THE ROLE OF EMOTIONS AND FEELINGS IN ETHICS FROM THE PERSPECTIVE

OF PLATO, ARISTOTLE, KANT, HUME, GILLIGAN, FREUD.

Plato: reason rules emotion

Plato thought that although emotions were a fundamental component of the human mind, they
weren't particularly helpful. He advised us to picture our minds as a two-horse chariot. One horse
is honorable and obedient, while the other is untamed and unpredictable. Plato felt that reason
should take precedence over emotion and that our emotions should be treated more like the
horses in the chariot rather than the driver. The noble horse is a metaphor for our "moral
emotions," such as righteous rage or empathy. The irritable horse stands for more fundamental
emotions like fury, lust, and hunger. Plato's views established the standard for Western
philosophy by elevating reason above and in charge of our emotions.
Aristotle: what you feel says something about you
Aristotle believed that passions (appetite and emotions) were one of the three things in the soul,
along with faculties and states of character. He recognized emotions such as anger, fear, shame,
envy, pity, wonder, love, and friendship, and believed that what you feel says something about
you. Aristotle argued that happiness is the activity of the rational soul in accordance with virtue,
and that human beings must have a function, because particular activities are what make them
happy. Aristotle regarded psychology as a part of natural philosophy and wrote much about the
philosophy of mind. He believed that the soul had a hierarchy, with the rational soul at the top,
followed by the animal soul, and then the vegetative soul. Aristotle's accounts of the inner
senses, such as imagination and memory, were unrewarding. Overall, Aristotle believed that
emotions were an important part of the soul and that they played a role in human motivation and
character formation
Kant: emotion strips our agency
Kant believed that reason is important for following Good Will, whilst desires and inclinations
lead the individual astray. He believed that emotion strips our agency, and that the moral order
which springs from the nature of reason is fixed around a system of imperatives. Kant believed
that evil represented an invisible enemy, one who hides behind reason and hence is all the more
dangerous. There is interest in Kant's Doctrine of Virtue, the development of a Kantian ethic of
character, and new positions on the role of the emotions in Aristotelian ethics. Some scholars
argue that Kant has a viable, intellectualist account of moral character that is much richer and
more interesting than has often been thought.
Hume: emotion rules reason
David Hume,who was a Scottish philosopher, believed that emotion governs rational cognition.
He is infamous for declaring that reason is "the slave of the passions." He meant by this that we
never make decisions because reason tells us to; instead, our emotions always take the lead. We
behave because a certain emotion compels us to. According to Hume, reason is more like a
wagon being pulled along with no control over its direction rather than the charioteer pulling our
emotions. Our emotions, not the horses, are in charge here.
Gilligan:
Carol Gilligan argued that women's moral reasoning is based on care and relationships, rather
than abstract principles. She believed that women tend to prioritize the needs of others and
consider the impact of their actions on others, while men tend to prioritize individual rights and
justice. Gilligan's theory of care ethics emphasizes the importance of empathy, compassion, and
relationships in ethical decision-making. She believed that care ethics provides a more inclusive
and holistic approach to ethics, which takes into account the experiences and perspectives of
marginalized groups. Gilligan's work has been influential in feminist ethics and has contributed
to a broader understanding of the role of emotions and relationships in ethical decision-making.
Freud: our unconscious drives us
According to Freud, our personalities are greatly shaped by the experiences of our youth. For
instance, anxiety that develops from painful experiences in a person's past but is hidden from
awareness and may produce issues in adulthood (neuroses) is one such example. As a result, we
rarely give an accurate account of our motivations when we justify our actions to ourselves or
others (conscious mental activity). This is not a result of our purposeful deception. Humans are
excellent at deceiving others, but they are even better at deceiving themselves.

References:
Centre, E. (2021). The role of emotions in ethics according to six big thinkers. THE ETHICS

CENTRE. https://ethics.org.au/the-role-of-emotions-in-ethics-according-to-six-big-

thinkers/

Mcleod, S., PhD. (2023). Sigmund Freud's Theories. Simply Psychology.

https://www.simplypsychology.org/sigmund-freud.html
Emotion (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy). (2018, September 25).

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/emotion/