Kant wanted to put good will at the very centre of ethics in which he formed the equation GOOD WILL + DUTY = A MORAL ACTION. Good will is the motive that produces our determination to be good people and our practical reason helps us get there ‘good will, then, like a jewel, will shine by its own light, a thing which has its whole value in itself’. Kant’s moral theory looks at evidence and tells you what ought to be done. Reason is universal. However to act morally then we must be capable of exercising freedom or the autonomy of the will .The opposite of this is what Kant did not believe in and this is heteronomy and that is something is right because its satisfies some desire, emotion, goal or obligation.
The theory’s central question is: how we ought to act. Through a cost-benefit analysis, impartial decisions on actions should be made as long as the end result measures an increase of happiness for the majority. To the contrary, Kantian ethics focus on the intrinsic value and moral standing of human beings as rational agents with autonomy; therefore, they must be treated equally and with dignity. An action is not made right according to its consequences but on the consistency of one’s ethical course of action by means of reasoning to attain the right behavior. The main concepts behind Kantian theory are generated from the Categorical Imperative, used as an ethical rule for decision-making to determine the right action.
Aristotle draws a distinction between superior and subordinate aims, believing Eudaimonia' is the end goal or purpose behind everything we do as people, and is desired for its own sake and therefore a superior aim. Aristotle also developed the idea of moral and intellectual virtues. The moral values are; courage, temperance, big-heartedness, generosity, high-mindedness, right ambition, patience, truthfulness, wittiness, friendliness, modesty, righteous indignation. The intellectual virtues are; practical skill, knowledge, common sense, intuition, wisdom; resourcefulness, understanding, judgement, cleverness. Aristotle then chose the four cardinal values from these lists, which are; temperance, courage, wisdom and justice.
Meta ethics tries to make sense of the terms and concepts used in ethical theories. Some people believe that ethical language is extremely meaningful as they argue it is essential to be able to define terms such as “good” and “bad” before we can even begin to discuss ethical theories. However others disagree with this and argue that moral statements are subjective so cannot be meaningful as they cannot be described as either true or false. Those who hold cognitive theories about ethical language would argue that ethical statements are meaningful as they are about facts and can therefore be proved true or false. Ethical Naturalism is a cognitive theory of Meta ethics which holds the belief that ethical statements are the same as non ethical ones, so can be verified or falsified in the same way.
On the other hand, utilitarianism does not take universally accepted codes of conduct into account. These are the important differences between Utilitarianism and Deontology. Utilitarianism: “Utilitarianism is a theory in normative ethics holding that the proper course of action is the one that maximizes utility, specifically defined as maximizing happiness and reducing suffering” - Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill key concepts: * End justifies the means OR Pleasure v/s Pain. * Focused on consequences or result of an action. The right thing to do is based on
A person must ultimately make the decision to be “good” in the presences of negative influences, it is what we as a society have determined to be “good” that sets apart the civilized from uncivilized societies. There are several ethical philosophies that hold merit and each has its weaknesses alongside its strengths. Virtue ethics, developed in ancient Greece with proponents such as Plato and Aristotle, is probably one of the most well known of the philosophies for its long history and relatively basic structure. Several other ethical views are built upon the basics set out in virtue ethics. A person inherently has some sort of primitive worldview and code of personal ethics.
These theorists believe erasing vices builds good moral character (Cline, 2012). Utilitarianism relates to normative ethics. This type of ethics stems from the English philosophers John Mill and Jeremy Bentham. The main premise of Utilitarianism is that actions are right if the promotion of happiness arises. Also if the opposite of happiness is a product of personal ethics it is a wrong
EXPLAIN HOW BENTHAM’S VERSION OF UTILITARIANISM MAY BE USED TO DECIDE ON THE RIGHT COURSE OF ACTION. (25 marks) Utilitarianism is the ethical theory that determines the reasons for a person choosing to carry out an action - it justifies an action being for the greater good. Utilitarianism is a teleological theory which looks at the consequences of an action, rather than the process of the action itself - to decide whether it is consequently right or wrong which therefore also makes it a consequentialist theory. The theory of Utilitarianism began with Jeremy Bentham when he believed in 'the greatest good for the greatest number'. Jeremy Bentham first proposed is theory of Utilitarianism on the basis for social reform.
Ethics Essay Terence Lord ETH/316-Ethics and Social Responsibility May 5th, 2013 Denise Antoon Ethics Essay Deontology is a moral theory that accentuates one’s obligation to see to certain action just as the action, itself, is intrinsically right and not through any extra kind of shrewdness—such as the penalties of the action. Or in other words, it is the study of what is morally right or wrong. One simply may follow their obligations to another individual or society just because keeping one's obligation is what well-thought-out as ethically correct. However, one flaw of this theory is that there is no foundation or rational basis for determining an individual's sense of duty. For instance, an executive of a company may well choose
Ethics also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy concerned with the study of questions of right and wrong and how we ought to live. Ethics involves making moral judgments about what is right or wrong, good or bad. Right and wrong are qualities or moral judgments we assign to actions and conduct. (Ethics and criminal justice). When it comes to the criminal justice field, ethics signify ‘a value system’ or ‘a set of moral principles’ (Braswell, McCarthy, & McCarthy, 2008).