Philosophical Perspectives on Morality and Ethics

Fundamental Ethical Concepts

Morality

Morality refers to the set of values and behaviors considered acceptable within a society at a specific time. It involves judging actions that are conscious, voluntary, and have social consequences.

Ethics

Ethics involves theoretical reflection upon morality.

Moral Judgment

A moral judgment is a statement affirming or denying something morally. There are three types:

• Judgments of fact: These describe or affirm something without expressing a personal opinion.
• Value judgments: These assert or deny the value of something specific.
• Moral judgments: These are value judgments that specifically reference moral acts and standards.

Aristotle's Virtue Ethics

Aristotle believed that humans exist to achieve a purpose in life. He followed eudaimonism, whose ultimate goal is happiness (eudaimonia). His doctrine states that humans think and act to achieve certain purposes, which Aristotle calls goods.

Goods are the objectives for which human beings strive.

Aristotle affirmed that there is a supreme good towards which different activities aim.

For human beings, happiness is achieved through the activity of reason.

Moral virtue is the disposition or strength that leads a person to act correctly to achieve this good.

Aristotle stated that moral virtue is typically a mean between two extremes (vices).

Epicureanism: The Pursuit of Pleasure

Epicureans, led by Epicurus, sought pleasure guided by reason and prudence.

They believed the universe is governed by chance and that humans could free themselves from three primary fears that tormented them:

• Fear of the gods
• Fear of death
• Fear of the future (or afterlife)

They stated that happiness was the absence of pain and the presence of pleasure (ataraxia and aponia). They advised avoiding certain intense pleasures, believing these could ultimately lead to pain or suffering.

For them, virtue involved the prudent pursuit of maximum pleasure with minimum pain.

Christian Ethics

Christian ethics is based on the life and preaching of Jesus, whose message was claimed to be revealed by God.

Here, the ultimate end or highest good is God Himself. Attaining this ultimate end (union with God) was considered a gift from the deity. Jesus proposed a way of life based on a message of love towards all.

Utilitarianism: The Greatest Good

For utilitarians like John Stuart Mill, the ultimate goal was achieving the useful, defined as maximizing human happiness.

They adhered to the principle of utility: actions are right insofar as they tend to promote happiness (welfare) and wrong as they tend to produce unhappiness. For them, welfare was pleasure and the absence of pain.

Kantian Deontology: Duty-Based Ethics

Immanuel Kant proposed a formal ethics, which does not prescribe specific actions but focuses on the form of moral rules. In this ethic, the crucial element is whether the subject acts according to the principle of duty.

For Kant, duty is the only authentically moral motivation because it is the sole expression of goodwill.

A categorical imperative is a command that must be fulfilled unconditionally, representing the form of moral law.