Lecture 4: THE ACT ( Modules 5&6)

Charles Kevin T. Salonga

Lecturer.
 Outline

1. Module 5: Act as Willfully Done

1. Will
2. Modifiers of Will: Passion and Habit
3. Feelings in Moral Decision Making
4. Ethical Subjectivism vs Emotivism
5. Ways to Control Emotions and Make Better Decisions
2. Module 6: Act as Freely Done
1. Freedom as Foundation of Morality
2. Modifier of Freedom: Fear and Violence
3. Moral Courage
 Recall

• Only HUMAN ACTS are subjected to morality or have

moral significance.

• HUMAN ACTS= acts that are:

– KNOWINGLY
– WILLFULLY
– FREELY done
 MODULE 5

Acts as Willfully Done

 Will

• refers to that faculty of the mind which chooses, at the

moment of making decision, the strongest desire from
among the various desires present.
• It does not refer to any particular desire, but rather to
thapcity to act decisively on one's desire. Within the
philosophy the will is important as one of the distinct part
in ethics because of its central role in enabling a person
to act deliberately.
 Modifiers of Will: Passion and Habit

PASSION or CONCUPISCENCE
• Psychic responses
• Positive emotions (tendencies towards desirable objects)
OR Negative emotions (tendencies away from
undesirable or harmful things)
• They are neither mortal nor immoral
• They can be either antecedent or consequent
 Kinds of Passions

• Antecedent Passion
– are those that precede an act.
– It may happen that a person is emotionally aroused to perform
an act.
– predisposed a person to act.
– Thus, love may induce one to make numerous and lengthy
phone calls to his sweetheart or to plot the murder of a rival.
 Antecedent Passion; Principle

• Principle: Antecedent passions do not always destroy

voluntariness but they diminish accountability for the
resultant act. Antecedent passions weaken the will power
of a person without however, completely obstructing his
freedom.
• Thus the so called “crimes of passion” are voluntary. But
in so far as passions interfere with the freedom of the will
one’s accountability is diminished.
 Kinds of Passion

• Consequent Passion
– are those intentionally aroused and kept.
– Consequent passions therefore are said to be voluntary in
cause, the result of the will playing the strings of emotions.
– Thus a young man may deliberately arouse himself sexually by
reading pornographic magazines.
– A victim of injustice may intentionally nurse his resentment
towards his tormentor. The young man who commits
lasciviousness after arousing himself sexually and the fellow
who commits vengeance due to his cultivated resentment are
both morally accountable.
 Consequent Passion; Principle

• Principle: Consequent passion do not lessen

voluntariness, it may even increase accountability. This is
because consequent passions are direct results of the will
which fully consent to them instead of subordinating them
to its control
 Modifier of Will: Habit

HABIT
• is a lasting readiness and faculty, born of frequently
repeated acts, for acting in a certain manner. Habits are
acquired inclinations towards something to be done. They
assume the role of a second nature, moving one who has
them to perform acts with relative ease. (Glenn)
 Habit; Principle

• Principle: Action doe by force of habit are voluntary in

cause, unless a reasonable effort is made to counteract
the habitual inclination, Habits are either good or bad,. We
speak here of bad habits which lead to immoral acts.
 Habit; Principle

• Habits are voluntary in cause because they are the result

of previously willed acts done repeatedly as a matter of
fact. Thus every activity emanating form habit is said to
partaker of the voluntariness of those previous acts.
Therefore for as long as the habit is not corrected, evil
actions done by force of habit are voluntary and
accountable.
 Habit; Principle

• When a person decides to fight his habit, and for as long

as the effort towards this purpose continues, actions
resulting from such habit may be regarded as acts of man
and not accountable. The reason as pointed out by Glenn
is that the cause of such habit is no longer expressly
desired.
 Feelings as Instinctive Responses

• Ethics is also a matter of emotion; moral judgments at

their best should be emotional; feelings are deemed as
instinctive and trained response to moral dilemmas.
Ethical judgments are highly emotional as people
emotionally express strong approval or disapproval of
different acts. Being good involves both thinking and
feeling.
 Feelings as obstacles to Making the Right Decisions

• Feelings/Emotions can become obstacles or impediments

to becoming ethical. Especially when feeling’s roles in
ethics are misinterpreted or exaggerated.
 Ethical Subjectivism

• Ethical subjectivism is a meta-ethical theory, it holds that

the truth or falsity of ethical propositions is dependent on
the feelings, attitude, or standards of a person or group of
persons.
• It denies that there is objectivity in morality.
• Moral judgments are not about objective facts, but are
simply about our personal feelings.
• Subjectivists hold that there is no such thing as objective
right or real wrong.
 Ethical Subjectivism

Controversial Ethical topic: Abortion

• First group: Abortion is immoral!

• Second group: Abortion must be tolerated!
• Third group: No moral stance is objectively right and
wrong, your moral opinions are merely based on your
feelings!
 Ethical Subjectivism

• Homosexuality is wrong!

He is not stating a fact about homosexuality, he is just

reporting his feelings towards it.
 Ethical Subjectivism

Positive Side:

• We are to identify our moral principles by simply following

our own feelings, not by what society dictates
 Ethical Subjectivism; Problems

Problem 1:
• It provides a weak foundation when dealing with acts like
rape, bullying, and slavery
• We cannot say that these acts are morally incorrect, we
can only express our negative feelings towards it
• We believe and claim that our stance represents the
“truth”
 Ethical Subjectivism; Problems

Problem 2:
• Implies that each of us is infallible in expressing our
feelings about moral issues
• We can be wrong in our moral evaluation
• Counter-argument: “If Ethical Subjectivism is correct, then
each of us is infallible in our moral judgments as long as
we are speaking sincerely. But we are not infallible – we
may be mistaken, even when we are speaking sincerely.
Therefore, Ethical Subjectivism cannot be correct”
 Ethical Subjectivism; Problems

Problem 3:
• Subjectivism cannot account for the fact of disagreement
in ethics
• Counter-argument: “When A says “X is morally
acceptable” and B says “X is morally unacceptable”, they
are disagreeing. But if Ethical subjectivism is correct,
there would be no disagreement between A and B.
Therefore, Ethical Subjectivism cannot be correct.”
 Emotivism

• Emotivism is an improved version of Subjectivism;

actually the most popular form of non-cognitivism, the
meta-ethical theory that claims that ethical sentences do
not convey authentic propositions.
• It based on Logical Positivism that states that all truth
claims must be empirically verifiable.
• It denies moral truth and knowledge, because of the
absence of scientific or empirical evidence.
 Emotivism

• Moral judgments according to Emotivism are not

statements of fact but are mere expressions of he
emotions of the speaker, especially since they are usually
feelings based.
 Emotivism; Purposes of Language

Statement To convey Information

• “Marcos was a President once.”

• “Jose Rizal wrote Noli me Tangere”
 Emotivism; Purposes of Language

Command To influence conduct

• “Close the door!”

 Emotivism; Purposes of Language

Express the speaker’s attitude

• “Yes Lord!”
 Emotivism; Purposes of Language

Reporting vs. Expressing an Attitude

“I like Marcos.” I am reporting the fact that I have

a positive attitude towards him.

“Hurrah for Marcos!” I am expressing an attitude, but

not reporting that I have it.
 Emotivism; Purposes of Language

Two purposes of Ethical Utterances

1. As a command
• “Stealing is immoral”
• “Don’t steal!”

2. To express (not report) a speaker’s attitude

• “Fair play is good”
• “Hurrah for fair play!”
• “I approve of fair play”
 Subjectivism vs. Emotivism

Subjectivism Emotivism
“I disapprove of hazing.” “I disapprove of hazing.”
Seen as a statement of fact about the speaker. Does not state a fact about the speaker at all.
Can be true or false.
 Emotivism; Faults

1. It suggests that in ethical disputes, we can only appeal to

emotion, not reason. This situation can bring about
anarchy.
2. It is against deliberate discussions about ethical
differences.
3. It fails to distinguish moral judgements from expressions
of personal preferences.
 Emotivism; Faults

4. Personal taste, does not require to be supported by

reason. Moral statements require backing by reasons. In
the absence of sensible rationale, they are merely
capricious and ignorable.

5. The theory reduced morality to mere matters of feelings

without reasons. The fact is moral truths are truths of
reasons
 Ways to Control Your Emotion and Make Better Decisions

1. Pause and assess the situation. This simple act can

save you headaches down the road. Give your brain
enough time to evaluate the current situation so you can
make the right choice.
 Ways to Control Your Emotion and Make Better Decisions

2. Don't always rely on your gut. Intuition, more

commonly known as “gut feeling”, is one of our most basic
instincts. It helps us identify cues in the environment so we
avoid danger and survive. But avoid trusting this human
sense when it comes to games of chance (i.e.
circumstances that rely on a 50/50 probability). The best
examples would be gambling and the stock market. So
when can you rely on your gut? When there are skills or
experience involved
 Ways to Control Your Emotion and Make Better Decisions

3. Put it in writing. You’re not going to feel better right away

– however, keeping notes about your day is a tried-and-
tested form of therapy. It’s free, it gives you some alone
time, and you can review your thoughts later for more
clarity.
 Ways to Control Your Emotion and Make Better Decisions

4. Narrow your options. Narrowing your selection will not

only save you a lot of stress, science says you’ll be happier
with the choice you’ve made, too!
 Ways to Control Your Emotion and Make Better Decisions

5. Ask the majority. One of the best tricks to choosing the

right decision – especially if it involves big risks – is to ask
for a second opinion.
 Ways to Control Your Emotion and Make Better Decisions

6. Avoid burnout. Feeling stressed, confused, or anxious?

Get some rest. Not only will you feel refreshed after waking
up, your mind will be clearer to pick a better option.
 MODULE 6

Act as Freely Done

 Moral Courage

• “doing the right thing even at the risk of inconvenience,

ridicule, punishment, loss of job or security or social
staus.etc.”
• requires that we rise above the apathy, complacency,
hatred , cynicism and fear-ngering in our political
systems, socioeconomic divisions and cultural/religious
differences
 Arthur Schopenhauer

• “Will is the innermost essence,

the kernel, of every particular
thing and also in the deliberate
conduct of man.”
– urging -wanting
– craving -desiring
– striving
• He believed that will is primary
and uses knowledge in order
to find an object that will
satisfy its craving.
 Will Power

• “inner strength to make a decision, take action, and

handle and execute any aim or task until it is
accomplished, regardless of inner and outer resistance,
discomfort or difficulties. It bestows the ability to
overcome laziness, temptations and negative habits, and
to carry out actions, even if they require effort, are
unpleasant and tediousor are contary to one's habit.”
 Moral Courage sounds like...

• “ I believe strongly in _______”

• That joke was offensive to women/Muslims/disabled/etc.”
• Let's volunteer
• Let's volunteer!
• Dad, I'm in trouble
• I am going to campaign for
• It's not fair that______
• I broke this, Mom, I'm sorry
 Developing Will and Moral Courage

1. Develop and Practice Self-discipline

– involves rejection of instant gratification in favor of something
better
– give up instant pleasures satisfaction
– develop self-control
– stick to actions, thoughts and behaviours which lead to moral
improvement and success
– focus all energy on a moral goal and persevere until it is
accomplished.
2. Do mental strength training
-saying no to useless, harmful or unnecessary desires
and deed, and behaving contrary to one's (bad) habits,
fortify a person's mindset
“no internet for a day or two”
“drink water or juice, instead of liquor”
“avoiding tsismosa friends”
“ sleep earlier than usual”
“resist desire to gamble”
3.Draw inspiration from people of great courage
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Jesus and
his apostles
4. Repeatedly do acts that exhibit moral courage and will
-help someone
-stand up against bullies
- pick up liter
-initiative to do chores/assignments
5. Avoid deeds that show lack of mor courage and will
--> involves acts that show irresponsibility, cowardice,
apathy, rashness, imprudence, ill will and wickedness
-walking away from someone in need
-taking more than of your fair share
-laughing at someone's misfortune
-grabbing the spotlight from someone who earned it