CONSCIENCE Flashcards
what does aquinas say conscience is
Aquinas states that conscience is our mind making moral decisions
How does aquinas say we make moral decisions
Due to Ratio, we are placed with ratio by God as we are made in his image and this helps us make moral decisions
what are the two words used to describe conscience in the bible
SYNDERISIS AND CONSCIENTA
What is synderesis
This refers to our natural ability to do what is good and avoid evil
What is conscienta
This refers to us using reason to be able to make moral judgements correctly
what types of ignorance does aquinas believe wrong actions stems from
Invincible and vincible ignorance.
What is vincible ignorance
this is when an individual commits a wrong action yet knows that it is wrong. e.g. stealing
what is invincible ignorance
this is when an individual commits a wrong action whilst not knowing that it is bad. e.g. sleeping with your wifes twin sister
what does sigmund freud propose
consciousness is all in the mind and God has nothing to do with it
what are the 3 types of consciousness proposed by FREUD
Consciousness- thoughts and feelings we can experience
preconscious- thoughts and feelings we cant directly access but can later on
Unconscious- thoughts and feelings that are buried and cant be retrieved- except from psychoanalysis
how does freud suggest human personality is formed
through the unconscious mind via the id ego and super ego
what is the ego
the ego is our conscious self, the part seen by the real world
what is the id
the unconscious self, consists of basic drives such as sex and death
what is the super ego
this is within the ego, it is the morality principle, balances the demands of the id and ego, guides us how to act
how does freud describe conscience
freud states that the super ego is conscience, its a reaction to all the demands placed on us by society that we cant live up to
what happens when we go against the ego and super ego
when we go against the ego and super ego, we start feeling guilt
what does the super ego consist of
in earlier years, it consists of our fathers personality but as we get older it starts to consist of other authority figures
what are all psychological problems started by
freud states all psychological problems are started by sexual drives
what is the oedipus complex
the oedipus complex states that a child develops a fixation for their mother and due to this they start to view their father as a threat and develop behaviours of fear and jealousy towards them. these feelings cause guilt and shame.
what does erich fromm believe
we have two consciences, the authoritarian conscience and the humanistic conscience. he believes that the authoritarian conscience dominates us
what is the authoritarian conscience
we obey a legitamate authority figure as we believe theyre morally correct no matter if theyre absent or if their rules are bad
what is an example of a bad authoritarian conscience
the german obeying the nazis as they know they have to even when their rules werent morally correct.
what is the humanistic conscience
this is our inner voice reacting to how well we do in life, its our reaction to our own behaviour almost like us looking in a mirror and asking yourself what type of person am i
what does fromm argue
the humanistic conscience is the most important conscience
what is an argument for conscience being God given
In the bible, the genitals- non jews asked the apostle paul how they should know what is wrong, paul responded saying they have a conscience given to them by God and the word of God is written in their heart due to it
what is another argument for conscience being God given
John newman says our conscience is the voice of God. conscience is a precondition- without it we have no morality, it is also authoritarian as when we dont follow our conscience we are followed by guilt and shame
what does it mean for conscience to be an umbrella term
conscience is purely genetic, we are made of bytes and bytes of DNA and we have many traits that are hereditary and conscience can be one of these things, the people who co operate with human beings and abide by the law will be able to live longer and pass on their moral genes
what philosopher proposes this idea
Richard Dawkins
what philosophers belives conscience is down to enviornment education and culture
Jean Piagnet and Freud
What does freud say
Conscience isnt a real thing but is a name for something made by many other factors that are a product of nurture rather than nature, family upbringing is vital for our morality
what does Piaget say
our moral views develop through two stages, us before 10- we believe rules are fixed and imposed by an authority figure. children that are an older age view rules as made by humans and can easily be changed
