Ethics: Activity 4

(Answers can be encoded or written on a sheet of paper)

Name: OCRETO, MAVERICK JADD B. Date: __________

Yr. & Sec.: B.S. IN ARCHITECTURE 2-C Score: _________
Instruction: Read the fictional story and answer the questions below.

The Two Honest Shopkeepers

Mike and Jack are the shopkeepers of two shops respectively. They are doing business on the same street. They
are honest businessmen.

When asked why they treat their customers honestly, Mike would say: “It is very simple, customers are smart
people, and you cannot think you can always deceive them. If they find out I have cheated them, my shop's
reputation will be destroyed. Will I not end up paying a cost for this? “

Jack will say, “My father taught me that no matter what, to be human is to be honest. To do business is part of
being human. Honesty is our duty.”

Question:

1. Whose argument do you agree with? Why?

I agree with Jack’s argument. Although both yields the same action which is “honesty”, they
differ on motivation in which they act upon. And that in itself creates huge difference on how will they
act on different situations. Basing from the story, Mike acts based on “incentives”. Surely, incentive is a
very effective driving force especially in the business industry to motivate its people to stay inclined on
their company’s policies. But the problem with this is it is heavily reliant on the incentive itself.
We can say that if Mike is just acting upon being honest because it will demerit him as a
consequence and let’s say a certain situation comes where being dishonest will in fact benefit him, then
he isn’t really acting on a moral ground. Jack on the other hand, upholds a protected value. Which then
motivates him to act “honestly”, and let’s say in any situation he might face, he’s most likely to uphold
this value as he believes that it is universal and timeless, meaning that being honest is independent of its
consequences and some actions (like honesty, respect, integrity, etc.) are just right. And as a reward,
Jack may feel good to make money from his business consistent with his value.

2. What are the basic principles of deontology?

Deontology uses rules to distinguish right from wrong. Unlike consequentialism which judge actions by
their result, deontology doesn’t require weighing the costs and benefit of a situation. Its central principle
lies in the conformity of an action to some rule or law which is also universal and/or absolute.
Deontology also says that an action must be done because of the moral obligation, which a responsibility
that comes with our ability to think/reason.
3. Explain the concept of GOODWILL according to Kantian ethics.

According to Kant, GOODWILL is the most important to have in life. A will that conforms to one’s
duty for the sole purpose of it being our “duty” to do so. Now, there are two elements to having a
goodwill: First, the action that the person choses must be the right kind of action that conforms to the
duty that are set by the moral law. Second, a person must choose the right action solely because it is the
right thing to do, or simply having the right motives. The person with a goodwill doesn’t do the right
actions because he/she is afraid of its punishment or hoping for a reward, but do it just because it is the
right thing to do. Kant also came up with a way to test if an action is inclined to our moral obligation
and the moral law which is called the Categorical Imperative. The first formulation states that we should
only act an action if it is universalizable or simply ask ourselves suppose everyone does that same action
would it be okay or morally correct. The second formulation states that we should treat a person as a
means to an end and not as a mere means. What he’s saying is that people are ends in themselves, we are
not mere objects that exists to be used by others. And to recognize that he is an end to himself is to
recognize other person’s humanity, and we must put that into our mind when making a moral action.