Moral & Ethical Foundations: Key Concepts of Human Conduct

Foundational Concepts in Morality and Ethics

Understanding Morality: Core Concepts

• Moral: Principles of Conduct and Values

  A Moral framework encompasses a set of moral norms (a moral code) and values. The term 'moral' originates from the Latin mores, signifying custom, habit, character, or dwelling. It represents the fundamental structure within which our lives are lived and decisions are made.

• Moral Norms: Guiding Principles of Behavior

  A Moral Norm is a regulative principle of conduct that establishes what we ought to do and what we must avoid to behave morally. These norms invariably express a value. They are prescriptive, meaning they command or forbid specific behaviors, often with implied consequences for adherence or transgression.

• Value: Qualities of Attraction or Objection

  Values are the inherent qualities of people or things that we find attractive, desirable, or, conversely, objectionable and undesirable.

• Moral Values: Personal and Social Significance

  Moral Values are qualities that motivate us to invest varying degrees of effort in our personal and social lives. Their realization is contingent upon our individual choices and actions. These values can only be attributed to people, their actions, or their forms of relationship, as only human beings possess the capacity for freedom and responsibility.

• Moral Behavior: Actions Aligned with Standards

  Moral Behavior refers to all human actions performed in relation to a moral standard. If an individual's conduct aligns with a moral norm, it is considered morally good behavior.

• Human Acts: Conscious and Free Moral Actions

  Human Acts are actions that are both conscious and free. By virtue of their conscious and free nature, they are inherently considered moral acts.

• Moral Character: Forged by Habits

  Moral Character is the sum of an individual's moral qualities, which is primarily developed and shaped through the consistent formation of habits.

• Moral Habits: Repetitive Actions Shaping Tendencies

  A Moral Habit is a consistent tendency to perform a certain type of act, acquired and reinforced through the repetition of similar actions over time.

Ethics: Understanding Character and Conduct

• Ethics: The Study of Character and Way of Being

  Ethics, derived from the Greek word ethos, refers to character or the fundamental way of being that an individual acquires throughout life through their habits and customs. It is the philosophical study of moral principles.

• Ethical Thought: Philosophical Reflection on Morality

  Ethical or Moral Thought encompasses the profound philosophical inquiry and systematic reflection that thinkers have undertaken concerning the nature and principles of morality.

• Freedom: The Power of Choice and Self-Determination

  Freedom is defined as the inherent ability to choose between multiple options or opportunities. It implies a lack of absolute determination, meaning we are not compelled to develop or adhere to a single, predetermined type of behavior.

• Mood (First Nature): Inherited Traits and Dispositions

  Mood (often referred to as 'First Nature') comprises the inherited set of natural, psychological, and biological properties that constitute our given material. It represents our innate disposition and influences how we initially confront and react to reality.

• Character (Second Nature): Forging Identity Through Habits

  Character (often referred to as 'Second Nature') is acquired through the repetition of actions. We have the capacity to forge our character, particularly a good character, by cultivating positive habits. It dictates how we engage with reality through these established habits. The moral life fundamentally involves acquiring virtues and attitudes that collectively compose one's character. This process of appropriation represents the moral level of an individual's development.

• Virtue: Good Habits and Right Action

  A Virtue is a good operative habit—a predisposition, tendency, or inclination to do what is right, acquired through consistent practice. Virtue stands in direct contrast to vice, which is a bad operative habit.

• Attitude: Learned Willingness Guiding Behavior

  An Attitude is a learned and relatively fixed willingness or disposition that consistently guides an individual's behavior and reactions.