Assignment: Ethics 1023 (JESSICA MAE M.
BAÑES)
1. KNOW THE MEANING OF PHILOSOPHY?
WHAT ARE THE BRANCHES OF PHILOSOPHY
2. MEANING OF ethics
3. Difference between ethics
and morality
4. Types of ethics
5. KNOW THE TERMS: ISSUE, DECISION, JUDGMENT AND DiLeMMA
6. Importance of
reason/reasoning in ethics
7. Know the sources of authority
8. Know the senses of the self
Answers:
1. Philosophy is the study of knowledge, truth, meaning. Its literal meaning is the “love of
wisdom” as based on the ancient Greek words ‘philos’ meaning love, and ‘sophia’ for
wisdom. It is the study that questions the nature of reality, existence, values and
reasons. Philosophy uses logic and reasoning to analyze, evaluate, and understand the
ideas and arguments presented.A critical and systematic approach for the people to
figure out their purposes in this world.
● According to an article titled “Main Branches of Philosophy: Definition and
explanation” philosophy is an activity people undertake when they seek to
understand fundamental truths about themselves, the world in which they live,
and their relationships to the world and to each other.
● Main Branches of Philosophy:
-Epistemology- Study of knowledge. It studies how we acquire knowledge and
what type of limits there are to our knowledge. (what is the nature of knowledge)
Epistemology = “episteme” - Knowledge, “logos”- study. Deals with the theory,
scope, nature, and basis of knowledge which investigates the possibility of
knowledge itself. (what do we know?)
-Metaphysics- study of existence, reality, and nature of being. (what’s out
there?) It deals with the most general and abstract questions. Those pertaining to
the nature of existence, the categories of space and time, the existence of God,
the immortality of the human soul. (what is existence, and what sort of things
exist in the world?, how can things continue to exist and yet undergo the change
we see about us in the natural world?, how can this world be understood?)
-Ethics- Ethics is one of the most central disciplines of philosophy. Ethics can
simply be defined as a moral philosophy, as it’s concerned with what is morally
good and bad, or morally right and wrong. We can also define it as the study of
the righteous and virtuous way of living. It’s the study of how man should live his
life to be in accordance with what is allowed and what isn’t. It’s a branch of
philosophy that teaches us how to be in harmony with nature and our
surroundings.
-Logic- study of correct reasoning. The term originates from the Greek word
logos, meaning word, reason, thought, or science.
Logic includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic investigates
how conclusions follow from premises in a topic-neutral way. It’s a set of formal
rules and principles within a system that determines the validity and truthfulness
of an argument or conclusion.
On the other hand, informal logic is associated with informal fallacies,
critical thinking, and argumentation theory. Arguments in formal logic are
expressed in formal language, while arguments in informal logic are expressed in
informal language. Logic is a complementary part of any given science, but it
plays a central role mostly in philosophy, mathematics, computer science, and
linguistics.
-Aesthetics- theory of beauty/appreciation of beauty.
- come from greek word “AISTHETIKOS” meaning pertaining to sense
perception
- deals with the principles of beauty and art
(in SCIENCE) the study of sensory or sensory-emotional values, which
sometimes understood as judgements of sentiment and taste
(in SOCIAL SCIENCE) critical reflection of on art, culture, and nature
(in ART DISCIPLINE) in general it relates to particular branches of art
such as art theory, literary theory, film theory, and music theory.
(what is art?, what are the things that count as art?)
2. Ethics- a branch of philosophy that asks a practical question. (What should we do?)
leads to the study of things like values, principles, beliefs, and norms. It asks us how we
should live, what choices we should make and what makes our lives worth living. It tries
to help us define the conditions of a good choice.
3. The difference between ethics and morality is that ethics is generally considered
standards or good and bad, right and wrong that are imposed by some outside group, a
society or profession. Morality on the other hand is one’s own personal sense of right
and wrong. It is not imposed by anyone, it is what you think is good and bad personally.
4. TYPES OF ETHICS
Normative ethics seeks to establish norms or standards of conduct; a crucial question
in this field is whether actions are to be judged right or wrong based on their
consequences or based on their conformity to some moral rule, such as “Do not tell a
lie.” Theories that adopt the former basis of judgment are called consequentialist (see
consequentialism); those that adopt the latter are known as deontological (see
deontological ethics).
-investigates the moral standards that regulate right and wrong conduct. Theories within
normative ethics include utilitarianism, consequentialism, contractualism, virtue ethics,
and more.
Metaethics is concerned with the nature of ethical judgments and theories. Since the
beginning of the 20th century, much work in metaethics has focused on the logical and
semantic aspects of moral language. Some major metaethical theories are naturalism
(see naturalistic fallacy), intuitionism, emotivism, and prescriptivism.
-investigates where our moral values, language, and principles come from and what they
mean; it is concerned with “what is morality?” rather than “what is moral?”
Applied ethics, as the name implies, consists of the application of normative ethical
theories to practical moral problems (e.g., abortion). Among the major fields of applied
ethics are bioethics, business ethics, legal ethics, and medical ethics
-seek to apply philosophical tools to examine specific controversial issues and provide
practical solutions to moral problems..
5. Issue, Decision, Judgment, and Dilemma
• Moral issue - a situation that calls for moral valuation. Used to refer to those particular
situations that are often the source of considerable and inconclusive debate (thus, we
would often hear topics such as capital punishment and euthanasia as moral “issues”).
• Moral Decision - When one is placed in a situation and confronted by the choice of
what act to perform.
•Moral Judgment - When a person is an observer who makes an assessment on the
actions or behavior of someone.
• Moral Dilemma - the more complicated situation wherein one is torn between choosing
one of two good or bad choosing between the lesser of two evils.
Dilemma = 2 options ‘Di’ = 2 ‘Lemma’ = option
6. Ethical reasoning helps determine and differentiate between right thinking, decisions,
and actions and those that are wrong, hurtful and/or harmful— to others and to
ourselves. Ethics is based on and motivated by facts, values, emotions, beliefs,
emotions, and feelings. Ethical actions are based on conscientious reasoning of facts
based on moral principles and standards.
7. Sources of Authority in Ethics
- LAW - the law is enforced by way of a system of sanctions administered through
persons and institutions, which all help in compelling us to obey taking the law to
be the basis of ethics has the benefit of providing us with an objective standard
that is obligatory and applicable to all.
- RELIGION - Many religions provide a set of moral and ethical principles that
guide behavior and decision-making, helping individuals to navigate complex
ethical issues and make choices that align with their values. Ethical and moral
values are principles or beliefs that guide behavior and decision-making
- CULTURE - culture is a key determinant of an individual's ethical ideology, which
affects an individual's inclination to behave ethically. In other words, culture acts
as a guideline in determining whether certain practices are appropriate and
acceptable.
8. Senses of the Self
- SUBJECTIVISM - The starting point of subjectivism is the recognition that the
individual thinking person the subject is at the heart of all moral valuations. She is
the one who is confronted with the situation and is burdened with the need to
make a decision or judgment. From this point subjectivism leaps to the more
radical claim that the individual is the sole determinant of what is morally good or
bad, right or wrong.
“No one can tell me what is right and wrong”
“No one knows my situation better than myself”
“I am entitled to my own opinion”
“It is good if I say that it is good”
- PSYCHOLOGICAL EGOISM - It is a theory that describes the underlying
dynamic behind all human actions. As a descriptive theory, it does not direct one
to act in any particular way. Instead, it points out that there is already an
underlying basis for how one acts. The ego or self has its desires and interests,
and all our actions are geared toward satisfying these interests.
- ETHICAL EGOISM - It is a theory that prescribes that we should make our own
ends, our own interests, as the single overriding concern. We may act in a way
that is beneficial to others, but we should do that only if it ultimately benefits us.
This theory acknowledges that it is a dog eat dog world out there and given that
everyone ought to put herself at the center One should consider herself as the
priority and not allow any other concerns, such as the welfare of other people, to
detract from this pursuit
SOURCES:
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
dilemma/71902447
[Link]
38327520?origin=university-course-page
[Link]
172899#:~:text=Ethical%20reasoning%20helps%20determine%20and,beliefs%2C%20emotions
%2C%20and%20feelings.
[Link]
%20document%20information-,This%20document%20discusses%20three%20potential
%20sources%20of%20authority%20in%20ethics,being%20prohibitive%20rather%20than
%20prescriptive.
[Link]
chapter-2-sources-of-authority/15862841
[Link]
%20accepted%20concept,practices%20are%20appropriate%20and%20acceptable.
[Link]/journals/[Link]/Journal-of-Sociology-Psychology/article/view/
1467#:~:text=Many%20religions%20provide%20a%20set,guide%20behavior%20and
%20decision-making.
[Link]
education/senses-of-the-self/43085296
[Link]
%20of%20ethics%2C%20or,applied%20ethics%2C%20and%20normative%20ethics.
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]