WIDESCREEN PRESENTATION

On Philosophy and Ethics

 Intended Learning Outcomes
1.Define and explain the meaning of
Philosophy and Ethics;
2.Appreciate and value its significance
to human life.
For this very reason, make every effort to add to
your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge;
and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control,
perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and
to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual
affection, love.
2 Peter 1:5-7
 Philosophy begins in wonder.

What is Philosophy?
Philosophy is the science that studies reality or things
according to their ultimate causes, principles, and nature
through the use of human reason alone.
Origin of the term
Pythagoras:

Philo – love + Sophia – wisdom

love of wisdom
Branches of Philosophy
 A. Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that deals with the
study of “knowledge”.
Only the mind is capable of knowing – Rationalism
“Only the good exists; evil is just the negation of
good.”
Nothing is learned except through experience – Empiricism
“God cannot be seen or experienced, so He does exist”.
Metaphysics
 Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies
“reality.” More specifically it is the study of reality that is
beyond the scientific or mathematical realms. The term
“metaphysics” itself literally means “beyond the physical.”
The metaphysical issues most discussed are the existence of
God, the soul, and the afterlife.

Did God create man or did Man create

God ?
Logic
 Logic is the branch of philosophy that studies
right or correct reasoning.

 God created everything.

 But, God is good.
 Therefore, everything is good.
Aesthetics
 Aesthetics is the branch of philosophy that
studies art and beauty. It attempts to address such
issues as: What is art? What is the relationship
between beauty and art?

 Does BEAUTY lie in the eye of the beholder?

Ethics
 Ethics is the branch of philosophy that
studies morality of human conduct, whether
it’s right or wrong.
 Why Ethics is important?
A system of philosophical beliefs would help us decide what to
do. Every time we are faced with a situation, we would have to
analyze each possible course of action, estimate their probable
outcomes, and judge the relative desirability of those outcomes.
Although we may not be equipped with enough ethical knowledge
to make good judgment, we still desire to make the best choice
most of the time. A system of philosophical beliefs give us pre-
set guidelines to speed up the decision making processes, and
yard-sticks against which we can evaluate alternatives we have
no prior experience with.
 Purpose of the study?
 The purpose of Philosophy in general and Ethics in
particular is to define “What I Ought To Do”, and
the purpose of doing that, is to improve the human
situation. Things would be better, if everybody did as
they ought. All ethical philosophies define “making
things better” to mean improving the lot of human
kind, either in general for all mankind at once, or in
particular for one person at a time.
What is ETHICS?
Ethics, also known as moral
philosophy, is a branch of
philosophy that studies the morality
of the human conduct—that is, ideas
such as good and evil, right and
wrong, virtue and vice, justice, etc. It
may also be defined as a practical
science of the morality of human
conduct.
Greek: ethos which means
“custom” or “character” and “ta
ethika” used to refer to the
philosophical inquiries into the
nature of Good and Evil.
Latin: equivalent of the term
“custom” or “habit” is mos or
moris from which the term
morality is derived from.
Hence the reason why ethics is
also called moral philosophy.
The character of Ethics as a discipline
 a. Ethics is a science.
 b. Ethics is both practical and normative
philosophy.
 c. Ethics is a moral science.
 d. Ethics is the science of the morality of human
conduct.
 e. Ethics is an art.
 What is Morality?
Morality is defined as the goodness and badness of an act;
or, it is that quality of human act which leads us to call
some of them good and some evil.
Elements of Human Act
 Knowledge - An act is done knowingly when the doer is
aware of what he is doing, the reason of why he/she is doing
it, and of its consequences.
 Freedom - An act is done freely when the doer is taking his
choice and initiative without being forced to do so by another
person or situation.
 Voluntariness (Freewill) - An act is done willfully when the
doer decides, with consent, to accept the act as his own and
assumes the accountability of its consequences.
RESPONSIBILITY
AND
ACCOUNTABILITY
 Why only humans can be moral?

a. Man by natural right is able to distinguish between good and evil, right and
wrong, moral and immoral;

b. Man feels himself obliged to do what is good and to avoid what is evil; and,

c. Man feels himself accountable for his actions so that his good deeds merit
reward, while his evil deeds deserve punished (Agapay, 2006).
Who is to judge what’s right and wrong?
Man himself is endowed with the power to decide what’s right
and what’s wrong. As rational animals we are equipped
with the ability to reason and make decisions based on
common sense and conscience. But, since this ability to
make moral judgment may be clouded from time to time,
norms and standards in the form of laws and principles are
established to guide man in making right decisions. Society is
instrumental in keeping these standards of morality. Making
sure that man’s action is checked against errors and false
moral principles.
 Branches of Ethics
1. Meta-ethics
2. Normative ethics
3. Applied ethics
4. Moral Psychology
5. Descriptive ethics
Ethical Teachings:
PHILOSOPHY RELIGION
 Sophists (Relativism) - Rene Descartes  Hinduism -Zoroastrianism
 Socrates - John Locke  Judaism - Christianity
 Plato - Immanuel Kant  Buddhism - Islam
 Aristotle - Jeremy Bentham  Jainism
 Hedonism (Epicurus) (Utilitarianism)  Confucianism
 Stoicism (Epictitus) -  Shinto
 St. Augustine  Sikhism
 St. Thomas Aquinas  Taoism
Moral principles to be studied (but not
exclusive)

- Cultural Relativism - “There is no objective “truth” in morality. Right

and wrong are only matters of opinion, and opinions vary from culture to
culture.”
- Aristotle – “telos”
- St. Thomas Aquinas – Moral and Cardinal Virtues
- Immanuel Kant – Deontology and the Categorical Imperative
- Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill – Utilitarianism
Cultural Relativism

“There is no objective “truth” in morality.

Right and wrong are only matters of
opinion, and opinions vary from culture to
culture.”
 Aristotle
- Telos = end, goal, purpose
- Ultimate end or purpose of man – HAPPINESS
(Eudaimonia)
- Happiness through virtues
- Virtues – habit of doing good
 St. Thomas Aquinas
- God – Nature
- Nature is good
- Man is good by nature
- Virtues – perfection
- Perfection cannot be attained in this life
- Man needs God
 Immanuel Kant

We have a duty to act in a way that does those things

that are inherently good as acts, like telling the truth; or
follow an objectively obligatory rule. For
deontologists, the ends or consequences of our actions
are not important in and of themselves, and our
intentions are not important in and of themselves.
Utilitarianism

“That the good is whatever

brings the greatest happiness to
the greatest number of people”.
The Trolley Problem
 Conclusion
Life is full of moral dilemma.
There is no clear cut way of knowing what’s right or wrong.
Tolerance and compromise may not be the best choice.
Forming virtues may be hard but not impossible.
Strong and balanced moral foundation is necessary.
Uphold the “Golden Rule”
Follow the “Golden Mean”
Thank You!