ETHICS BEFORE WE CAN FULLY UNDERSTAND WHAT ETHICS IS ABOUT, WE NEED TO FIRST DEFINE WHAT PHILOSOPHY IS. PHILOSOPHY • It is the rational*, abstract**, and methodical consideration of reality as a whole or of fundamental dimensions of human existence and experience. PHILOSOPHY • Pythagoras* first coined the term Philosophy which came from two Greek words: • Philo – Love • Sophia – Wisdom • Philosophy is the “love for wisdom” PHILOSOPHY • The lovers of wisdom are the most superior of the three classifications of men (pleasure, success & wisdom) during the time of Pythagoras, for they pertain to the human endeavor of seeking the truth for its own sake, hence, attaining wisdom. PHILOSOPHY • Classically, philosophy is the “search for meaning”. • It is an examination of life upon which one will formulate a fundamental experience is based upon. • The most significant task of philosophy is to evaluate the totality of the human experience. THE PROCESS: WONDER – WHY – WISDOM PHILOSOPHY The ultimate aim (telos) of philosophy is not a relative type of truth, but “THE TRUTH.” ETHICS From the Greek word: • Ethos – character / manner • Pertains to the behavior of humans that is good or bad/evil, right or wrong. • It takes up the meanings of our moral concepts* and formulates principles to guide moral decisions. • It answers the question,“what should I do?” MORAL From the Latin word: • Mos / mor – customs • Pertains to the quality or standard of what is good or bad / right or wrong behavior as established by groups of people. MORAL AGENT - Refers to beings capable of right and wrong actions. - Human beings. RULES • Regulations or principles governing conduct. • Tells us what is or is not allowed. • Serves as a foundation for any healthy society. • Necessary to protect the greater good. • Not all rules are moral rules. THE BENEFITS OF HAVING RULES • Protection by regulating behavior • Guarantees certain rights and freedom • Produces a sense of justice • Creates a healthy economic system MORAL STANDARDS VS NON-MORAL STANDARDS • Moral Standard – rules that people have on the kinds of actions or human behaviors that they believe are morally right or wrong; MORAL VALUES • Non-moral Standard – rules that are unrelated to moral considerations and/or lacks ethical sense. (ex. Etiquette, Fashion, Game Rules) MORAL STANDARDS ARE: • Involved in serious wrongs or significant benefits. • Ought* to be preferred to other values. • Not established by authority figures. • Universal. • Based on impartial** considerations. • Associated with special emotions and vocabulary. THERE IS A GENERAL MORAL DUTY TO OBEY THE LAW BUT THERE MAY COME A TIME WHEN THE INJUSTICE OF AN EVIL LAW IS UNBEARABLE AND THUS CALLS FOR ILLEGAL BUT MORAL NONCOOPERATION. MORAL STANDARDS ARE CONSIDERED IN MAKING LAWS. DILEMMA AND MORAL DILEMMA • Dilemma – a situation in which a tough choice has to be made between/among undesirable ones. – not all dilemmas are moral dilemmas • Moral / Ethical Dilemma – a situation in which a tough choice has to be made between or among choices that violates moral principles. • Moral / Ethical Dilemmas commonly has conflicts. • Each side may have moral reasons to do each actions but doing both/all seem to be ethically impossible. • Conflict between moral rightness of a decision and the quality of the results. • The agent seems condemned to moral failure; no matter what he does, he will do something wrong or fail to do something he ought to do. DISCUSSION: •Paying debts – is it wrong or right? •According to Plato’s Book I of the Republic, Socrates suggested that it would be wrong to repay certain debts. •Returning a borrowed weapon to a friend not in his/her right mind – is it wrong or right? DISCUSSION: • Conflict: –Repaying one’s debt –Protecting others from harm • Which is more important? FEATURES OF A MORAL DILEMMA 1) REQUIRES the agent to do each of two (or more) actions. 2) The agent can do each of the actions but CAN’T do both (or all). 3) NEITHER of the conflicting moral requirement is OVERRIDDEN. LEVELS OF A MORAL DILEMMA 1) PERSONAL 2) ORGANIZATIONAL 3) STRUCTURAL PERSONAL MORAL DILEMMA • Most moral dilemma fall under this level. • Experienced and resolved personally. • Example: –Making conflicting promises. –Choosing between the life of a child or the mother giving birth to the child. ORGANIZATIONAL MORAL DILEMMA • Moral dilemmas encountered and resolved by social organizations. • Includes moral dilemma in businesses, medical fields and public sectors. • Example: –Withdrawing life support or not for medical institutions who believe that life should not be deliberately shortened. ORGANIZATIONAL MORAL DILEMMA • Example: –For businesses: • Misleading advertisements • Employee rights • Harassment • Job discrimination ORGANIZATIONAL MORAL DILEMMA • Example: –For public sectors: • Favoritism • More interest in personal gain rather than in public gain STRUCTURAL MORAL DILEMMA • Larger in scope than organizational moral dilemmas. • Refers to networks of organizations. • Example: –High price of medicine in the Philippines than in other Asian countries.* –Universal Health Care for Filipinos but problem with financing.** LESSON 2 WHO CAN BE ETHICAL? Most philosophers hold than ONLY HUMANS possess some traits that make it possible for them to be moral. WHAT TRAITS OF HUMANS MAKE IT POSSIBLE FOR THEM TO BE MORAL? HUMAN TRAITS MAKING THEM MORAL •Rational, autonomous and self-conscious* •Can act morally or immorally •Part of the moral community*** **No matter how “good” an animal’s action may seem, it cannot be technically said to be moral. Animals tend to pursue their good at the expense of others. FREEDOM AS FOUNDATION OF MORALITY •Morality is a question of choice. •It is choosing ethical codes, values and standards to guide us in our daily life even if they are different from our fellows. REASON AND IMPARTIALITY • James Rachels holds that moral judgments must be backed by sound reasoning and impartial consideration of all parties involved. • These are the minimum requirements for morality. REASON AND IMPARTIALITY • Human feelings are important in ethical decisions but must still be guided by reason. • Sound reason helps us evaluate whether our feelings and intuitions about moral cases are correct and defensible. REASON AND IMPARTIALITY • Impartiality – each individual’s interests and points of view are equally important. • It is a principle of justice holding decisions ought to be objective and not biased MORAL STATUS •Also called moral standing or moral considerability (utilitarianism). •Deals with who or what is so valuable that it should be treated with special regard. A morally considerable being can be wronged. Since only humans can recognize moral claims, it is only humans who are morally considerable. Should we consider animals? / Can they have moral status? DISCUSSIONS ON MORAL CONSIDERABILITY OF ANIMALS •Speciesism •Human Exceptionalism •Personhood •Sentience SPECIESISM * • *Termed by Richard Ryder in the 1970’s an popularized by Peter Singer. • The view that only humans (Homo sapiens) are morally considered. • Humans have developed moral systems separating them from the rest of the animal kingdom. SPECIESISM * It is not focused on discrimination or prejudice, but it can be a central tool for making humans supreme or exceptional. HUMAN EXCEPTIONALISM • Humans have distinct capacities that animals don’t have: family ties, solving social problems, using language, etc. • However, scholarly and popular works on animal behavior suggests that these occur on non-humans too. PERSONHOOD • Immanuel Kant is the most noted defender of personhood. • “Rational beings or persons in as much as their nature already marks them out as ends in themselves.” • Persons need reason and are conscious of our perceptions (beliefs) and desires (will). PERSONHOOD • Not all humans are persons. • Humans include infants, children or people with cognitive disorders. • Suggests that non-persons are morally considerable indirectly. PERSONHOOD • Kant may have believed that animals are things, but he made it clear that we have indirect duties to animals; that our treatment to them can affect our duties to persons. • We disrespect our humanity when we act in inhumane ways towards non-persons, whatever their species is. SENTIENCE • State of feeling, especially pain. • Beings who can feel, especially suffer are morally considerable. REFERENCES •Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Online Source) •Ethics: Principles of Ethical Behavior in Modern Society (Textbook)
