Sources of Ethics
and Morality
• A. Human reason- primary source, acquisition and
application of the knowledge of ethics.
• B. Contemporary and historical experiences
• a. personal experience
• b. experience of others
Sources of Ethics and
Morality
• 1. Virtue Ethics- refers to the moral practice or action in
conformity to a standard of right (as divine law or the highest
good).Good character traits.
• Eg. Prudence, justice, temperance and fortitude. (habit)
• - the goodness of an act is determined by the individual’s po
• session of moral characters or virtues.
• 2. Divine command ethics- the religious idea that there is a
divine being (God, Allah), a series of rules or commandments
that believers claim can provide moral guidance to all.
Theory of Ethics
• 3. Idealism (Plato- 347-427 BC?)
• - The truth can be known by reasoning alone. (Deontology)
• Rene Descartes- “I think, therefore I am”, “ if no one hears, it
does not exist”, prove and disprove the existence of God.
• 4. Realism – opposite of idealism.(Arestotle- 322-384 BC)
• - Material objects exist in themselves, apart from the mind’s or
consciousness. (Utilitarianism)
• -” I am, therefore I think” (sarte and camus)
Ethics Theories
• Study of morals on how one should ought to act, not one
thinks one should act.
• To establish what is morally right and what is morally
wrong in regard to human action.
Normative Ethics
• 1. Virtue theories- “are acquired good habits that are used to
regulate emotions”.(Arestotle)
• Eg. Courage in facing fear of danger.
• 2. Duty/Deontological/nonconsequential Theories (Immanuel
Kant)
• - base morality on principles of obligation/duty arising from
his profession regardless of the consequences.
• Duties:
• a. Fidelity- the duty to keep promises.
• b. Reparation- the duty to compensate others when we harm
them.
Theories of Normative
Ethics
• c. Gratitude- the duty to thank those who help us.
• d. Justice- the duty to recognize merit.
• e. Beneficence- The duty to improve the conditions of
others.
• To do good.
• f. Self – improvement- The duty to improve our virtue
and intelligence.
• h. Nonmaleficence- the duty to not injure others.
Normative Theories
• 3. Consequentialist/Teleological/Utilitarianism Theories
• -Based morality on the consequences of human action.
• An action is morally right if the consequences of such
action are more favorable than unfavorable.
• End result of the action than the means or nature of the
action. “ the end justifies the means”. (End or telos)
Normative Theories
• “We judge morality of each action by first determining
the good and the bad consequences of it”.
• “The pleasure that results from a person’s action should
outweigh the pain for it to be morally right.”
• Ethical Egoism/ social contract theory (Thomas Hobes)
• -”Persons being selfish individuals are at risk of suffering
the consequences of each other selfish interests”.
• “Selfishness motivates individuals to adopt moral rules to
protect themselves from selfish whims of one another”.
Utilitarianism (Jeremy
Bentham)
• - these are rights derived from the state which are not
only asserted as moral prerogatives, but they also
afforded governmental guarantees and protection.
Legal rights
• A. Ignorance
• B. Poverty
• C. Compensation of Innocent victim
• D. Lack of experience of law enforcers
Problems of Legal Rights
