Philosophy 492
Naomi KlockmannSan Diego Christian College
Ethics vs. Morals
Ethics The theory of
right conduct Right vs. Wrong
Morals Applied ethics How well a person
lives out their ethics
Timmons’Ethical Theories Egoism Divine Command Utilitarianism Kantian Ethical Theory Relativism Natural Law Ethics of Care Pluralism
Egoism
“Ethical egoism makes the rightness or wrongness of actions depend on facts about one’s self-interest.” David W. Shoemaker
This theory means… You are the center of your universe Everything comes from your point of view What is good for me is good and what is bad for me is bad Doing good things in order to get something out of it
Egoism God is the Ultimate Egoist
Colossians 1:15“He is the image of the invisible God, the
firstborn over all creation”
God created the world for his own pleasure and glory
Divine Command Theory Gods commands are good and his
prohibitions are evil
Can apply to Judaism, Christianity and Islam
Question: Are things right because God commands it or does God command it because it is right?
Divine Command Theory To believe in the Divine Command
Theory one must…
Believe that God exists
Believe that God is all good and perfect
Believe that God makes his will known to
people
Divine Command Theory Pros
If there is a Creator/God who better to tell you the right way to live?
God has the power to enforce His commands God knows all the mitigating circumstances God knows our actions and intentions God has made his rules and expectations
clear Heaven awaits those who obey Hell for those who disobey
Divine Command Theory Cons
Belief in God is a huge presupposition If there is a god which one is the right one? How do we know the scriptures were not just
written by men? How do you know you are interpreting Gods
will correctly? How can you hope to live up to Gods perfect
standard? What if God asked you to do something
against your own “core moral beliefs?” How can you distinguish the will of God from
your own desires?
Divine Command Theory
Conclusion
The Divine Command Theory leads to legalism
This theory leaves out the most important part of Christianity, grace and mercy
No one can perfectly keep the will of God
Utilitarianism Jeremy Bentham (1748-
1832)
Father of Modern Utilitarianism
“Only pleasure should or can have value”
Equates good with pleasure and evil with pain
Bentham’s auto-icon & mummified head
Utilitarianism John Stuart Mill (1806-1873)
Higher and Lower pleasures
We must give “pleasures of the intellect, of the feeling and imagination, and of the moral sentiments a much higher value as pleasures than those of mere sensation”
The greatest good for the greatest number
Never choose something that decreases satisfaction of others
Distribution vs Quantity of Utility
Utilitarianism Rule
Utilitarianism Grades in this
society do not reflect marret. The rule itself does not produce the greatest good for the greatest number.
Act Utilitarianism Judges the morality
of an action by whether the action itself produces the most utility, or at least as much utility as any other action.
Utilitarianism Duties to self: A
persons choices must be governed by those actions or rules that lead to the greatest total utility.
Duties to others: Promote the general welfare.
Utilitarianism Conclusion Rule Utilitarianism is circular reasoning
Problems with theory How do we know if we are pleasing
everyone? What is pleasurable today may not be
tomorrow Loss of individual human rights
Kantian Ethical Theory Immanuel Kant (17424-1804)
German Scholar
Believes ethics and morals can be found within reason
Famous Works
Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals (1785)
Critique of Practical Reason (1788)
The Metaphysics of Morals (1797)
Kantian Ethical Theory The only thing good in and of its self is “Good
Will”
Good Will is ‘Pure and practical reason’
“To will your maximum be made a universal law” Meaning: “Would I will to all people, in all places to
do what I am about to do”
Always treat people as an end unto themselves and never as merely a means
Kantian Ethical Theory Kant was looking for a universal theory that would apply to all people at all times
Pros Universality A true ethic (he
distinguishes right action and the motive behind it)
Cons People do not
reason the same way
People are not generally reasonable
Reason is fallible Ivory Tower concept
Relativism Ethical Relativism: How a person
aught to behave
Cultural Relativism: Different people act differently in different situations
Moral Relativism: There are no more absolutes
Ethical Relativism A product of cultural anthropology
There is diversity in cultures (I.E religions, politics, marriage ceremonies…)
Some ideas may be the same but what they produce is different
“When in Rome do as the Romans”
Ethical Relativism Very determinant Brings uniformity
to cultures Toleration
No universal or moral absolutes
Can not evaluate social behaviors
Makes international laws or standards impossible
Natural Law Thomas Aquinas (1225-
1274)
Divine Command Theory + Human Reason = Natural Law
Not only through faith but also through reason can we understand things
Natural Law Rights:
The right of self preservation The right to procreate The right to educate The right to socialize
Natural Law Double Effect
If in order to do good an unintended evil is also accomplished one may proceed if it is a serious situation
Forfeiture If you take away another persons right
they have the right to take away an equal right of yours (an eye for an eye)
Natural Law Pros
Concise, it always tells you what to do in a situation
Applies to all people Reasonable If there is a God justice
will be assured Double effect allows us
to negotiate through ethical conflicts when our rights are in conflict
Cons Very legalistic No second chances No accidents allowed No grace, mercy, or
forgiveness Conclusions violate out
ideas of right and wrong (new technology etc.)
Reason based theory- it can be rationalized
Ethics of Care Carol Gilligan (Born
1936)
All theories have been created by men and men and women value different things
Sex is genetic Gender is learned
Ethics of Care Your culture tells you what it is to be
manly and what it is to be feminine
IF all our ethical theories to date are based on masculine traits doesn’t that make the theories weaker?
Values that are added: mercy, forgiveness, care, emotion etc…
Pluralism (Existential Ethics) Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855)
Changed the question from ‘What is a Christian?’ to ‘How can I be a Christian?’
You can not judge things in categories
You only truly know what you have experienced
Individualism
Pluralism Truth is subjectivity
You don’t know what is absolute because you see things through your own eyes
Angst A fear that you know not what Only Christ can help your fear
Authenticity Are you being transparent
Freedom Responsibility There are no victims (you always choose how you will
act in a situation)
Pluralism There is no epistemological place you
can go to be separate from yourself
God not only knows what it is like to be human but he specifically knows what it is like to me or you
The End!
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