Conscience

Question 1

What is the first type of view on conscience?

Answer 1

Innate - reason from God: St Jerome and St Paul. Always been there and doesn’t develop. Attitude/ awareness - McNamara. God given: Butler and Newman. Dawkins - evolutionary.

Question 2

What is the second type of view on conscience?

Answer 2

Environmental - Piaget, Freud, Fromm, Kohlburg, Hegel - result of society’s expectations. Upbringing, reinforced, influences in early years. Negative actions - actions not punishable as my dad steals so I can.

Question 3

What is the third type of view on conscience?

Answer 3

Reason - Aquinas innate but needs reason and training. Maguire - reason and shared experiences your own and others. O’connell - 3 levels of reasoning. Moral values discovered through reasoning and experience.

Question 4

What are the general problems with theories of the conscience?

Answer 4

Should we always follow it? Are people always using their conscience to do an action? - or ignore it due to lack of will power. No objective way of measuring it. Can be manipulated to justify wrong actions, Disagreement when informed conscience is against the church’s teachings. If conscience is the voice of God we should all do the same thing without conflict, different Christians have different opinions e.g. Catholics and abortion. Influenced by emotions, rash and subjective. Suggest no conscience in sociopaths and pyschopaths e.g. Hitler not having one?

Question 5

What is the main problem with secular theories?

Answer 5

Doesn’t explain where it comes from, how it influences us or the correct approach.

Question 6

How did St Augustine define the conscience? (God given)

Answer 6

The voice of God speaking to us, he was influenced by Plato’s forms of the good and saw God as the source of all goodness. Conscience is a tool to observe the law within human hearts: “ men see the moral rules written in the book of light which is called truth from which all laws are copied.” It is intuitive, become closer to God.

Question 7

What did St Augustine believe about goodness?

Answer 7

It is a sign of God’s love and conscience is a result of God’s divine love and God speaks to the individual in special moments. When God’s love is revealed, humans experience their own inadequacy e..g rowing race think you are good train lots, but an Olympic champion rower joins and realise you are ordinary, same with God. God is perfect love, divine experience shows our inadequacy.

Question 8

What did he think humans have an innate capacity to do?

Answer 8

Distinguish between right and wrong. Everyone has a conscience, but they need God’s grace alongside this. God’s grace only given to Christians only Christians can do good. God implants knowledge of right in us known through conscience. A person can’t do a right act without the grace of God and have a good motive. Conscience is the most important element in ethical decision making.

Question 9

What are the evaluation points from St Augustine’s theory?

Answer 9

God’s grace only being given to Christians so only they can do good acts seems implausible. Conscience being unquestionable goes against the teachings of the church. Opposition believe God’s voice is self delusional and just a nice thought.
It makes sense God would leave us the conscience to make it easier to follow his laws and will for us.

Question 10

Who was Butler? (God given view)

Answer 10

He was the Bishop of Durham.

Question 11

What did he think about the conscience?

Answer 11

That we have been made in the image of God with the ability of reason, conscience is based on moral reason. It is part of human nature, you’re not acting in a human way if you don;t use your conscience. To be moral we must know ourselves. if we all knew ourselves conscience would govern the way. Conscience is innate, God given and gives us instant unquestionable intuitive judgments on right and wrong.

Question 12

What are the 2 tendencies he thought we were driven by?

Answer 12

Self love and benevolence and conscience is above these two tendencies sand would judge them. This was a process of reflection, so they were balanced and the person will make right decision and be happy, even if takes time to decide in a moral situation.

Question 13

How much authority did he believe the conscience has?

Answer 13

It makes intuitive moral judgement and therefore has absolute authority. People can blind themselves to their conscience and decieve that a wrong action is right, this is more evil than the resulting action.

Question 14

What are the evaluation points for Butler?

Answer 14

It seems we are driven by self love and benevolence, as making a decision using our conscience we consider the effect on ourselves and others, so balance these. Following conscience can lead to happiness as we are following God. If we follow our conscience this often does lead to a good choice, so could be unquestionable.
There are issues if it is misled or misinformed. Does it mean we can use our conscience to justify our actions.
The conscience could be learnt.
If the conscience is from God then there should be no inconsistencies and absolute morals in the world.

Question 15

Cardinal Newman believed the conscience was intuitive what else did he believe about the conscience?

Answer 15

Humans have a personal sense of responsibility to God and God implanted the conscience within us, but human parents and society place the content of the conscience in the individual. Empty vessel in which God and humans work together. The existence of the conscience shows God exists and the C is God’s messenger. It is the law of the mind, not a set of rules or doing things out of guilt to be rewarded by God, clear indication of right and wrong.

Question 16

What did he think were the 2 types of conscience?

Answer 16

Counterfeit and true. Counterfeit - a fake conscience shaped by society, misunderstood and used to defend personal choice and behavior. True - stern mointor strict observation that has nothing to do with own desires and will.”Conscience is the aboriginal vicar of Christ” - Voice of God.

Question 17

What did he think about the pope?

Answer 17

That he would drink to the pope after the conscience, the conscience could supersede the pope after reflection, which may show that we believed our conscience was wrong or we weren’t listening to it properly. Conscience was the voice of God informing our moral decision making.

Question 18

What are the evaluation points of Newman?

Answer 18

His ideas link to the biblical view of the law of God written in our hearts and link our experience of guilt after wrongdoing.
God’s voice but religious people doubt the right thing to do. If conscience is innate and intuitive, everyone’s moral views should be the same.
For Newman the conscience needs educating and reflecting on to see if it fits the correct moral teachings of the church.

Question 19

What did Aquinas believe about the conscience? (conscience as innate)

Answer 19

It is reason seeking understanding, innate ability to distinguish right from wrong called synderesis - the tendency of humans to do good and avoid evil and a judgement made using reason called conscientia - ethical judgement using reason to make right decisions.

Question 20

What did Aquinas think about humans?

Answer 20

They never seek to do wrong, pursuing an apparent rather than the real good. Aquinas thought we would discover the real good by using our reason to work out what it is to be a human and move from potentiality to actuality.

Question 21

How do we make right decisions according to Aquinas?

Answer 21

The synderesis rule doesn’t guide our conduct and reason is need for good, so conscience for Aquinas is reason making right decisions not an innate voice telling us the right decision. Reason making right decisions will lead us to natural law, but we will always get this right. We might do a wrong action, but can be acceptable if we followed our conscience - binding but can be wrong.

Question 22

What did Aquinas believe about culpability?

Answer 22

Invincible ignorance - non culpable ignorance not to blame for your actions e.g. over speed limit, but didn’t know it and sign was taken down. Vincible ignorance - culpable factors your duty to be knowledgeable of to blame e.g. knowing speed limit and ignoring the sign and still going over it. A person could do a wrong action ‘invincibly’ through no fault of their own or vincibly and deliberately as not used reason to make right decision.

Question 23

How did he think the conscience effects us and how can it be educated?

Answer 23

Conscience comes before the action, backwoods looking when we get feelings of reatre guilt or satisfaction. Educate conscience in line with the church.

Question 24

What are the evaluation points of Aquinas?

Answer 24

Recognises the thought processes when deciding if an action is right or wrong. You should follow your conscience, but recognised mistaken due to ignorance.
But… doesn’t allow for emotions and emotional responses to ethical dilemmas. If your conscience can be wrong what about God’s gift of reason? A rationalist approach doesn’t allow for revelation coming directly from God.

Question 25

What did Freud think about society (secular approach)?

Answer 25

Psychiatrist, people’s instincts and desires are key to their behaviour, behaving instinctively often not in the interests of the community and behaviours are discouraged by society. Instinctive desires are suppressed from an early age and people develop an ego to interact with society. Society’s disapproval of inappropriate behaviour is internalised by the superego. We feel guilty when we do something wrong and this comes from our God. Guilt not from God, but internalised as we grow up.

Question 26

What did he the 3 elements of the mind were?

Answer 26

Id - basic instincts and emotional needs e.g. appetite and lust. The ego - rational self, descriptions of the external that makes us ware of the reality principle, most outward part of our personality. The superego - the restraining self or conscience, moral policeman developed in childhood, the 3rd stage between 3-6 years old aware of their bodies, gender and sexuality.

Question 27

What did he think about the superego?

Answer 27

It develops from about 5 years old and internalises the disapproval of others and develops a guilty conscience, The superego is the inner parent, rewarding good behaviour and punishing bad. It divided into the ego ideal, giving us feelings of satisfaction at good actions and the conscience gives us guilty feelings at wrongdoing.

Question 28

What are the evaluation points for Freud?

Answer 28

People do seems to have an innate sense of right and wrong, helps explain cultural relativism all societies view murder as wrong. Conscience requires an element of decision making not to be followed blindly, Supported by Richard Dawkins, selfish gene and natural selection, follow superego to survive in society. If we have done wrong previously, hesitate if conscience reminds us of consequences.
The superego developing from 5 years of age seems very young. Piaget argues against this with his heternomous morality theory stage 1. Not much evidence.

Question 29

What did Piaget do? ( conscience and cognition)

Answer 29

Expert in cognitive development of children, conscience part of cognitive development, child’s moral development happening at specific stages in the time during behaviour. Morality progressive and developmental. Play games in 3 stages: Playing on their own. With others with sense of absolution and need for justice to see punishment completed. Cooperative stage of discussion and compromise.

Question 30

What he think were the 2 stages of moral behaivour?

Answer 30

Heteronomous morality: 5-10 year old children see breaking the law as wrong due to immediate bad consequences, Immature conscience based on the approval and disapproval of others.
Autonomous morality - when children look at motive and intention. Own sets of rules and benefit for social construction 10+. Adults can be a mix of 2 stages, By 10, a child should have developed a full moral sense with a fully developed conscience.

Question 31

What are the evaluation points for Piaget?

Answer 31

Could help explain why children act immorally e,g, picking things up in a shop, The law agrees with heternomous morality as it sees children as less accountable than adults.
How adults know if they are going between 2 stages. If you follow autonomous morality own set of rule,s which may go against laws set by government in your country and disrupt society. You could say under 10s aren’t morally responsible, child murder.

Question 32

What ideas did Kohlburg come up with?

Answer 32

Developed Piaget’s ideas. 6 stages of moral development individuals follow in a particular order.

Question 33

What are the pre conventional stages?

Answer 33

Olives - 1) obedience and punishment. 2) I - individualism.

Question 34

What are the conventional stages?

Answer 34

Ate - (gaining) approval from others. 4) Lay - Law and order.

Question 35

What are the post conventional stages?

Answer 35

Six feet - Social contract. Under - (principled) universal conscience. Moral and conscience development happen through social interaction, Developmental and acquired.

Question 36

What are the evaluation points of this?

Answer 36

The order of the stages make sense, Piaget heternomous morality first and second stages. Most agree social interaction plays a big role in developing our conscience.
He states most adults don’t get passed the keeping law stages, doesn’t explain why or how to get to the final stages.

Question 37

What did Fromm believe about the conscience at first?

Answer 37

Fromm was a pschoanalyst who applied his ideas to social and cultural problems. Escaped from Nazi Germany in 1934. Authoritarian - all humans were influenced by authority figures, who apply rules and punishment for breaking them. A person internalises these rules and when they break them guilty conscience e.g. in Nazi Germany guilty for helping Jews. God can be seen as an authority figure.

Question 38

How did he develop his theory later?

Answer 38

Humanistic conscience - later development called it healthier as it assessed and evaluates behaivour. The conscience we use to judge ourselves as people and gives us moral honesty. We makes good choices because we want to be a better person not just fear of punishment.

Question 39

What are the evaluation points of this?

Answer 39

Humanistic conscience plausbile, mainly aim to be a better person and judge ourselves as people. Doesn’t rule out God, could be source of moral faculty, but environment more morally important?
Authoritarian conscience easily manipulated through moral blackmail, worth following? Not everyone learns from, experience or does what society expects of them e.g. open Jews in Nazi Germany.

Question 40

What did Vincent McNamara think about the conscience?

Answer 40

Misleading to call conscience a voice, not special piece of equipment which humans have and can use whenever. Attitude or awareness. Moral path to be followed through life and true human living not revolving around seeking profit or pleasure, Attitude as people see goodness and truth as important. “ It is not so much that I have a conscience, as that I am a conscience” state of mind, how we see the world and how we act.

Question 41

According to Timothy O’connell what was the first aspect/level of the conscience?

Answer 41

General sense of personal responsibility for who we are and become.

Question 42

According to Timothy O’connell what was the second aspect/level of the conscience?

Answer 42

Sense of obligation to search out the good, using all resources of moral reasoning available to us, including the assistance of a moral community like the church, people disagree at this point and wrong judgements are made.

Question 43

According to Timothy O’connell what was the third aspect/level of the conscience?

Answer 43

Concrete judgement a person makes so that good as he sees it must be done, final level conscience is infallible and must be followed. Moral values discovered by moral reasoning and are imposed by external or internal laws discovered by historical human experience of consequences of an action.

Question 44

What did Daniel Maguire think about the conscience?

Answer 44

Agreed with O’connell. To get moral judgements consider place of creative imagination, humour and tragic experiences of life, great loss as opens us yo new perceptions of value, Based on human reason and shared experience of the past.

Question 45

What did Richard Dawkins think about the conscience?

Answer 45

We have self promoting and selfish genes promoting us for survival. Through evolution developed an altruistic - concern for others to survive. Ancestors found cooperation more successful and brings more rewards than competition and conflict. Goodness is innate to humans as we have evolved and innate sense of right and wrong, We are biologically programmed this way.