ROSS'S RULE DEONTOLOGY A.

The 7 kinds of PRIMA FACIE (or Conditional) DUTY: - are self-evident and obvious duties (prima facie is a Latin expression meaning 'on first appearances' or 'by first instance') - can be known to be correct if a person thinks about them and understands them: When we have reached sufficient mental maturity and have given sufficient attention to the proposition it is evident without any need of proof, or of evidence beyond itself. - should be promoted, "all things considered". - can be outweighed by other prima facie duties. (a) Based on previous acts of my own (1) duties of fidelity/promise-keeping: A duty to act according to explicit and implicit promises, including the implicit promise to tell the truth (2) duties of reparation: A duty to recompense someone if you have acted wrongly towards them. (b) Based on previous acts or merit of others (3) duties of gratitude: A duty to benefit people who have benefited us. (4) duties of justice: A duty to ensure people get what they deserve (c) Based on potential for self-betterment (5) duties of self-improvement: A duty to improve ourselves (d) Based on potential for harming and helping others (6) duties of non-maleficence: A duty to avoid harming other people (7) duties of benevolence/beneficence: A duty to help other people (increase pleasure, improve character) B. Actual (or Absolute) Duty This is the duty people are left with after they have weighed up all the conflicting prima facie duties that apply in a particular case: The ground of the actual rightness of the act is that, of all acts possible in the circumstances, it is that whose prima facie rightness in the respects in which it is prima facie right most outweighs its prima facie wrongness in any respects in which it is prima facie wrong. 1. Cases of No Conflict If (i) I have a PRIMA FACIE DUTY to do A (i.e., Act A is of a kind that I have a PRIMA FACIE DUTY to do) and (ii) I do not have a PRIMA FACIE DUTY to do any act other than A, then: A is my ACTUAL DUTY. 2. Cases of Conflict. If (i) I have a PRIMA FACIE DUTY to do A and (ii) I also have a PRIMA FACIE DUTY to do one or more other acts different from A, then I have a conflict of PRIMA FACIE DUTIES. In such a case, A is my ACTUAL DUTY [just in case] On balance, the PRIMA FACIE DUTY to do A outweighs the PRIMA FACIE DUTY to do of the alternatives. C. Act A is right Act A is one's ACTUAL DUTY. Remember: 1. We have many conflicting prima facie duties, but can have only one actual duty in any situation.

2. A prima facie obligation is your actual obligation all things being equal. 3. When there are conflicting prima facie obligations, you must meditate the situation and weigh the different prima facie obligations to see which is the weightiest. The weightiest prima facie obligation is your actual obligation. Ross's idea still leaves some problems: How can we tell which prima facie duties are involved in a particular case? How can we compare and rank them in order to arrive at a balance which will guide us as to our actual duty? Ross thought that people could solve those problems by relying on their intuitions. Created by: Roby Renz R. Tongol AC81