Ethics

Foundations of Moral Valuation

Lesson 1
 Objectives

Chapter I: The Ethical

Dimension of Human
Existence
• Value
• Sources of Authority
• Senses of Self
After reading this chapter, you should be
able to:
• Identify the ethical aspect of human life and the scope of
ethical thinking;
• Define and explain the terms that are relevant to ethical
thinking; and
• Evaluate the difficulties that are involved in maintaining
certain commonly-held notions on ethics
 In August 2007, newspapers reported what seemed to be yet another sad
incident of fraternity violence. Cris Anthony Mendez, a 20-year-old student of
the University of the Philippines (UP), was rushed to the hospital in the early
morning hours, unconscious, with large bruises on his chest, back, and legs.
He passed away that morning, and the subsequent autopsy report strongly
suggested that his physical injuries were most probably the result of “hazing”
(the term colloquially used to refer to initiation rites in which neophytes may
be subjected to various forms of physical abuse).
 Ethics, generally speaking, is
about matters such as the
good thing that we should
pursue and the bad thing
that we should avoid; the
right ways in which we could
or should act and the wrong
ways of acting.
 Ethics as a subject for us
to study is about
determining the
grounds for the values
with particular and
special significance to
human life.
 The importance of Rules to Social Beings

1. Rules protect social beings by regulating

behavior.
2. Rules help to guarantee each person
certain rights and freedom.
3. Rules produce a sense of justice among
social beings.
4. Rules are essential for a healthy
economic system
Kinds of Valuation

 Aesthetics – from the Greek

word “aisthesis” which
means “sense” or “feeling”
and refers to the judgments
of personal approval or
disapproval that we make
about what we see, hear,
smell, or taste
Kinds of Valuation

Etiquette – concerned with

right or wrong actions, but
those which might be
considered not quite grave
enough to belong to a
discussion on ethics
 Kinds of Valuation

Technical – from the

Greek word “techne”
and refers to a proper
way—(or right way)
of doing things
 Ethics and Morals
“Morals” may be used to refer
to specific beliefs or attitudes
that people have or to
describe acts that people
perform. We also have terms
such as “moral judgment” or
“moral reasoning,” which
suggest a more rational
aspect.
 Ethics and Morals
“Ethics” can be spoken of as
the discipline of studying and
understanding ideal human
behavior and ideal ways of
thinking. Thus, ethics is
acknowledged as an
intellectual discipline
belonging to philosophy.
 Ethics and Morals
Ethics – is the branch of
philosophy that studies
morality or the rightness or
wrongness of human conduct.
Morality, speaks of code or
system of behavior in regards
to standard of right and wrong
behavior.
Descriptive and Normative
 A descriptive study of  A normative study of ethics, as is
ethics reports how
people, particularly
groups, make their
moral valuations
without making any
judgment either for or
against these valuations.
often done in philosophy or
moral theology, engages the
question: What could or should
be considered as the right way
of acting? In other words, a
normative discussion prescribes
what we ought to maintain as
our standards or bases for moral
valuation.
Issue, Decision, Judgment, and Dilemma

A situation that
calls for moral
valuation can be
called a moral
issue.
Issue, Decision, Judgment, and Dilemma

When one is placed in a

situation and confronted by
the choice of what act to
perform, s/he is called to
make a moral decision
 Issue, Decision, Judgment, and Dilemma

When a person is an
observer making an
assessment on the
actions or behavior of
someone, s/he is making
a moral judgment.
Issue, Decision, Judgment, and Dilemma

When one is torn

between choosing one of
two goods or choosing
between the lesser of
two evils, this is referred
to as a moral dilemma.
 Characteristics of Moral Standards
A. Moral standards involved
serious wrongs or
significant benefits.
B. Moral standards ought to
be preferred to other
values.
 Characteristics of Moral Standards
C. Moral standards are not established by
authority figures.
D. Moral standards have the trait of
universality.
E. Moral standards are based on impartial
considerations.
F. Moral standards are associated with
special emotions and vocabulary.
Dilemma and Moral Dilemma
 Dilemma
 It refers to a situation in which a tough
choice has to be made between two or
more options, especially more or less
equally undesirable ones.
 What is common to ,oral dilemmas is
conflict. In each ethical dilemma, an
agent regards himself as having moral
reasons to do each of two actions, bur
doing both seems to be ethically not
possible.
3 levels of Moral Dilemma
A.Personal Dilemma
B. Organizational
Dilemma
C. Structural Dilemma
 Activity
1. Give your own example of a moral dilemma that occurs
in any of the three levels discussed above?
2. List down the possible choices for this dilemma and how
the choices would influence other moral levels?
3. Insight; why do you think it is more important to choose a
course of action in a moral dilemma than to not make any
choice at all? Explain and support with an example.
Only Human beings can be Ethical
A. Only human beings are
rational, autonomous, and
self – conscious.
B. Only human beings can act
morally or immorally.
C. Only human beings are part
of the moral community.
 Reasoning
 What reasons do we give to decide or to judge that a certain way of acting is
either right or wrong?
 A person’s fear of punishment or desire for reward can provide him/her a
reason for acting in a certain way.
 The promise of rewards and the fear of punishments can certainly motivate us
to act, but are not in themselves a determinant of the rightness or wrongness
of a certain way of acting or of the good or the bad in a particular pursuit.
 Beyond rewards and punishments, it is possible for our moral valuation—our
decisions and judgments—to be based on a principle.
 SOURCES OF AUTHORITY
 Law
 It is supposed that law is one’s guide to
ethical behavior. In the Philippines,
Filipinos are constrained to obey the
laws of the land as stated in the
country’s criminal and civil codes. The
law cannot tell us what to pursue, only
what to avoid.
SOURCES OF AUTHORITY
Religion
The divinity called God,
Allah, or Supreme Being
commands and one is
obliged to obey his/her
Creator (Divine Command
Theory).
SOURCES OF AUTHORITY
 Culture
 Our exposure to different societies and their
cultures makes us aware that there are
ways of thinking and valuing that are
different from our own, that there is in fact
a wide diversity in how different people
believe it is proper to act. Therefore, what is
ethically acceptable or unacceptable is
relative to, or that is to say, dependent on
one’s culture. This position is referred to as
cultural relativism.
DISCUSSION POINTS

1. Identify a list of (a) obligations we are expected to fulfill, (b)

prohibitions we are required to respect, and (c) ideals we are
encouraged to meet. Discuss whether these are ethical in
nature or not.
2. Come up with a list of common Filipino values. Consider the
strengths and weaknesses of each of these values.
3. Comment on this statement: “What I believe must be true if I
feel very strongly about it.”
Thank you for listening
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