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Topic 1
Essential Concepts and Problems in Ethics

Contents
1. What is Ethics?
2. Why Act Morally?
3. Ethical Relativism !s Ethics a Matter o" #pinion?

Bibliography
Comp$lsory Readin%s
Pan&a' C. and A. Potthast Ethics for Dummies, chapter 1 ("or
section 1).
Po*man' +. and ,. -ieser Ethics. Discovering Right and Wrong,
chapters 1 ("or section 1)' 2 ("or section 3)' and . ("or section 2).
-$rther readin%s
Pan&a' C. and A. Potthast Ethics for Dummies, chapter 2 ("or
section 3).


1. What is Ethics?

Ethics is a branch o" philosophy that deals /ith the idea o" the 0ood' the
ri%ht and /ron%' and ho/ the /orld ought to be or should be
1ocab$lary o" ethics
Should and ought
Good, right, rong, bad, evil!
Philosophy rational ar%$ment and critical reasonin%
2cience and ethics
2tatements o" "act and val$e *$d%ments
Ethics and morals (morality) $sed as synonyms
3ivisions o" ethics
3escriptive morality
Act$al practices' belie"s' val$es4
Ethical behavio$r considered as a "act
Moral philosophy (ethical theory)
Analysis' $nderstandin% and *$sti"ication o" moral
principles and theories' as /ell as so$rces o" moral
obli%ation
Applied ethics
!t deals /ith controversial moral problems (civil
disobedience' moral stat$s o" animals' environmental
problems' etc.)
These three s$bdivisions are lin5ed
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3i""erence bet/een morality and other normative s$b*ects
Reli%ion
Moral principles need not be %ro$nded in revelation or
divine a$thority' they may be %ro$nded in reason and
h$man e6perience
+a/
Ethics may *$d%e that some la/s are immoral
2ho$ld all $nethical thin%s be ille%al? The problem o" bad
intentions
An independent ethical standard is necessary to assess
/hether la/s are $n*$st or not
Eti7$ette
!t is abo$t polite behavio$r
2ometimes the practice ta5es on the importance o" a moral
r$le


2. Why Act Morally?

8s$al reasons to act morally
9ehavin% morally is a matter o" sel":respect
People /on;t li5e $s i" /e behave immorally
2ociety p$nishes immoral behavio$r
0od tells $s to be moral
Parents need to be moral role models "or their children
The social contract theory
The core o" the social contract theory
People a%ree to behave morally as a /ay to red$ce social
chaos and anarchy
+i"e is better /hen /e "ollo/ basic moral r$les
Morality is a social activity
The political dimension o" the social contract theory
!t e6plains the s$pposed ori%ins o" political a$thority
Citi&ens a%ree to %ive po/er to %overnments as a
means o" 5eepin% society peace"$l
T/o di""erent 7$estions
Why does society need moral r$les?
A *$sti"ication o" morality in society
Why sho$ld ! be moral?
Reasons to be moral tho$%h it does not seem to be in my
o/n interest
Why does society need moral r$les?
<obbes and the 2tate o" =at$re ("eviathan, 1>.1)
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=at$ral e%oism see5in% pleas$re and avoidin% harm
E7$al ability to harm
!nsec$rity and "ear
=o common /ays o" li"e' no en"orced la/s or moral r$les'
no *$stice or in*$stice
The o$tcome A /ar o" all a%ainst all
<obbes;s /ords
?!n s$ch a condition' there is no place "or ind$stry@ beca$se the
"r$it thereo" is $ncertain@ and conse7$ently no c$ltivatin% o" the
earth@ no navi%ation' nor $se o" the com"ortable b$ildin%s@ no
instr$ments o" movin%' and removin%' s$ch thin%s as re7$ire
m$ch "orce@ no 5no/led%e o" the "ace o" the earth@ no acco$nt o"
time@ no arts@ no literat$re@ no society@ and /hich is /orst o" all'
contin$al "ear' and dan%er o" violent death@ and the li"e o" man
solitary' poor' nasty' br$tish and short;
2tate o" nat$re is bad "or everyone
To prevent anarchy and chaos h$mans sho$ld %ive $p some o"
their nat$ral liberty and a%ree to a social contract
#nly r$les and a %overnin% "orce ass$re sec$rity' *$stice and peace
Morality is a "orm o" social control
The ma*ority /ill be better o"" in a sit$ation o" sec$rity and
m$t$al cooperation
Moral r$les restrict "reedom b$t promote %reater "reedom and /ellbein%
(the achievement o" collective %oals)
Aeep society "rom "allin% apart
Red$ce h$man s$""erin%
Promote h$man "lo$rishin%
Resolve con"licts o" interest in *$st and orderly /ays
Assi%n praise and blame' re/ard and p$nishment' and %$ilt
Morality' 2el":!nterest' and 0ame Theory
2it$ations in /hich individ$als p$rs$e their individ$al interest
and the o$tcome is the /orst "or everyone
The Prisoner;s 3ilemma
Cooperate or cheat a %ame /ith several t$rns
A ban5er and t/o players B possible o$tcomes
1) 9oth play cooperate re/ard o" C3DD each
2) 9oth play cheat "ine o" C1D each
3) Eo$ play cooperate and ! play cheat C.DD "or me and
yo$ are "ined C1DD
B) ! play cooperate and yo$ play cheat (reverse o" 3)
2$pposedly the best individ$al option is to play cheat (b$t only i"
yo$ ta5e "or %ranted that the other one /ill al/ays play cooperate)
9$t i" she is rational she /ill not do that
B

There"ore' in the lon% term the optimal sol$tion "or both is
?Al/ays cooperate i" the other "ello/ does and cheat only i" she
cheats "irst;
Concl$sion
?Rational sel":interest over the lon% r$n /o$ld demand that yo$
and ! cooperate;
Even a sel"ish rational person sho$ld allo/ her "reedom /as
limited in order to ass$re an orderly society and to reap some
lon%:term advanta%e


3. Ethical Relativism: Is Ethics a Matter of Opinion?

Ethical relativism
There are not absol$te $niversal moral standards
Moral principles are h$man inventions
Ethical relativism as a conse7$ence o" the re*ection o" ethnocentrism
(colonialism)
Ethnocentrism The pre*$dicial vie/ that interprets reality
thro$%h the eyes o" one;s o/n c$lt$ral belie"s and val$es
Conse7$ence o" ethical relativism %rad$al erosion o" moral ob*ectivism
#b*ectivism There are $niversal and ob*ective moral principles
valid "or all people and social environments
Ethical =ihilism =o valid moral principles e6ist' morality is a
"iction
T/o "orms o" ethical relativism
2$b*ective ethical relativism (s$b*ectivism)
Moral principles are *$sti"ied by virt$e o" their acceptance
by an individ$al a%ent
Conventional ethical relativism (conventionalism)
Moral principles are *$sti"ied by virt$e o" their c$lt$ral
acceptance
2$b*ectivism
Morality depends on the individ$al (is Fin the eye o" the beholderG)
Morality is somethin% li5e taste or aesthetic *$d%ments (it is
?person relative;)
Problems o" s$b*ectivism
!nterpersonal criticism and *$d%ment are impossible
!t implicitly ass$mes moral solipsism
!t conceives the society as a %ro$p o" isolated individ$als
and contradicts the "acts


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Conventionalism
There are no $niversal valid moral principles' they are relative to
c$lt$re
!t opposes ethnocentricity and it seems to de"end tolerance to/ard
other c$lt$res
Conventionalism is based on the diversity thesis and the dependency
thesis
The diversity thesis (statement o" "act)
Moral ri%thness and /ron%ness varies "rom society to
society' there"ore there are no $niversal moral standards
(anthropolo%ical thesis c$lt$ral relativism)
The dependency thesis
All moral principles derive their validity "rom c$lt$ral
acceptance
There is no an independent or non#cultural point o" vie/
"rom /hich /e can *$d%e impartially moral principles
Morality is somethin% conventional a set o" common r$les'
habits' and c$stoms /hich depends on the level o" social
acceptance
Conventionalism and tolerance 3oes conventionalism s$pport
tolerance?
<ers5ovits;s ar%$ment
?0iven that morality is relative to its c$lt$re' and there is no
independent basis "or critici&in% the morality o" any other
c$lt$re b$t one;s o/n' /e o$%ht to be tolerant o" the
moralities o" other c$lt$res;
Conventionalism is not a %ood de"ence o" tolerance beca$se
?!" morality is relative to each c$lt$re and i" the c$lt$re in
7$estion has no principle o" tolerance' its members have no
obli%ation to be tolerant;
?-rom a relativistic point o" vie/' there is no more reason to
be tolerant than to be intolerant' and neither stance is
ob*ectively morally better than the other;
There"ore' ?one cannot consistently assert that all morality
is relative and then treat the principle o" tolerance as an
absol$te principle;
Criticisms o" conventionalism
!t $ndermines important val$es
Criticism o" moral principles and behavio$r is impossible
beca$se /e lac5 an ob*ective or impartial standard to *$d%e
(i. e.' problems s$ch as racism' %enocide' etc.)
Moral re"ormers are al/ays /ron% accordin% moral
relativism' the c$lt$ral ma*ority is al/ays ri%ht. 2o' $nless
/e reco%ni&e the priority o" a $niversal moral la/' /e have
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no "irm basis "or *$sti"yin% o$r acts o" civil disobedience
a%ainst ?$n*$st la/s;.
Why sho$ld ! obey a la/ that my %ro$p doesn;t reco%ni&e as
valid? 8nless /e have an independent moral basis "or la/'
it is hard to see /hy /e have any %eneral d$ty to obey it
9oth the validity o" the la/ and morally motivated
disobedience o" $n*$st la/s are voided in "avor o" a po/er
str$%%le
Conventionalism leads to s$b*ectivism
Problems "or de"inin% a c$lt$re or society (specially in
pl$ralistic societies /ith s$bc$lt$res /ith di""erent val$es)
Moral diversity is e6a%%erated
There are really %reat similarities amon% c$lt$res (e.%.'
iss$es li5e m$rder' incest' etc.)
C$lt$ral diversity is a "act and it is ne$tral /ith respect to
theories c$lt$ral relativism does not imply ethical
relativism by itsel"
The indeterminacy o" lan%$a%e is not a solid ar%$ment
Translation is impossible lan%$a%e shapes reality
(incl$din% moral li"e and val$es)
9$t e6perience seems to "alsi"y this beca$se moral
principles can be comm$nicated