Chapter 6: The Nature, Structure, and Evaluation of the Moral Act Flashcards
SUBJECT of Morality
the PERSON insofar as they act FREELY
Human Acts
the acts of the Free Will and the acts of other faculties governed or freely consented to
what distinguishes the human act, and therefore the Moral Act, is the fact of being VOLUNTARY
Acts of Man
PHYSIOLOGICAL Processes (e.g. digestion) or REFLEX Actions; acts of man are carried out IN men more so than BY men;
they are INVOLUNTARY
Voluntary Acts
an act which Proceeds from an Intrinsic Principle and is accompanied by Formal Knowledge of the End
Voluntariness
CONSCIOUS and DELIBERATE tendency of Personal Will towards its End
Characteristics of Voluntariness
1) Active
2) Self-Referential
3) Immediate Expression of the Person
Elicited Acts
acts Exercised DIRECTLY by the Will (to love, hate, decide)
Commanded Acts
Acts REALIZED IMMEDIATELY by some faculty Other Than the Will (the intellect, the arms, the eyes) Under the Influence and Motion of the Will
Direct Objects of the Will
the GOOD (real or apparent) Apprehended by the Reason
2 Types of Goods Willed in themselves
1) HONEST GOOD - willed in itself because it is Thought to be OBJECTIVELY Good in Itself
2) PLEASING GOOD - can be willed in itself because it causes in me a “POSITIVE AFFECTIVE RESONANCE” (pleasure, satisfaction, joy, etc.)
FINALIZED GOOD (or USEFUL GOOD)
NOT an End, but rather is put in Relation to an End and thus enters into the Direct Object of the Will, even if in a Secondary way
- it is the MEANS
NOT to be Confused with Indirect Object
Indirect Object of the Will
Consequences of the action (collateral effect) which is NOT in any way WILLED, either as End or as Means, but IS Foreseen and Permitted as INEVITABLY LINKED to that which is Willed
Intention
an elicited act of the will consisting in the Effective Willing Of an End that, in reality, is DISTANT from us, such that it is NOT Immediately Realizable, but has to be Realized by Means of a SERIES of Actions aimed at it
Choice
elicited Act of the Will that has For Its Object the Action Immediately Realizable in view of the desired end
3 Elements Morality of Humans Acts Depend on
1) the MORAL OBJECT
2) the END
3) the CIRCUMSTANCE
Moral Object (finis operis)
object of the act of choice which gives the moral species to an act