven basic Prima Facie duties. 

• We don’t need to prove why these are important, as it is self-evident.

• Because some of these duties would count in favor of an action and some against, how do we know what we are supposed to do? 

• Ross has Proper Duties and Actual Duties.

• Comes down to judgment based on moral considerations. It is like making judgments of beauty and art, it will come somewhat naturally. 

• Even if lying to the murderer about where your friend is goes against the duty of fidelity, it would follow the duty of beneficence and nonmaleficence. So, we will use our moral judgement to weigh these to make a decision. 

Difference between Proper and Actual duties: 

Proper duties are from the Prima facie - they are morally right at first glance, however it does not automatically dictate what we should take, as it must be weighed alongside other duties. 

Actual Duties: The Actual Duty is the specific duty that one is morally required to act on in a given situation, based on weighing and considering the Prima Facie duties. 

The prima facie duties generally apply, until they come into conflict with each other, then the actual duties are the specific actions that one must take after weighing out the conflicting prima facie duties. 

1. Proper Duties (Prima Facie Duties):

• These are duties that we recognize as morally significant and binding at first glance (prima facie).

• A prima facie duty represents a moral obligation that we ought to consider when making ethical decisions.

• Examples of prima facie duties according to Ross include:

  • Fidelity (keeping promises)

  • Reparation (making amends for harm done)

  • Gratitude (acknowledging others' help)

  • Justice (distributing benefits and burdens fairly)

  • Beneficence (promoting the well-being of others)

  • Non-maleficence (avoiding harm)

  • Self-improvement (enhancing one's virtue or intelligence)

• A proper duty does not automatically dictate what action we should take but must be weighed alongside other duties.

2. Actual Duties:

• The actual duty is the specific duty that one is morally required to act upon in a given situation, after considering and weighing all the competing prima facie duties.

• Ross argues that we often face conflicting prima facie duties. For instance, the duty to keep a promise might conflict with the duty to prevent harm.

• In such cases, the actual duty is determined by assessing which prima facie duty has the greatest moral weight in the specific context.

• Example: Suppose you promise to meet a friend, but on the way, you witness an accident and can help an injured person. While the prima facie duty of fidelity (keeping the promise) is significant, the duty of beneficence (helping the injured person) may outweigh it. In this case, helping the injured person becomes your actual duty.

Key Difference:

• Proper duties (prima facie duties) are general moral obligations that apply in all situations until they come into conflict.

• Actual duties are the specific actions one must take after resolving conflicts between competing prima facie duties.

This distinction underscores the flexibility and nuanced nature of Ross's ethical pluralism, which aims to reflect the complexity of moral decision-making in real-world situations.

• Ross’ primary goal of ethical theory is to reflect the complexity of our moral obligations. 

• Prima Facie is a duty that holds at first glance, but may not be the final obligation.

• Ross argues that what makes an act morally right depends on fulfilling the most pressing prima facie duty in a situation. 

• Ross thinks we should follow our moral intuition to determine which Prima Facie takes precedence in a given situation.

• Ross disagrees with Kant’s idea that moral rules are absolute and exceptionless.

• Ross’ critique of utilitarianism - it oversimplifies decision-making by prioritizing consequences alone. 

• Ross’ theory can be best described as Ethical Pluralism - There are multiple fundamental moral principles or values that guide our ethical decision-making, rather than a single overarching rule or principle.