GEC 18 ETHICS

JOHN B. BROTAMANTE
This Contemporary Period reflect on the
many human achievements:
Advanced Technology, Internet communication fb, twitter, Spotify, tiktok,
artificial intelligence,
Robotics , drone technology, genetic engineering, cloning and in vitro
fertilization.
These are realities where ethics and related concepts are at work. Nothing
wrong with these things but we need to utilize and limit the use of it. There
also exist the concept of morality, accountability and responsibility.
Technology and human capabilities are directly proportional to moral
questions. Here are ethical questions that we need to answer on:

Is it morally permissible to do this?

What do we ought to do or not to do?
CHED mandates in studying the
subject:
Student needs to develop the “ability to reflect on moral norms and
imperatives”
and to internalize the principles of ethical behavior at the level of person,
society and interactions with the environment and other shared resources.

Ethics has been understood by people in different ways. It is also loosely

confused and interchange with morality
ETHICS AND MORALITY

What is morality?
Refers to the set of standards a person has about what is right and what is
wrong
How we judge whether an act is good or bad, whether someone is virtuous or
not, whether we ought to this or not, depend largely on these standards. It is
for this reason we can say that people can have different morality, that is we
can have different standards, views or perspectives by which we understand
what is right and wrong. Such differences can be attributed how moral
standards originate like in family, friends, schools, church and organizations.
Morality does not only pertains to persons standards but to particular
society’s standards for what is right or wrong. E.g muslims refrain from
eating pork, in some European community/society homosexual relationships
are allowed and Eskimos allowed infanticide.
Ethics is a discipline that examines the moral standards of an individual
and society. Ethics is the study of morality. It looks on the soundness and
appropriateness of the moral standards a person or society responses.
Thus a person engages in ethics when he or she reflects on moral
standards he or she embedded from family, church and society. As we
grow/mature in reason we need to have reflective analysis, self-
awareness and self-criticism of our views, beliefs about morality. Here
ethics comes into play in evaluating our own moral beliefs and standards.
What is ethics?

Ethics in general are a system of moral principles and a branch of philosophy

which def in es what is good for the individuals and society. At its simplest,
ethics is a system of moral principles. They affect how people make decisions
and lead their lives.

Ethics covers the following dilemmas:

How to live good life

Our rights and responsibilities
The language of right and wrong
Moral decisions on what is good and bad
What use is ethics?

Ethics can provide a moral map

Ethics can pinpoint a disagreement
Ethics doesn’t give right answers
Clear choices and individual conclusions
Ethics can give several answers
AREAS OF ETHICS

1. Meta-ethics- analytic ethics, looks into meaning, nature, scope and

foundations of moral values and discourses. Meta means after and beyond.
Abstract and detached way of thinking philosophically about morality. It
attempts to shed light on the basic ideas, concepts and assumptions that
underlie our moral beliefs and judgment. Focus on what morality itself in the
first place. Questions in meta- ethics: What is the nature of the moral claims?
How is morality distinct from other normative standards? Is morality
objective or relative? What does it mean to be morally accountable? Who
have moral rights?
AREAS OF ETHICS

2. Normative Ethics- concerns with the moral standards to determine right

from wrong conduct. It involves with the formulation of moral norms or rules
that can serve as basis of the kind of actions, institutions, and ways of life
that we should pursue.
Three theories
a. consequentialism
b. deontology
c. virtue
AREAS OF ETHICS

3. Applied Ethics- examine the particular issues in both personal and social
spheres that are matters of moral judgment. Issues in applied ethics pertain
to public policies and profession.
Recent decade new specialization like business, medicine, environmental
policies, law and media. Other issues on every life pertaining to health, sex,
and relationships.

Anthropology- how people live it is descriptive

Ethics- how people should live/ descriptive and prescriptive
Descriptive ethics- not considered area of moral philosophy. Describe what
the case is.
NATURE OF MORAL STATEMENTS

Moral statement – the nature of claims that pertain to morality. Moral

statement are categorize as normative statements rather than factual
statement. A normative statement expresses a value judgement, is a kind of
judgment that claims that something ought to be the case as distinct from a
factual judgment that claims that something is the case. How things are
should be rather than what things are.
MORAL STATEMENT AS NORMATIVE
STATEMENT
Normative statements differ from factual statements in the way they are
justif ied, conf irmed or assessed. We appeal to a certain standards when we
deal with normative statements. On the other hand we appeal to the results
of research experiments or observation when we deal with factual
statements.
Example of Normative Statement Basis of assessment
1. We ought to return any excess change to the seller. Moral standards
2. There should be unity and contrast in your painting Aesthetic science
3. It is illegal to make u- turn in expressway. Legal

Factual Statement Basis of assessment

1. Philippine Independence was declared June 12, 1946 Historical research
2. Some tribes in India practice cannibalism Observation
Let us analyze these two statements:

A. According to a study of ten countries that enforce the death penalty, the
rate of criminality in these countries went down after it was enforced.
Therefore, it is morally right to enforce death penalty.

B. Imposing the death penalty will lower the rate of criminality in our
society and this will be benef icial to the greater number of people. An act
is right if it promotes the greater good of the greater number. Therefore,
imposing the death penalty is right.
Analysis:

1. A is based on facts
2. A is not debatable and explorable
3. B is based on moral standards
4. B is explorable, subject to agreement and
disagreement
5. A is objective and B is relative
MORAL STATEMENTS AND MORAL STANDARDS

How can we distinguished moral standards from non-moral standards? How

we distinguish moral statements as well as how distinct morality is from
etiquette, law and religion.

Ethicist identified number of characteristics of moral standards.

1. Ideals with matters that we think can seriously harm or benefit human beings.
e.g. cheating, lying, killing, dignity respected or degraded, work conditions safe or
dangerous products, detrimental or beneficial.
2. Moral standards have universal validity.
“Do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto you”.
3. Moral standards are generally thought to have a particularly overriding importance that
is people feel they should prevail over other values. E.g violations of moral rule like killing is
more important than grammar and etiquette.
4. Moral standards are not established by the decision of authoritarian bodies, nor are they
solely determined by appealing to consensus or tradition. Adequacy of reason make moral
standards valid.
MORALITY AND OTHER NORMATIVE SUBJECTS
MORALITY AND ETIQUETTE
Etiquette refers to the set of rules or customs that determine the accepted
behaviors in a particular social group. Similarities of morality and etiquette
both concern human action.
Etiquette- proper behavior
Morality- right conduct
Etiquette- varies from culture to culture
Morality- is universal as long as there is adequate reason
Violation of etiquette may have bad effects but not makes us immoral.
Lack civility, urbanity and manners does not mean immorality.
MORALITY AND RELIGION

Although closely related because of religious precepts, biblical teachings,

Gods command but still different. Socrates controvertial questions which
leads to moral dilemma. “Do the God love goodness because it is good, or it is
good because God loves it?

Problem when thinking religion as similar to morality.

1. Moral directives given by world’s religion is generalized and imprecise.
2. Can really be certain ‘What God wants us to do?
3. As rational beings we are doing ourselves a disservice if we simply
base our judgment of right
And wrong on what our religion dictates.
MORALITY AND LAW

Law and morality regulates human conduct. Exploit the weak, deceit, killing
are morally and legally wrong. Breaking the law is not always immoral act. An
action that is legal can be morally wrong. Relationships of the two in many
cases, laws are based on morality. Most of the laws was based on moral
principle of the greater good for the greater number. To a signif icant degree
law codif ie s a society’s moral ideals and values(Shaw 2002) “Law cannot
cover the wider variety of possible individual and group conducts in many
situations it is too blunt an instrument to provide moral guidance”.
THE ISSUES OF ETHICAL RELATIVISM

Moral beliefs and practices are influenced by environment.

Social and cultural elements contribute to his/her understanding and
judgment of what is right and wrong.
Is morality relative and objective?
Ethical relativism- all moral principles are valid relative to a particular
society or individual.
Ethical skepticism- there are no valid moral principle at all.
Ethical objectivism- which asserts that there are universally valid moral
principles binding on all people.
Relativist perspective- the rightness or wrongness of an act depends on
the moral norms of society or the moral inclinations can be judge.
Two Forms of Relativism

1. Cultural Ethical Relativism (Ethical Conventionalism)- the rightness and

wrongness of an action depends on society’s norms. Protagoras “Man is the
measure of all things” Homo mensural est. Muslims polygamy, agreement of
group of people, social norms
2. Individual ethical relativism (Ethical subjectivism) rightness and wrongness
of actions lies on individual’s own commitment. Hitler and Gandhi can be
both moral.
THE ATTRACTIONS OF ETHICAL RELATIVISM

Three Arguments
1. Diversity Arguments- Observation of Anthropologist we have various cultures.
Conception of right or wrong differ from culture to culture. Diversity of moral beliefs
from culture to culture. E.g. polygamy, homosexuality, infanticide, euthanasia
2. Dependency Arguments
Moral beliefs are true or valid only relative to a certain groups, a product of social
environment. (Pojman 1999) we are culturally determined creatures. “Morality does
not exists on a vaccum; rather what is considered morally right and wrong must be
seen in the context, depending on the goals, beliefs, history and environment of the
society in question”.
Harris clarifies the two versions of relativism.
a. strongest version- all truths even natural science are relative. Magic and science
are level in their playing field only dependent on culture.
b. moderate version- every morality depends on level of acceptance. Moral
dimensions of our actions is similarly dependent on cultural context of meaning. E.g
eating dog meat, and cow’s meat at India.
3. Toleration arguments- justif ie d by the view that acknowledging the
differences among various societies in terms of moral beliefs and practices
leads to respect, social harmony and peaceful co-existence among the
different cultural, religious and social groups.
THE CHALLENGES OF ETHICAL RELATIVISM

1. We cannot accept differences or

disagreements in moral beliefs and practices
as justification for relativism of morality.

2. Negative implications of accepting the theory.

Senseless to criticize a particular cultural or
s oc ial grou p s b eliefs ev en ab h orren t or
inhumane. E.g. jihad and other extremist beliefs
THE CHALLENGES OF ETHICAL RELATIVISM

3. Social norms simply the basis of rightness or

wrongness of an action.
Moral permissibility is dangerous. Equating morality with
religion.

4. Despite the fact that some moral beliefs and practices

vary among cultures there are still universal moral
standards that exists. Different cultures, customs,
traditions and ideologies they have something in common
emanating from their shared humanity. They are superiority
of reason, respect for life, pursuit for truth and justice,
desire for peace, love, compassion etc.