Ethics =Ethos –custom or a particular way and manner of acting  Laws are only concerned with actions that
h actions that are usually
and behaving
Custom would also mean as a form of behaviour or
character (from the Latin word “mos” moral or “mores” morality
Ethics and Morality
 Both deal with the goodness or badness, rightness or
wrongness of the human act or human conduct
 study specifically morality
 Morality gives Ethics a particular perspective of what to
study about
 Morality provides with a quality that determines and
distinguishes right conduct from wrong conduct
(Sambajon 2007:7)
Ethics: a Philosophy of Action
 The learning of Ethics does not actually guarantee
morality on the part of the person’s concrete and
practical conduct of behavior
 Ethics, a theory that provides certain principles and
guidelines as to what is good and bad, right and wrong
in human conduct, it is morality which actualizes the
theory.
 Hence both Ethics and Morality complement each other
– as Ethics outlines theories of right and wrong,
morality translates these theories into real actions.
Ethics: A Practical Discipline
 Should be shown as a discipline which has an intimate
connection with the daily lives of man
 It must be something more than the presentation of
exacting moral theories, a proper interaction between
knowledge and practice.
 It could become the most basic and fundamental motive
behind one’s day to day conduct (Christian ethics)
Importance of Studying Ethics
 It is indispensable in the living of life which is “truly
human” for without moral perception, man is only an
animal – “without morality man as a rational being is a
failure” (Agapay 1991:3)
 Human faces several ethical choices in the course of
their lives – big or small choices and decisions made
affect the kind of life to a considerable extent
 Making moral decisions is oftentimes difficult – Ethics
can provide us with certain moral paradigms or
perspective that will guide us in determining what is
right and what is wrong under such condition.
 Enables us to reason out our moral beliefs and why we
hold them. – by critically examining the ground and
foundation of our moral beliefs and claims, whether
they are valid or not.
 Aids us to widen our horizon as to what is good and bad
– allow us to broaden our understanding and make us
appreciate the richness and diversity of ethical views
held by various thinkers
 Not only of instrumental value but also valuable in its
own right – knowing the good is good in itself though
doing the good is even much better than “just knowing”
the good.
 Deepens our reflection on the ultimate questions of life.
(What is life and what it means to be truly human?)
 “An unexamined life is not worth living”- Socrates
Ethics and Law
 Ethical rules are necessary even if we have the laws
since legality is not identical with morality – (sometimes
what is legal is not always moral; what is moral is not
always legal)
“public” (actions that often harmed those around us)
 It goes beyond the concern and parameters of law – it
includes human motivations in its investigation.
(thoughts and feelings are included and subject them to
moral analysis and evaluation)
 Laws are the product of a collective agreement decided
by a majority vote (What is right is right although no one
is doing it. Wrong is wrong even if everyone is doing it)
 Ethics serves as the very foundation of our laws
Ethics and Religion
 Ethics solely relies on natural reason, logic and
experience
 Religion relies primarily and mainly on supernatural
reason (divine revelation or divine authority)
What is Ethics
 Practical science of the morality of human act or
conduct and of the good life.
 Body of knowledge systematically arranged and
presented in a manner that it arrives at its conclusions
coherently and logically
 A branch of Philosophy known as Moral Philosophy that
deals with how we ought to live.
 A Philosophical discipline that deals with the ultimate
principles and truth concerning the morality of human
conduct using human reason and experience
Material Objects of Ethics
 Human Act or Human conduct – refers to the act that is
done by a human person which he/she is conscious of,
which proceeds from one’s deliberation and freewill,
and thus which one is held morally responsible.
Formal Object of Ethics
 Morality of the moral rectitude of human act or human
conduct – deals with the human person’s right conduct
whether his/her actions conform to right reason which
is the immediate norm of morality
Division of Ethics
 General Ethics – considered as the basic course which
mainly deals with the morality of human acts and the
specific determinants of morality
 Special or Applied Ethics – essentially applies the
specific and fundamental norms and principles of
General Ethics in various specific areas of human life
and activity
Kinds of Valuation and types of Norms
1. Technical norm – refers to man’s needs which come
from his bodily space-time limitations
2. Societal norm – something to do with the need for
group cohesion and for strengthening the bonds that
keep the community together.
3. Aesthetic norm – refers to typical perceptual forms
regarding colour, shape space, movement etc.
4. Ethical or Moral norm – refers to some ideal vision of
a human person which serves as the ultimate goal and
norm.
Characteristics of Moral Principles
1. Reasonability
2. Impartiality
3. Prescriptivity
4. Overridingness
5. Autonomous from arbitrary authority
6. Publicity
7. Practicability
8. Universalizability