CHAPTER 1 FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS IN ETHICS

INTRODUCTION

When is the last time you turned to your best friend or your parent and asked: “Hey, can we chat about ethics?”
Unless you are a rare exception to the rule, the answer to this question is never. This may be due, in large part, to the
reputation of ethics. It is often regarded as an abstract topic of debate discussed in a religion or philosophy class.
Furthermore, not many people seem to believe that a discussion of ethics has any practical value or relevance in our
everyday lives.

Now, you readily admit that you don’t invite friends to chat about ethics before a big game or around the lunch
table. But what if you were told that, in fact, you do engage in ethical discussions every day? Would you be shocked if you
were told that ethics is an unavoidable part of daily life and just as much a part of life as walking and breathing?

Let’s take a closer look at this claim. Most people do not realize that ethics is interwoven into the fabric of daily
existence. Debating ethics and making ethical decisions is part of what it means to be human. And most ethics encountered
on a day-to-day basis stems from the asking and answering of one simple question: “What ought I to do?” In fact, this
question has been asked since the dawn of humankind, ranking ethics among the oldest topics of debate in human history.

So, in its simplest form, ethics is the age-old attempt by human beings to determine how they should act. Knowing
this much about ethics is a good place to start, but much confusion about the word ethics and its various uses still remains.
Ethics is slightly more complicated than you probably realize.

ETHICS

Etymologically, Ethics comes from the Greek word εθος (ethos) which means “Customs, Usage, or Character”.
Ethics is a set of rules of human behavior, which has been influenced by the standards set by the society or by himself in
relation to his society (Reyes, 1989). The field of ethics (o moral philosophy) involves systematizing, defending, and
recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior. Ethics is a practical and normative science, based on reason, which
studies human acts, and provides norms for their goodness and badness (Timbreza, 1993).

As practical science,

❖ Ethics deals with a systematized body of knowledge that is applicable to human action.

❖ The primary consideration of Ethics is the application of human knowledge and its practicality to human experience.

❖ Thus, ethics is an indispensable part of man’s daily existence.

As a normative science,

❖ Ethics sets a basis or norm for the direction and regulation of human actions.

❖ It sets rules and guidelines to maintain a sense of direction to human actions

❖ It aids man in distinguishing whether one’s action can be considered good or bad.
ETHICS…

❖ Is based on REASON. All ethical theories and all moral decisions must have its basis from the power of reason.

❖ Is Different from RELIGION or THEOLOGY. Philosophy accepts truth on the basis of reason. Those who do not believe
in God may still have moral life. Sometimes, those who believe in God may even be more immoral than those who don’t.

❖ Studies HUMAN ACTS. Ethics particularly deals with voluntary human conduct.

THE THREE APPROACHES TO ETHICS

Philosophers today usually divide ethical theories into three general subject areas: met ethics, normative ethics, and
applied ethics.

Meta-ethics. It deals with the nature of moral judgment. It looks at the origins and

meaning of ethical principles.

❖ Are ethical principles merely social inventions? Do they involve more than expressions of our individual emotions?
Meta-ethical answers to these questions focus on the issues of universal truths, the will of God, the role of reason in
ethical judgments, and the meaning of ethical terms themselves.

Normative ethics. It is concerned with the content of moral judgments and the criteria for what is right or wrong. It takes
on a more practical task, which is to arrive at moral standards that regulate right and wrong conduct.

❖ This may involve articulating the good habits that we should acquire, the duties that we should follow, or the
consequences of our behavior on others.

Applied ethics. It involves examining specific controversial issues, such as abortion, infanticide, animal rights,
environmental concerns, homosexuality, capital punishment, or nuclear war.

WHY STUDY ETHICS?

There are several compelling reasons for you to study Ethics. These are:

Ethics is the very investigation of the meaning of life.

You will be guided in understanding what real happiness is.

❖ The primary consideration of Ethics is the application of human knowledge and its practicality to human experience.

❖ Thus, ethics is an indispensable part of man’s daily existence.

As a normative science,

❖ Ethics sets a basis or norm for the direction and regulation of human actions.

❖It sets rules and guidelines to maintain a sense of direction to human actions

❖ It aids man in distinguishing whether one’s action can be considered good or bad.
ETHICS…

❖ Is based on REASON. All ethical theories and all moral decisions must have its basis from the power of reason.

❖ Is Different from RELIGION or THEOLOGY. Philosophy accepts truth on the basis of reason. Those who do not believe
in God may still have moral life. Sometimes, those who believe in God may even be more immoral than those who don’t.

❖ Studies HUMAN ACTS. Ethics particularly deals with voluntary human conduct. THE THREE APPROACHES TO ETHICS
Philosophers today usually divide ethical theories into three general subject areas: met ethics, normative ethics, and
applied ethics.

META-ETHICS. It deals with the nature of moral judgment. It looks at the origins and meaning of ethical principles.

❖ Are ethical principles merely social inventions? Do they involve more than expressions of our individual emotions?
Meta-ethical answers to these questions focus on the issues of universal truths, the will of God, the role of reason in
ethical judgments, and the meaning of ethical terms themselves.

NORMATIVE ETHICS. It is concerned with the content of moral judgments and the criteria for what is right or wrong. It
takes on a more practical task, which is to arrive at moral standards that regulate right and wrong conduct.

❖ This may involve articulating the good habits that we should acquire, the duties that we should follow, or the
consequences of our behavior on others.

APPLIED ETHICS. It involves examining specific controversial issues, such as abortion, infanticide, animal rights,
environmental concerns, homosexuality, capital punishment, or nuclear war. WHY STUDY ETHICS? There are several
compelling reasons for you to study Ethics. These are: Ethics is the very investigation of the meaning of life. You will be
guided in understanding what real happiness is.

It will help you understand that man’s ultimate goal is not acquisition of material goods rather his actual fulfilment
lies in the development of the moral quality It provides for you an idea of what right living is all about and the importance
of acquiring good moral character It can give the necessary guidelines for the acquisition of his goal. Character-building.

FREEDOM AS FOUNDATION OF MORALITY A human act is a conscious, voluntary and free act. Thus, you hold
responsibility for your actions. If your act turns out to be good, then you deserve the good consequences that come after.
If your act turns out to be evil, you are held accountable for the negative impacts.

A human act is an act determined by the will and nothing else. This means that you are not forced nor coerced to
perform an act. Here, freedom is referred to as internal or psychological (the freedom to decide), and not to external
freedom (the freedom to carry out one’s decision).

Internal freedom, or free will, exists when the decision of the will is necessary and unavoidable. It consists in
choosing the means for an end. This includes the freedom to choose between doing an action or not, and of choosing
between two possible actions.

Freedom implies knowledge; ignorance is an obstacle to the capacity to choose. Thus, freedom depends on truth.
Even more, freedom makes man more capable of loving truth and growing in the knowledge of moral values. Truth is not
the same as “opinion” or “one’s own judgment,” but rather an objective reality.

A free act is always voluntary, since something is chosen through the will (volantes), according to what the
intellect—also led by the will—concludes and presents. Freedom is a necessary condition for acts to be fully voluntary.
Freedom we understand (rather than the choice itself) mastery over one’s acts: self-mastery and self-determination,
which allow man to master himself and to act by himself.

Freedom makes you responsible for your actions to the extent that they are voluntary. The way to acquire and
develop one’s freedom is to make good use of responsibility.
 THE NEED TO REDEFINE ETHICS Our concept of goodness has changed in the course of time. Goodness before
was gauged on the basis moral norms, i.e., Maria is living a good life because she is honest and kind. But when we began
to taste a more pleasurable life through technological advances, our concept of goodness is now becoming dependent to
physical pleasures. Hence, we begin to look at things as moral in their capacity to provide pleasure and prevent pain. We
are now inclined to a hedonistic lifestyle. The present era created a situation where Ethics has to be redefined and echoed
to every individual!

Reading such abstract and philosophical material in this chapter may lead you to ask: “Who cares?” or “Why study
ethics at all?” The answer to this question will become clear as you progress through this book, but here is a glimpse at
the answer. Ethicists seek to create or discover universal moral rules. Imagine if they were to succeed or simply improve
upon the moral rules that we currently use.

Moral rules underlie all religions, political systems, educational institutions, and all other social constructions. So,
the positive contributions of ethicists have implications in all the important aspects of daily life. For this reason, ethics is
considered an applied philosophy. It is not studied for its own sake, but its theories are developed for use in real life
situations.

Improvements in ethical theory can translate into improvements in quality of life for people. That’s why it is useful
to think of ethics as the science of morality. Science attempts to make life better and so does ethics.

REFERENCE:

Chapter 1 Reading Material - CHAPTER 1 FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS IN ETHICS LEARNING OBJECTIVES: Define - Studocu