120 likes | 165 Views
Delve into the philosophical and moral intricacies of ethics, morality, society, and ethical dilemmas. Understand the core values and approaches in studying ethics, exploring various ethical theories such as relativism and deontological principles.
E N D
Ethics and Morality Theory Part 1 23 January 2008
Questions about Term Project • Summary and bibliography due Monday
Before we get into the heavy stuff • Look Like My Dog Contest
What is ethics? Ethics – “philosophical study of morality” Philosophy -- Investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of reality, knowledge, or values, based on logical reasoning rather than empirical methods.
What is ethics? Ethics – “philosophical study of morality” Morality – rules of conduct describing what people in a society should and should not do What is society?
Society Association of people organized under a system of rules designed to advance the good of its members over time Rawls, A Theory of Justice
Ethics • What choices that people make are part of ethics? • Must be voluntary • Must relate to morality • What is the fundamental purpose of any moral system? • To advance the common good • What rules of conduct did you learn growing up?
What is the common good? • James Moor’s core values • Life • Happiness • Ability to accomplish goals
Ethical Dilemma • Apparent conflict between moral imperatives • New technologies can open up new social problems and new ethical dilemmas • Examples? • Can new technologies change morality?
Conceptual Muddles • Result of the same action in virtual and real space may differ • Do our standards need to differ?
Studying Ethics • Three Approaches • Descriptive ethics: what people believe to be right and wrong • Normative ethics: what people should believe is right and wrong • Philosophical ethics (meta-ethics): looks at the logic behind the decisions • Relationship between normative and philosophical ethics? • Examples where descriptive and normative ethics differ?
Theories that we will look at • Ethical relativism • Individual (or subjective) • Cultural • Normative ethical theories • Deontological • Kantianism • Contractualism • Teleological • Utilitarianism • Are there other broad categories that you can think of?