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.
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.
Rationality, Sensibility and Ethics Immanuel Kant begins this excerpt from Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysics of Morals with the claim that nothing can be qualified as good except a good will. He supports this claim by giving examples of things we consider good, such as talents of the mind and qualities of temperament, which are not in and of themselves good because someone of bad will can utilize these qualities for bad things. There are qualities and traits which can be esteemed for their ability to service and facilitate a good will, but this does not allow us to label them as good in themselves. Kant states that, “a good will is good not because of what it performs or effects…but simply by virtue of the volition” (P.1). The conscious decision is good in itself because the decision was not inclined by any desire but the duty to do what is intrinsically good.
First of all, we must make a differentiation between Ethical egoism and Physiological Egoism. In the firs one talks about that people ought to act in a self-interesting way, and the second one is the fact tat people act in a self-interesting way. Even though sometimes we fell that we should do things for others, the theory of ethical egoism is accepted because it is not promoting personal interests over others interests. There are some arguments that help support this idea. One of the most important arguments is the Argument that altruism is self-defeating.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/introduction/intro_1.shtml I think that ethics is acknowledging the difference between something right and wrong; it is a thinking procedure of deciding whether something shouldn’t or should be done. In my opinion being ethical is saying something or doing something and keeping you integrity. It is being able to stand up for yourself and what you believe without any negativity that could be offensive to others. Not every person is perfect but when faced with a difficult decision, if you do the best thing you can do then that means you have good morals. When a person’s first instinct is that something is wrong and therefore doesn’t do it that is ethical, however if knowing something is wrong but still do it that is unethical.
The absolutist's view is that some statements are "objectively true," that is, true independent of whether anybody recognizes their truth. Objectivism is another name for absolutism. The general relativist denies that are any objectively true statements; general relativism is the view that statements are true only from a point of view (individual, community, or culture). As with scepticism and dogmatism, many people are relativists only about some areas. You might be a relativist regarding ethical matters--saying that moral correctness is merely in the mind of the individual, or maybe the dominant group in the society, but remain an absolutist about mathematics, saying that 1+1=2 regardless of whether you or I or anybody else thinks so.
Utilitarianism and Deontology are two terms associated with morality. Even though both are chief modern ethical theories and these theories are intended to give us an insight into the right thing to do, but they often conflict with each other. Utilitarianism believes in the concept of the ‘end justifies the means’ (John Stuart Mill and Jeremy Bentham).It is interesting to note that according to utilitarianism, utility is all about the result of an action. Hence, the followers of utilitarianism school of morality give more value to the outcome of an action. Health care follows the utilitarianism principles to a great extent.
Situation ethics is a branch of relativism which argues that there are no moral absolutes, so therefore saying that love is the only moral rule is self-contradictory. • It can be difficult to implement in both a personal sense and in society as a whole. No one can fully understand and take into account every single consequence of an action regardless of how intelligent they may be. Therefore no one can be sure that his or her action will cause no pain, and will be beneficial to everyone involved. • Situation ethics can even be a way to approve of what are considered in society as ‘evil’ acts.
While someone else may hold a different ethical viewpoint, I have found, upon taking the Ethical Lens Inventory, my own personal ethical viewpoint to lie right in the middle of the Results Lens and the Reputation Lens. The things I value the most are personal independence and equality between all people. Also, I believe in overcoming obstacles with reasoning and courage. One of my greatest strengths is having compassion, and nothing is more important to me than that specific trait. However, where there is strength, there is also weakness.
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