Lesson 1:

What is Ethics?
- Is a Branch of philosophy that studies morality (rightness or wrongness of human conduct).
In essence, Ethics is a branch of philosophy that aims to answer the basic question, “What should I do?” It’s a
process of reflection in which people’s decisions are shaped by their values, principles, and purpose rather
than unthinking habits, social conventions, or self-interest.

Ethics and morality carry the concept of moral standards or rules with regards to behavior.
Rules are explicit or understood regulations or principles governing conduct within a specific activity or sphere.

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.

How is Ethics different from Morals?

morality as something that’s personal and normative, whereas ethics is the standards of “good and bad”
distinguished by a certain community or social setting.

Morals refers to specific beliefs or attitudes that people have or to describe acts that people perform.

How is Ethics different from Law?

While ethics, and in the same way morality tries to create a private space where individuals can live according
to their own ethical beliefs or morality, law is more focused in creating a basic, enforceable standard of
behavior necessary in order for a community to succeed and in which all people are treated equally.

Moral standards involve the rules people have about the kinds of actions they believe are morally right and
wrong, as well as the values they place on the kinds of objects they believe are morally good and morally bad.

Non-moral standards refer to rules that are unrelated to moral or ethical considerations. Either these
standards are not necessarily linked to morality or by nature lack ethical sense. Basic examples of non-moral
standards include rules of etiquette, fashion standards, rules in games, and various house rules.

The following six (6) characteristics of moral standards further differentiate them from non-moral standards:

1. Moral standards involve serious wrongs or significant benefits.

2. Moral standards ought to be preferred to other values.

3. Moral standards are not established by authority figures.

4. Moral standards have the trait of universalizability.

5. Moral standards are based on impartial considerations.

6. Moral standards are associated with special emotions and vocabulary.

Moral Dilemmas
A dilemma (Greek: δίλημμα "double proposition") is a problem offering two unrelated possibilities, neither of
which is unambiguously acceptable or preferable.

Moral dilemmas are situations in which there is a choice to be made between two options, neither of which
resolves the situation in an ethically acceptable fashion. In such cases, societal and personal ethical guidelines
can provide no satisfactory outcome for the chooser.

Three Level of Moral Dilemmas

1. Personal Dilemmas

- Those experienced and resolved on the personal level.

2. Organizational Dilemmas

- Ethical cases encountered and resolved by social organizations.

3. Structural Dilemmas

- Ethical cases involving network of institutions and operative theoretical paradigms.

Only Human Beings can be Ethical

 Only human beings are rational, autonomous, and self- conscious

 Only human beings can act morally or immorally.

 Only human beings are part of the moral community.

Freedom as Foundation of Morality

To be free is not doing what you want to do, but doing what you ought to do.

Morality is a question of choice. Choosing is impossible without freedom. Everyone who wishes to function
morally and rationally in a society has to make choices practically every minute of the day.

Freedom of the Will and Moral Responsibility

(1) If humans have genuine moral responsibility for an act, then this requires that they freely perform that act
(i.e. that they instantiate agent causation).
- This means that since a person already knows what is right or wrong, he is responsible for any wrong doing
he/she does.
(2) Humans have genuine moral responsibility for at least some of their actions.
- This means that a person knows what is right or wrong, but sometimes is unable to act accordingly.
(3) Humans freely perform some actions.
- This means that even if a person already knows what is right or wrong, there are some factors that is out of
his/her control.

According to the dictionary, moral minimum is the standard or principle upheld as indispensable for moral
conduct, whether within a particular context or in general.
According to James Rachels, moral judgements must be backed by sound reasoning and that morality requires
the impartial consideration of all parties.

IMPARTIALITY (also called evenhandedness or fair-mindedness) is a principle of justice holding that decisions
should be based on objective criteria, rather than on the basis of bias, prejudice, or preferring the benefit to
one person over another for improper reasons.
Lesson 2: THE MORAL AGENT: CULTURE IN MORAL BEHAVIOR

Moral agency is an individual's ability to make moral judgments based on some notion of right and wrong and to
be held accountable for these actions.

A moral agent is a person who has the ability to discern right from wrong and to be held accountable for his or
her actions. Moral agents have a moral responsibility not to cause unjustified harm.

Filipino philosopher Ramon Castillo Reyes (1935-2014) explained that “Who one is” is a cross-point. This means
that one’s identity, who one is, who I am, is a product of many forces and events that happened outside of
one’s choosing.

Four cross- points:

1. Physical

- is a function of physical events in the past and materials in the present that one did not have choice in.

2. Interpersonal

- many events and factors outside of one’s choosing. One did not choose her own parents, and yet her
personality, character traits, and her overall way of doing things and thinking about things have all been shaped
by the character of her parents and how they brought her up.

3. Societal

- This third cross point interacts with the physical and interpersonal factors that the individual and her people
are immersed into or engaged in.

4. Historical

- History are the events that one’s people has undergone. For example, the Philippines had a long history of
colonization that affected how Philippine society has been formed and how Philippine culture has developed.
This in turn, shapes the individual who is a member of the Philippine society.

Three kinds of valuation:

1. Aesthetics - Derived from the Greek word aesthesis (“sense” or “feeling”) the judgments of personal
approval or disapproval that we make about what we see, hear, smell, or taste.

2. Rules of etiquette - Concerned with our sense of approval or disapproval concerning certain actions.

3. Techniques - Used to refer to a proper way (or right way) of doing things, but a technical valuation (or right
and wrong technique of doing things) may not necessarily be an ethical one.

In our moral valuation, sources of authority that imposed our standards of valuation and these commands our
obedience. It includes the law, religion, and culture.

Culture is all around us. It appears to be an actual part of our social life as well as our personality. Culture is
learned. Culture is shared.

“Individuals are a product of their culture” and “learning a culture is an essential part of human development”
(De Guzman & Pena, 2016)

Cultural relativism is the most famous form of moral relativism. In moral relativism, ethical judgments have
their origins either in individual or cultural standards.

Moral relativists view all moral norms as equally true, and morals as mere preferences. We cannot be objective.
We cannot say that this is right, this is wrong. There are variations.
CULTURAL RELATIVISM: THE DIFFERENCES IN MORAL JUDGMENT AND BEHAVIOR, ACROSS AND WITHIN
SOCIETIES

 Cultures vary substantially in both moral judgments and moral behaviors.

 Cultural variations in morality within societies can vary as much as cultural variations in morality between
societies.

 Cultural factors contributing to this variation include religion, human ecology (weather, crop conditions,
population density, pathogen prevalence, residential mobility), and regulatory social institutions such as kinship
structures and economic markets.

Ethical relativism is the theory that holds that morality is relative to the norms of one's culture.

THE FILIPINO WAY - FILIPINO MORAL CHARACTER: STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES

Six basic Filipino values:

1. Pakikisama - having and maintaining “good public relations”

2. Hiya – the feeling of lowliness, shame or embarrassment and shyness

3. Amor propio – commonly translated as “self-respect” or “self-esteem”

4. Utang na loob – this involves the concept of “reciprocity” or returning the received favor.

5. Filipino hospitality - refers to the innate ability and trait of Filipinos to be courteous and entertaining to their
guests. 6. Respect for elders – these include the use of “po” and “opo” when talking to elders and “pagmamano”

THE UNIVERSAL VALUES

1. Truth telling - without it, there would be no reason to pay attention to what anyone communicates with
anyone.

2. Respecting life - necessitates the prohibition on murder.

Lesson 3: THE MORAL AGENT: DEVELOPING VIRTUE AS HABIT

VIRTUE AS EXCELLENCE

According to Aristotle, achieving the highest purpose of a human person, one has the ability to
functions according to reason and performs an activity well or excellent.

Excellent way of doing things is called virtue or arête by the Greeks.

The human soul is divided into 2 parts:

I. Irrational element – not in the realm where virtue is exercised, because, as the term
suggests, it cannot be dictated by reason.

A. Vegetative aspect – aspect of the soul that follows the natural processes involved in the
physical activities and growth of a person.

B. Appetitive aspect – act of desiring in itself is an impulse that naturally runs counter to
reason and most of the time refuses to go along with reason.

II. Rational faculty – the rational faculty of man exercises excellence in him. One can rightly or wrongly apply the
use of reason in this part.

A. Intellectual faculty (act of knowing)

There are two ways where we can attain intellectual excellence: Philosophical and practical wisdom.

Philosophic wisdom – attaining knowledge of the general principles that constitute reality.

Practical wisdom – knowing the right conduct in carrying out a particular act. In other words, we can attain a
wisdom that can provide us with a guide on how to behave in our daily lives.

B. Moral faculty (act of doing) Knowing the good implies the ability to perform morally virtuous acts. The moral
aspect of the rational faculty concerns itself with the act of doing the good.

MORAL CHARACTER AND VIRTUES

“Character” is derived from the Greek word ‘charaktêr’ which mean a distinct mark. In modern usage, character
was merge with “personality” (combination of characteristics and qualities that forms an individual’s distinctive
characters).

Moral character is the existence or lack of virtues.

In the moral development, there is the sense of human flourishing.

This flourishing is attained by the habitual practice of moral and intellectual excellence.

Morally virtuous person targets mesotes.

SIX STAGES OF MORAL DEVELOMENT

The American psychologist Lawrence Kohlberg (1927-1987) is best known for his theory of stages of moral
development.

Level 1: PRE-CONVENTIONAL LEVEL

- Pre-conventional level (most nine-year-old and younger, some over nine), we don’t have a personal code of
morality.
Stage One: Obedience and Punishment Orientation

- People make decisions based on what is best for themselves, without regard for others’ needs or feelings.
They obey rules only if established by more powerful individuals; they may disobey if they aren’t likely to get
caught.

Stage Two: Individualism and Exchange

- People recognize that others also have needs. They may try to satisfy others’ needs if their own needs are
also met (“you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours”).

Level 2: CONVENTIONAL LEVEL

- the conventional level (most adolescents and adults), we begin to internalize the moral standards of valued
adult role models.

Stage Three: Good Interpersonal Relationships (Interpersonal Concordance - "Good boy/girl").

- People make decisions based on what actions will please others, especially authority figures and other
individuals with high status (e.g. teachers, popular peers).

Stage Four: Maintaining the Social Order People look to society as a whole for guidelines about right or wrong

- They know rules are necessary for keeping society running smoothly and believe it is their “duty” to obey
them.

Level 3: POST-CONVENTIONAL LEVEL

Stage Five: Social Contract and Individual Rights

- People recognize that rules represent agreements among many individuals about appropriate behaviour.

Stage Six: Universal Ethical Principles

- People at this stage have developed their own set of moral guidelines which may or may not fit the law. The
principles apply to everyone. “Ideal” stage that few people ever reach.
Lesson 4:THE ACT

Principle – rationally established grounds by which one justifies and maintains her moral decisions and
judgments.

Moral theory is a systematic attempt to establish the validity of maintaining certain moral principles. Theory is
a system of thought or ideas, it can also be referred to as a framework.

Framework is a theory of interconnected ideas, and at the same time, a structure through which we can
evaluate our reasons for valuing a certain decision or judgment.

We have three theories about ethics that center on the self:

subjectivism, psychological egoism, and ethical egoism.

Subjectivism is the recognition that the individual thinking person (the subject) is at the heart of all moral
valuations.

Psychological Egoism This is a descriptive theory wherein it does not direct one to act in any particular way,
instead, it points out that there is already an underlying basis for how one acts.

Ethical Egoism It differs from psychological egoism because it does not suppose all our actions are already
inevitably self-serving. Instead, it prescribes that we should make our own ends, our own interests, as the single
overriding concern.

Reason and Impartiality as Minimum Requirement for Morality

Reason is the basis or motive for an action, decision, or conviction.

Impartiality involves the idea that each individual’s interests and point of view are equally important.

THE 7-STEP MORAL REASONING MODEL

Step 1: Gather the facts

Step 2: Determine the Ethical Issue

Step 3: Identify the Principles that Have a Bearing on the Case

Step 4: List the Alternatives

Step 5: Compare the Alternatives with the Principles

Step 6: Weigh the Consequences

Step 7: Make a Decision

Rae’s model promotes the primal consideration of reasons and impartiality in ethics without necessarily
eradicating the role of feelings in ethical deliberation.
Lesson 5: THE ACT FEELINGS AND DECISION-MAKING

Feelings are conscious experience brought by emotional experience and physical sensations.

Emotions are created when the brain interprets what’s going on around us through our memories, thoughts,
and beliefs.

Inner-directed negative emotions like guilt, embarrassment, and shame often motivate people to act ethically.

Outer-directed negative emotions, on the other hand, aim to discipline or punish. For example, people often
direct anger, disgust, or contempt at those who have acted unethically. This discourages others from behaving
the same way.

Positive emotions like gratitude and admiration, which people may feel when they see another acting with
compassion or kindness, can prompt people to help others.

Two (2) feeling-based theories in Ethics:

1. Ethical Subjectivism

- Holds that the truth or falsity of ethical propositions is dependent on the feelings, attitudes, or
standards of people or group of persons.

Subjectivism cannot account for the fact of disagreement in Ethics.

2. Emotivism Theory

- developed by the American philosopher Charles L. Stevenson. This theory states that moral judgment
express positive or negative feelings. Our expression of feelings in moral judgment.

The Boo- Yay theory of Ethics “X is right” merely means “Hooray for X” and “X is immoral” just means “Boo on
X!”

Purposes of Emotivism:

1. They are used as a means of influencing other’s behavior.

2. Moral sentences are used to express the speaker’s attitude.

Analyzing Emotivism: Emotivism fails to notice that humans have not only feelings but also reason, and reason
plays a vital role in Ethics.
Lesson 6: THE ACT Moral Courage

Moral Courage means “doing the right thing even at the risk of inconvenience, ridicule, punishment, loss of job
or security or social status, etc. It is overcoming the fear of emotional harm or rejection from others. The
commitment to standing up for and acting upon one’s ethical beliefs (Miller, 2005).

Will and Moral Courage

Will is often defined as the faculty of the mind.

According to Arthur Schopenhauer, will is primary and uses knowledge in order to find an object that will satisfy
its craving.

The Will Power- to overcome laziness, temptations and negative habits, and to carry out actions.

What is the difference between Reason and Will and Action?

 The will is guided by reason, ,action is performed according to rational requirements, or laws of reason.

 Reason has, in other words, the capacity to direct action. Further, where the will is guided by reason, it is
free.

DEVELOPING WILL AND MORAL COURAGE

1. Develop and practice self-discipline

2. Do mental strength training.

3. Draw inspiration from people of great courage.

4. Repeatedly do acts that exhibit moral courage and will.

5. Avoid deeds that show lack of moral courage and will.

ANGER MANAGEMENT

- helps us not to be stressed out very much

10 Helpful Ways to Get Away from Anger

1. Go away from the situation.

2. Drink several cool (not icy) water to get rid your anger.

3. When fasting, engage in activities that give calmness.

4. Think of something funny.

5. Take ten deep breaths.

6. Surround yourself with optimistic people.

7. Don’t add to the hate in this world.

8. Don't contain your anger.

9. Remember that anger is natural. 1

0. Properly deal with the people who have offended you