Rizzi, Clifford Chazz L.

BSIT 611

1. For Kant, what is the role of reason in living morally?

a. Reason has a vital role in moral living. First, Kant doesn’t really believe that ethical
judgments shall be relied to feelings
b. but he strongly believe that reason and only reason must be consulted for an individual
to determine the status of his moral act. His logic is like, if an action goes with the
reason then it is good and one must do it. But if an action does not match up with
reason then it is not good and one must not do it. Additionally, reason has the ability to
produce goodwill which he believes to be the highest good and the only intrinsically
good without any condition. Hence, to live morally we must know the reason in every
action for it determines which is good and which is not.

2. Explain: “What is legal is not always moral.”

a. Basically this phrase means that legal is somehow related to moral but they are not
necessarily similar. In my own opinion, legal and moral are like codes or rules that
regulates every individual in different sense. Say, legal embodies the law which accords
with jurisdictions and legislation. While moral lies beyond that and an independent
source. In a real-life example, the phrase “what is legal is not always moral” can be seen
in abortion. In some cases and in other countries, abortion is legal but in the perspective
of religious institutions and to pro-lifers, abortion is not considered moral. Also, in
mercy killing or euthanasia which is also called as doctor assisted suicide, legal in some
countries and immoral to others.

3. Differentiate rights from virtue theories.

a. There is actually a fine line between rights and virtue theories. In ethics, virtue is a moral
system it is about our behavior shows high moral standards. Virtues highlights the
development of habitual good character such as kindness, love, happiness, and
generosity. Virtues try to stay away from bad traits like hatred, vices, and other
negatives. Rights, on the other hand is like our freedom. According to Kant, rights can be
positive or negative and conventional or natural. Where natural means moral and
conventional is about society’s values. Virtue theories gives importance to moral
education which will hone an individual to act habitually in virtuous manner. While
rights theories, as proposed by Kant, is the notion that in order for a society to be
efficacious, government must approach the making and enforcement of laws with the
right intentions in respect to the end goals of the society that it governs. Members of
society agrees to give up some freedoms for the protection enjoyed by organized
society, but governments cannot infringe upon the rights that they promise to their
citizens. (De Guzman, 2017)