Ethics

Week 2: Religion and Reason

Divine Command theory
1) Direct Command
a. Requires unquestioning obedience
Example: Thou shalt not kill.
Applying Divine Command Theory
- Example: Honour your mother and your other. One way I would apply
this to my life is by respecting their house rules when Im at home.
- Give some examples of other ways you could apply this religious
principle to your life
- Consider a religious command or parable you are familiar with.
o How would you apply it at work?
o How would you apply it at home?
o How would you apply it to your important relationships?
Proponents and Critics View of Divine Command Theory
- What are some arguments that someone who believed in divine
command would give to support this ethical framework?
- What are some arguments that someone who did not agree with divine
command would make to criticize this ethical framework?
The Healthy Soul Socrates and Plato
- The three principles of the soul
o The rational element (reason, reflection)
o The irrational appetites (hunger, thirst, sexual gratification, etc.)
o The spirited elements (emotions)
What is Happiness?
- Happiness I defined as inner peace of contentment. It is the lack of
inner turmoil that results when the 3 elements of the soul are in
harmony
- Happiness can only occur in a person with a healthy soul
The healthy soul argument
- When a soul is in balance, the reason is in control of the appetites and
the emotions
- When a soul is unbalanced, the appetites and / or emotions are in
control
- When a person is ill, he does not have as much control over what he
says and does or what he is capable of doing, as when he is healthy
- Soul is ill or out of balance she does not have rational control over
behaviour and decisions

Person lets his appetites or emotions overcome his reason, his soul
becomes a little more unhealthy and it becomes harder to regain
control, or to become healthy again

Healthy person has a balance of wind, fire, earth, and water

Applying the Healthy Soul Theory

- How would you apply this theory to your behaviour at work?
- How would you apply this theory to your behaviour at home?
- How would you apply this theory to your important relationship?
Virtue Ethics Aristotle
- What is happiness?
o Based on observation / experimental type of approach
o Everything has a function or purpose
A thing is good when it performs its function well
The essential function of humans is to act in accordance
with reason and virtue
A good person is one who uses reason to act in a virtuous
manner
Happiness is the result of performing our function well
What is Virtue?
- Virtue = the golden mean between extremes
o Cowardice (too much fear) Courage Recklessness (too little
fear)
o Self-effacement (too little self-esteem) Self- confidence
Arrogance (too much self-esteem)
o Miserly (too little generosity) Generous Extravagant (too
much generosity)
Developing A virtuous Character
- In virtue ethics , ones actions are governed by the integrity of a
persons character
- Requires a combination of:
o Reason (to determine the golden mean)
o Habit ( to make virtuous behaviour consistent and continuous)
- Character is usually defined by ones community
Applying Virtue Ethics
- What virtuous habits could you develop at work? Give an example
- What virtuous habits could you develop at home? Give an example.
- What virtuous habits could you apply to your important relationships?
Give an example.

Nothing in the world is perfect, we just strive to our best

Every physical thing is a representative of something ideal
Live in a world of no true knowledge, world of opinion
We are faced with shadows which we treat as knowledge
How well we physical may know something we dont know it perfectly

Ethics of Purpose
- A course of action is ethical if it achieves the purpose of the
organization
- An organization is ethical if it is fulfilling its function and its function is
ethical.
o Example: Purpose of a med lab is to perform diagnostic tests on
patients. What are some actions that support his goal? What are
some that dont
Proponents and Critics View if Virtues Ethics
- What are some arguments that someone who believed in virtue ethics
would give to support this ethical framework?
- What are some arguments that someone who did not agree with virtue
ethics would make to criticize this ethical framework?