Module 1: ETHICS AND PHILOSOPHICAL INQUIRY

Module No. & Title Module 1: Ethics and Philosophical Inquiry

Module Overview

Hello? What’s up? How are you? This module discusses the
branches, methods, and objectives of philosophical inquiry. Philosophers
usually conduct philosophical inquiries for various reasons. One is
ascertaining reality or the existence of things and another knows the causes
and outcomes of good and bad behaviors.

So Good Luck! HAPPY LEARNING 

Module At the end of this module, the students are expected to:

Objectives/Outcomes  define the major branches of philosophy;

 determine the importance of philosophical inquiry;
 apply the principles of critical thinking;
Lessons in the Module Lesson 1: Ethics as a branch of Philosophy

Lesson 2: Major Areas of Ethics

Lesson 3: Philosophical Methods of Inquiry

Time Frame 6 hours

Introduction

Hi there! How are you? I hope you’re great! Today you are going to
begin your first lesson in Module I, I encourage you to start studying your
lesson/s, it will give you adequate understanding in ethics and philosophical
inquiry. Have a Great Day and Have a Fun Learning experience over there

Activity

PICTURE ANALYSIS

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 INSTRUCTION: Study the picture quietly for a few minutes. Describe
exactly what you see.

Analysis Answer the following questions based on the picture above.

1. Are there people in the picture? If so, what are they doing? What can you
tell about the person or persons from looking at the picture? How can
you tell? Based on what you observed, what can you infer or guess about
the picture?
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2. Do you already encounter just like what in the picture? Express your
answer by writing it.
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3. What questions does this picture raise in your mind? Where could you
find answers to them?
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Abstraction

ETHICS AS A BRANCH OF PHILOSOPHY

Humans have the innate tendency to know the truth. The essence of
philosophy is to question what is considered the truth. Philosophy:
inquiry involves questioning beliefs and assumptions of reality and it
works. It questions truth and what it means to be human outside
experience and observation. Philosophical activity is practical becomes
challenges what and how humans think and act.

Philosophy is the study general and fundamental problems concerning

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 matters such as existed knowledge, values, and reason. It provides the
principles that develop: for critical thinking to better understand and
evaluate the world.
Philosophers also raise questions about moral behaviors such as: What is
good? How can good be distinguished from evil? What is the difference
between moral and immoral? What is justice? Philosophers seek to find
answers to these questions, which are often the basis of human behavior ·
They need to learn the factors that influence moral or immoral, good or
behaviors, and apply this knowledge to understand the nature of humans
and society.

Philosophy and ethics form a more complex relationship which

provides people with different perspectives of reasoning in order to
understand how right differs from wrong. Ethics, as a branch of
philosophy, involves systematizing, describing, and recommending
concepts of right and wrong. As such, ethics takes on the essence of
philosophy which is to address, happens once what is right is distinguished
from what is wrong.

MAJOR AREAS OF ETHICS

1. Metaethics attempts to determine the meanings of terms such as right,

good, virtue, justice, etc. Among the approaches in metaethics are
cognitivism, intuitionism, naturalism, and subjectivism.

 Cognititivism maintains that moral judgment can be true or false and

can be subject of knowledge or cognition.
 Intuitionism suggests that human; knowledge of what is considered
good and bad is immediate and se evident.
 Naturalism suggests that moral terms are complex matt and can be
established through scientific investigation.
 Subjectivism: holds that moral judgments are subjective and that
there are objective moral truths. Subjectivism is a form of moral
skepticism that doubts absolute moral truth and asserts that no one
can have absolute knowledge of it.

2. Normative Ethics is the study of ethical actions and questions the

standards of what is considered morally good or bad. It is concerned with
questions such as why one should be moral and how can one tell what is right
or wrong. Normative ethics has three major theories-consequentialism,
deontological ethics, and virtue ethics.

 In consequentialism, the moral worth of an action is determined by its

potential consequences.
 Thus, from a consequentialist perspective, an act is considered morally
good if it produces a positive outcome.
 Deontological ethics is the study of the rightness and wrongness of the
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 actions themselves regardless of their consequences. Simply put,
deontological ethics is the study of duty.
 Virtue ethics is the study of a person's character and the virtues for
determining or evaluating ethical behavior.
3. Ethics of Religion. Religion is a system of beliefs and practices by
which people relate their lives to a supernatural force or being such as God.
Most religions possess an ethical code. Thus, some philosophers regard that
there can be no morality without religion as it is necessary to live ethically.
Ethics and religion are best viewed as complementing systems.

PHILOSOPHICAL METHODS INQUIRY

Philosophy is embedded in different disciplines as its goal is to seek the

truth. Branches of philosophy present different methods of inquiry in
knowing and understanding the truth. As a discipline, philosophy relies on a
specific method of inquiry in order to find answers to the kinds of questions
that philosophers deal with. The aim of philosophical inquiry is to question
truth, reason, reality, knowledge, ethics, and morality. When conducting a
philosophical inquiry, philosophers employ a methodology, which is a set of
systematic procedures that guide the inquiry.
Philosophical inquiry is a method geared towards arriving at a clear
meaning of common human issues in everyday life. People have been and are
exposed to different perceptions of the world. They are expected to respond
to a variety of human issues. There are many philosophical approaches
people can apply to effectively understand human nature and its relationship
to everyday situations.
In order to address philosophical questions, a philosopher must be logical.
Logic is the science and art of correct thinking. It uses methods to achieve
accuracy and objectivity in explaining what is a valid logical argument. In
logic, an argument is composed of premises and a conclusion. A premise is
an assumption that something is true. From initial premises, philosophers
try to work out answers to basic philosophical questions. A conclusion is a
claim that has been reached through the process of reasoning and is
justified by preceding premises. Formulating philosophical arguments is
an important part of the philosophical method. Philosophers usually offer
arguments for the different claims they make. Thus, this indicates that
philosophy is a quest for the most logical and valid arguments.
Logic provides a means of analyzing basic concepts to determine if
they are true or false, valid or invalid, and consistent or inconsistent. It
plays an important role in the history of philosophy. Almost all human
knowledge is founded on logical analysis. However, logic is not enough
to find answers to philosophical questions In order to arrive at answers to
philosophical questions, it is important to prioritize relevant facts
surrounding the question. Specific criteria are needed for selecting the
facts relevant to the issue. Applying a theory helps to determine what
facts should be considered in an explanation (Archie & Archie, 2004).
Philosophical inquiry provides an explanation that only leads to
further inquiry which reflects the general nature of philosophy. This is in
connection to the ·aim of ethics at systematic knowledge. People are
exposed to many problems and the challenge is to come up with critical
and practical solutions using their own thinking and reasoning from their
ethical perspective. This means applying ethical theories to actual life
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 experiences supported by personal evaluation in terms of importance and
practicality. Philosophical inquiry is guided by theories which are crucial
for the prediction and control of behavior.

Epistemology is the study of the theory of knowledge particularly its scope,

method, and validity. It deals with how knowledge relates to similar notions
such as truth, belief, and justification. Humans can only attain the truth if
they are certain that their philosophy is based on facts or pieces of evidence.

Ethics is also related to metaphysics. Metaphysics is the study of the nature

of things, of what is real and apparent. It explores the nature of existence,
identity, home, space, and others. In ethics, philosophical inquiry is prompted
by uncertainties or conflicting opinions about duty, morality, and justice in
certain situations. Uncertainties and conflicts are the main source of moral
skepticism.
Philosophers follow a process in explaining the standards of what is
considered morally good or bad; knowing the certainty or uncertainty of
information; and determining or evaluating ethical behavior. The scientific
method is an empirical way of acquiring evidence and knowledge. The
scientific method has diverse models but it usually follows these basic
steps:
1. Statement of the Problem. This involves identifying a problem that
needs a solution. People's daily experiences, moral issues, social
problems, and philosophical theories help generate topics and
motivation to conduct a scientific investigation or a research study.
2. Formulation of Hypothesis. A hypothesis is a tentative explanation
of the problem.
3. Gathering of Data. This involves the use of scientific methods like
surveys and case studies to prove or disprove the hypothesis.
4. Drawing the Conclusion. A conclusion is established and justified
based on the pieces of evidence and findings,
5. Reporting of the Results. This enables other researchers to verify
the results and ensure that they are accurate. It also prompts other
researchers to conduct further research and to suggest
improvements on the philosophical theories and knowledge.

Philosophers are able to establish scientific answers to philosophical

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 questions through critical thinking. Critical thinking is the objective
analysis of facts to form a judgment. It involves structured observation
and thoughtful analysis of questions and arguments. In his book,
Psychology, Spence Rathus (2017) provides these guidelines for critical
thinking:
1. Be skeptical. Keep an open mind. Accept nothing as the truth until
you have examined the evidence.
2. Ask for evidence.
3. Examine the definition of terms. Some statements are true when
a term is defined in a certain way.
4. Examine the assumptions or premises of arguments.
5. Be cautious in drawing conclusions from evidence.
6. Consider alternative interpretations of evidence.
7. Do not oversimplify.
8. Do not over generalize.
9. Apply critical thinking to all areas of life.

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Application
Name:________________________________________________
Year & Section:___________________ Date:_________________

1. Using the Principles of logical reasoning and critical thinking, explain

your stand on the following ethical issues:

a. Divorce in the Philippines

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b. Death Penalty in the Philippines

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c. Same Sex Marriage

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 CRITERIA:

CONTENT -50%

GRAMAR -30%

WRITING -20%

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100%

Closure Wow! Nice one! I hope you gained knowledge in this session. Now, be
prepared for the assessment in this module. Don’t forget to review the
different topics.

Module Assessment
Name:________________________________________________
Year & Section:___________________ Date:_________________

Identification.

________________1. The branch of philosophy concerned with what is

morally good and bad.

________________2. The science and art of correct thinking.

________________3. A set of beliefs and practices by which people relate

their lives to supernatural beings.

________________4. The study of a person’s character and the virtues for

determining or evaluating ethical behaviour.

________________5. The study of the nature and scope of knowledge.

________________6. The study of the nature of things, of what is real and

apparent.

________________7. The study of general and fundamental problems

concerning existence, knowledge, values, and reason.

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 ________________8. The study of duty.

________________9. It holds that moral judgments are subjective and that

there are no objective moral truths.

________________10. It attempts to determine the meaning of terms such as

right, good, virtue, and justice.

Module Summary To sum up ethics and philosophical inquiry are used to obtain factual
information about the different aspects of life, particularly the moral.
Philosophy is defined as the study of general and fundamental problems
concerning existence, knowledge, values, and reason. Philosophical inquiry
enables one to understand what is good or bad. Ethics is a branch of
philosophy concerned with morality, its fundamentals and standards. In
ethics uncertainties or conflicting opinions about morality lead to
philosophical inquiry. Uncertainties And conflicts are the main sources of
moral scepticism. Thus, there is a need for scientific method and critical
thinking. Scientific method is an empirical method of acquiring pieces of
evidence and knowledge. Critical Thinking is the objective analysis of
facts to form judgment.

References Go-Monilla, P.R., Santos, K.K.M., Kong, K. G.G., & Gillego, R M.

(2019). Ethics A Modular Approach. Quezon City: C & E Publishing,
Inc.

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