Virtue Ethics Notes

Virtue Ethics

Virtue ethics is a moral structure that emphasizes the importance of character and virtue in evaluating the integrity of one's actions. It focuses on improving an individual's general righteous character. (Kraut, R, 2018)

Roots of Virtue Ethics

  • The study of virtue originated in Ancient Greece.
  • For the Greeks, a virtuous individual routinely checks their conduct and corrects inaccuracies. This leads to a happy and meaningful life.
  • The theories of Classical Greek Philosophers were eventually used by Catholic and Enlightenment Philosophers.

Lesson 1: Virtue Ethics - Aristotle

Aristotle's Biography

  • Aristotle was a Greek philosopher who lived from 384 to 322 BCE.
  • He studied reasoning under Plato at "The Academy" and founded "The Lyceum" on the Lyceum Temple in Athens.
  • He focused on "what makes a human life good or worth living," notably in his book "Nicomachaean Ethics," named after his son Nicomachus.
  • For Aristotle, a good life is attainable when people use their capacity to reason.

Teleology

  • Teleology comes from the Greek word telos, meaning "end," "goal," or "purpose."
  • Aristotle believed that all things have purposes, objectives, or ends that must be accomplished for their benefit.
  • He considered it an Intellectual Virtue when people realize their actual functions to accomplish goodness or greatness in their lives.
  • Teleology is also considered a Consequentialist Theory.

Golden Mean

  • Aristotle stated that virtue is a mean, a condition of clarification and apprehension from pain and pleasure.
  • Being morally good means striking a balance between two vices: excess and deficiency.
  • The Golden Mean is a sliding scale for determining what is virtuous.

Summary of Aristotle's Virtue Ethics

  • The basic principle is that a virtuous individual uses their capacity to reason to determine what leads to happiness.
  • A successful person knows their telos and is influenced by it.
  • Virtues are balanced qualities; they become vices when practiced in excess or deficiency.

Lesson 2: Virtue Ethics - Thomas Aquinas

St. Thomas Aquinas' Biography

  • Thomas was born in Roccasecca, Italy, between 1224 and 1226. He began his studies in Monte Cassino, Rome.
  • He studied in Naples, where he was introduced to the works of philosophers like Aristotle, Maimonides, and Averroes.
  • Against his family's wishes, he joined the Dominican Order and became a priest.
  • He continued his studies under Bishop Albertus Magnus, who was later declared a saint.
  • Aquinas devoted his life to contributing to Catholic Theology and Moral Philosophy, attempting to bridge religion with science. He believed that faith must be built upon reason.
  • His notable works include Summa Theologiae and Summa Contra Gentiles.
  • He was proclaimed a saint fifty years after his death by Pope John XXIII. He was also declared "Doctor of the Church" by Pope Pius V in 1567 and "Patron Saint of all Catholic Universities" by Pope Leo XIII in 1880.

Thomas Aquinas’ Laws

  • Aquinas believed that a virtuous person bases actions and decisions on laws.
  • He defined law as "a certain rule and measure of acts whereby man is induced to act or is restrained from acting," directed toward the universal or common good.
  • There are four kinds of law: Eternal Law, Divine Law, Natural Law, and Human Law.
Eternal Law
  • It is indistinguishable from the mind of God; everlasting but confused by the human mind.
  • It can be called law because God stands to the universe as a ruler does to a community.
  • The following three laws are based upon the Eternal Law.
Divine Law
  • It comes from the Eternal Law revealed to humans through revelation and is divided into the Old Law and the New Law (Old and New Testaments).
    • Old Law: Ten Commandments; commands external conduct, reaches through fear, earthly rewards.
    • New Law: Jesus’ Teachings; commands internal conduct, reaches through example of divine love, heavenly rewards.
Human Law
  • Laws formulated by human explanation as indicated by geological, social, and historical conditions.
  • These laws should promote virtue and the common good.
  • According to Aquinas, human law can be violated when the common good requires it and can be changed as society improves.
Natural Law
  • Administers everything in nature and the establishment of pragmatic thinking human law.
  • It allows us to see how God made and ordered the universe.
  • Like Aristotle, Aquinas believed that all creatures have a purpose that drives their actions. Animals are driven by instinct, but humans can go beyond instinct by using reason.

Natural Law’s Principles

  • Aquinas viewed humans as rational, free, social, and physical beings.
  • As such, we consistently seek what is beneficial. If something stops us from prospering, it is wrong to seek it.
  • To know what is good or bad, we must consider our essential needs and understand natural law based on its principles.

Thomas Aquinas’ Four Cardinal Virtues

  • In Summa Theologicae, Thomas characterized righteousness as a "propensity" that causes an individual to perform their capacity, activity, or development appropriately.
  • He introduced ethical concepts in his book that define human goodness, highlighting four virtues that help us live ethically: Prudence, Temperance, Courage, and Justice.
Prudence
  • It is the righteousness of intellectual fitness or capacity to do things mentally and sanely. For example, Aria needs to study for a test but also wants to attend a sleepover. The most prudent option is to study for a while and take her books and notes to the sleepover.
Temperance
  • It refines our methods of enjoying our real wants and guides us to control ourselves for something better. For example, a child who waits for a signal to eat a cookie is rewarded with a bowl of cookies, demonstrating temperance.
Courage
  • It helps us not to be afraid to choose what is prudent, right, and just. It is more than just being brave or mindlessly taking risks. Christians who were tortured for their faith demonstrated courage by refusing to recant, even when given the option to be released.
Justice
  • The constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. It disposes one to respect the rights of each and promotes equity with regard to person and to the common good. Community pantries exemplify justice by allowing voluntary giving and receiving resources based on needs.

Summary of Aquinas’ Virtue Ethics

  • A virtuous individual is guided by laws and cardinal virtues.
  • All laws should direct a person to act according to the Eternal Law.
  • The four cardinal virtues that help a person become righteous are Prudence, Courage, Temperance, and Justice.

Lesson 3: Virtue Ethics - Immanuel Kant

Immanuel Kant's Biography

  • Immanuel Kant was one of the greatest philosophers of the Enlightenment Period.
  • He was born into a German artisan family in Königsberg, Prussia, on April 22, 1724.
  • He initially studied at the Lutheran Collegium Fridericianum, where he was taught strict Lutheran tenets but preferred studying Latin Classics.
  • He attended the University of Königsberg, where he turned to philosophy, mathematics, and physics.
  • Kant was interested in the works of Rationalist philosopher Christian Wolff and Physicist Isaac Newton.
  • His writings contributed to metaphysics, physics, and moral philosophy.
  • His ideas on moral philosophy are included in books like The Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals and Lectures on Ethics.
  • According to Kant, “Moral law is a truth of reason, and hence that all rational creatures are bound by the same moral law” (Jankowiak, n.d.).

Other Kantian Concepts

Good Will
  • A will whose decisions are determined by Moral Law. It involves acting or deciding not for one's own interest but because it follows the moral law.
Duty
  • The motivation of good will.

Foundation of Morals

Kant distinguishes between actions we ought to do morally and actions we ought to do for non-moral reasons; both are called imperatives:

Hypothetical Imperatives
  • Commands we follow to fulfill a desire.
  • Decisions influenced by our wants and needs, focusing on practicality rather than morality.
Categorical Imperatives
  • Commands we should follow even if we do not desire them.
  • Known by reason alone, regardless of religious beliefs.
  • Understood through four formulations.

Categorical Imperatives: Formulation 1 - Formula of Universalizability

  • “Act only in accordance with that maxim through which you can at the same time will that it become a universal law without contradiction” - Kant
  • If you do something, then everyone must do it, with no exemptions.
Definition of Terms:
  • Maxim: A rule or principle of action.
  • Universal Law: Something that must always be done in similar situations.

Categorical Imperatives: Formulation 2 - Formula of Humanity

  • “Act in such a way that you treat humanity, whether in your own person or in the person of another, always at the same time as an end and never simply as a mere means” - Kant
  • In encountering people, remember they have their own goals and values. They do not exist for your benefit alone but independently.
Definition of Terms:
  • Mere means: To use something for your own benefit and not for the benefit of the thing you are using.

Categorical Imperatives: Formulation 3 & 4

  • The Formula of Autonomy: "So act that your will can regard itself at the same time as making universal law through its maxims." - Kant
    • People make moral decisions if they decide freely and are not influenced by external factors.
  • The Formula of the Kingdom of Ends: "So act as if you were through your maxims a law-making member of a kingdom of ends." – Kant
    • You should act only in ways that would be acceptable if everyone else acted the same way. By doing so, you're not just obeying moral laws; you're helping create them.

Summary of Kant’s Virtue Ethics

  • A virtuous individual acts not for their own interests but for the sole purpose that it is the right thing to do (Goodwill).
  • People base their decisions on needs (Hypothetical Imperative) or based on reason (Categorical Imperative).

Lesson 4: Rights Theories

Definition of Rights

  • Human rights are the "fundamental good that all individuals in every nation and society supposedly have, basically on the grounds that they are individuals” (Nickel, 1992).
  • Important laws and foundations that emphasize human rights:
    • Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
    • European Convention on Human Rights (1954)
    • International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights (1966)
    • International Bill of Rights

Two Kinds of Rights

Moral Rights
  • Granted to any human simply because they are human.
  • Grounded in moral reasons and do not need to be enforced by law.
Legal Rights
  • Granted to people under a legal system (authority, government).
  • Enforceable by law, which recognizes and protects them.

Rights Theories

  1. Legal Positivism
  2. Interest Theory
  3. Will Theory
  4. Human Rights Doctrine
  5. Natural Law
Legal Positivism
  • Argues that rights only exist in the legal system.
  • Jeremy Bentham developed this theory in the 19th century.
Interest Theory
  • Also called the “benefit theory,” it believes that the foundation of moral rights is everyone’s basic duty to respect the interest of others (life, liberty).
  • John Finnis identified seven fundamental interests as the basis for human rights:
    1. Life and its capacity for development
    2. The acquisition of knowledge as an end in itself
    3. Play as the capacity for recreation
    4. Aesthetic expression
    5. Sociability and friendship
    6. Practical reasonableness (intelligent and reasonable thought processes)
    7. Religion or the capacity for spiritual experience
Will Theory
  • Also called the “choice theory,” it allows rights-holders the free choice to insist upon their rights or to waive them.
  • Herbert L.A. Hart is credited with developing the theory, inspired by Kant's philosophy that freedom is the most basic right.
  • All other rights, moral or legal, are specific protected freedoms.
Human Rights Doctrine
  • Claims that there exists a rationally identifiable moral order, whose legitimacy precedes contingent social and historical conditions and applies to all human beings everywhere and at all times.
Natural Law
  • All people have inherent rights, conferred not by legislation but by "God, nature, or reason."
  • The natural rights are the right to life, property, and liberty.
  • Violations of these rights means that you violate someone’s very existence or humanity.