ETHICS
LESSON 8-OTHER THEORIES
( E T H I C A L R E L AT I V I S M , E T H I C A L
EGOISM, AND ETHICAL SUBJECTIVISM)
TARGET GOALS
EXPLAIN THE OTHER ETHICAL THEORIES SUCH AS
ETHICAL RELATIVISM,ETHICAL EGOISM, AND ETHICAL
SUBJECTIVISM
DISCUSS THE ANALYSES AND CRITICISMS OF THESE OTHER
ETHICAL THEORIES
APPLY THESE OTHER ETHICAL THEORIES TO DIFFERENT
LIFE SITUATIONS
• the idea that there is no universal or
absolute set of moral principles.
• It’s a version of morality that
advocates “to each his/her own,” and
those who follow it say, “Who am I to
judge?”
ETHICAL RELATIVISM
• The RIGHTNESS or WRONGNESS of an
action varies from one society , social group
or culture to another.
• There is NO ABSOLUTE UNIVERSAL
MORAL STANDANDARDS binding on all
men at all time
ETHICAL RELATIVISM
• It holds that whether or not it is RIGHT for
individual to act in a certain way DEPENDS on or is
RELATIVE to the society or culture to which
he/she belongs
• Moral Standards VARY among countries .
• All valid moral principles are JUSTIFIED by virtue
of their SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE.
• Morality has a SOCIAL CHARACTER, relative to
the practices of a certain group or society
ANALYSIS/ CRITIQUE to
ETHICAL RELATIVISM
• It does not follow that simply because there are differences in cultures or in
what societies accept as GOOD or BAD, there are no longer a universal truth about
morality.
• If some societies do not know the universal moral truth , it does not mean that there is
no moral truth.
• There are some moral truths/rules that societies and cultures have
in common because they are necessary for their existence.
• Allows for no evaluation/criticism of bad things due to differing attitudes
• Doesn't allow progress, no requirement to better society
• ʺHomosexuality is immoral.
The so‐called ʹgay rightsʹ are
not rights at all, because
immorality is not right.ʺ
What attitude should we take?
A. We might say that homosexuality is immoral.
B. we might say it is all right.
ETHICAL
SUBJECTIVISM
• Moral judgments are based on FEELINGS and
nothing more
• There is NO such thing as OBJECTIVE RIGHT
or WRONG
• Whatever moral judgment we make, we are
only expressing our PERSONAL FEELINGS
and our EMOTIONS.
• Hence, Morality is based primarily on
FEELINGS, EMOTIONS, PREJUDICES
ETHICAL SUBJECTIVISM
There is no ultimate right and wrong to aspire to, only the rights and Subjectivism also opens the door for people to come
wrongs currently considered valid in a society. That is not to say that
to their own moral decisions and to justify those
morality is a total free-for-all according to subjectivists: there are
genuine consequences for not adhering to a society's moral standards decisions with solid reasoning, rather than adhering to
and those standards are, for the time that they are upheld, real. a standard that has already been objectively set out.
C. But there is a third alternative. We
might say something like this: People
have different opinions, but where
morality is concerned, there are no
ʺfacts,ʺ and no one is ʺright.ʺ People
just feel differently, and that is all there
it is to it.
ANALYSIS/ CRITIQUE to
ETHICAL SUBJECTIVISM
It seems to imply that moral statements are less significant than most people think they
are - this may of course be true without rendering moral statements insignificant.
Without universal moral truths, all morality loses its significance. People will always act
morally as long as they believe in their own actions
It ignores the fact that our lives are closely connected and our actions inevitably affect
other people. Ethics is the system of rules that hold our community together. Thus, ethics
is by its very nature inter-subjective.
It leads us to inconsistent judgments.
Mika’s parents can only afford to send one child
in college. She has two younger sisters who also
want to pursue their college education. She
suggested to her parents that she be allowed to
be sent first to the university before her other
sisters. Is she being selfish?
ETHICAL EGOISM
• The promotion of one’s own good is in accordance
with morality. In the strong version, it is held that it is
always moral to promote one’s own good, and it is
never moral not to promote it.
• It holds that everyone must always do what will
promote his best interest
• Is often equated with selfishness, the disregard of
others’ interests in favor of one’s own interests.
However, ethical egoism cannot be coherently equated
with selfishness because it is often in one’s self-
interest to help others or to refrain from harming them.
ETHICAL EGOISM
• Every man is, no doubt, by nature, first and principally
recommended to his own care; and as he is FITTER to take care of
HIMSELF THAN of any OTHER PERSON, it is fit and right that
it should be so. (Smith [1759] 1976, 82)
• Mutual kindness is necessary for happiness (Smith [1759] 1976,
225).
• Given that mutual kindness is necessary for happiness, we can say
that practicing kindness is necessary for one’s own best interest. In
benefiting another person, one is still pursuing one’s own best
interest.
ANALYSIS/ CRITIQUE to
ETHICAL EGOISM
Has no solutions to offer when a problem arises involving conflicts of interest
It fails to be a moral theory because it cannot deal with interpersonal conflicts of interest.
Only asking people to pursue their individual interests is not enough. As countless
examples show, we can all benefit much more from cooperation.
It tends to be ARBITRARY because it assigns greater importance on one's self-interest
than that of others. There is no general difference between self and others. There is a
danger of falling into a system where people will simply be manipulated by others just to
promote their own self-interest.
ASSESSMENT
• WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ???
• Ethical egoism allows people to implement self-
care routines.
• Ethical Subjectivism has the advantage of
providing a simple, common-sense explanation of
what morality is.
• It also encourages us to explore the reasons
underlying beliefs that differ from our own, while
challenging us to examine our reasons for the
beliefs and values we hold.
REFERENCES
• [Link]
ism
• [Link]
• [Link]
nd-social-contract-theory/
• [Link]
nd-social-contract-theory/
• [Link]
nd-social-contract-theory/#footnote-109-2