Practical Rationality: Ethics and Political Philosophy

Item 4: Practical Rationality: Ethics and Political Philosophy

1. Practical Reason: What Should I Do?

Humans seek to find happiness, so they are aware of their actions and reflect on them. Moral acts are designed and directed by the question: "What should I do?"

Practical reason can:

• Be aware
• Encourage
• Judge

To choose correctly, you must take into account the following:

• The Memorandum: That which drives me to act in a certain way.
• The Ends: What I want to achieve and accomplish; my will moves me "towards" this.
• Means: That which is used to achieve the ends.

2. Moral Conscience

Conscience is the ability of humans to make moral judgments.

Moral conscience is defined as the capacity of practical reason that captures moral principles, capable of differentiating between what is morally right and wrong, and is able to make judgments about the morality of an act.

• Develops without trial practice: Universal moral standards are applied in a particular case. Aristotle believes that general moral rules are formed this way.
• Makes self-criticism: Judges one's own acts, accepting or rejecting them. Kant and Thomas Aquinas consider moral acts in different ways.
• Makes the individual responsible for their own actions. It has two dimensions:
  • The internal: The person builds themselves.
  • The external: The person is responsible for their own acts committed in the environment or social setting.

The Origin of Conscience

• Advocates of a supernatural origin claim that conscience is a law of God.
• Naturalists consider it the nature of humans, capable of judging their own actions.
• Conventionalists believe moral self-consciousness develops in each individual.

Development of Conscience

Two factors:

• Affective psychological maturity and intellectual development.
• The influence of the environment in which one lives.

This process is not a universal trait common to all individuals.

Kohlberg pointed out the existence of three levels:

1. Pre-conventional Level

It is a personal attitude.

Heteronomous morality is imposed by something other than external awareness.

• 1st Stage: The child obeys their parents, not wanting to be punished for not meeting standards.
• 2nd Stage: The person wants to get what interests them and chooses to comply with imposed rules in exchange.

2. Conventional Level

• Adopts the collective view.
• The moral conscience remains governed by heteronomy. The individual controls their egocentric impulse and submits it to standards.
• 3rd Stage: The person needs to be accepted and valued by members of the group.
• 4th Stage: It is the duty of the subject to observe the established social order.

3. Post-conventional Level

• Personal awareness is governed by an autonomous morality.
• Universal principles are analyzed rationally and considered valuable in themselves.
• 5th Stage: The standards have been accepted by all individuals.
• 6th Stage: The person recognizes universal validity.