Deontological Ethics Flashcards
Finnis book (1980)
Natural law and natural rights, which sets out a philosophical of law (jurisprudence) in which he argues that the basic functions of the legal system should be to promote the basic goods for all citizens.
Natural law theory
Aristotle was an early proponent that there was a natural justice, which was valid to everyone.
However, Natural Law theory was fundamentally developed by Aquinas (1225). Aquinas claimed Natural Law was an aspect of God’s eternal law, accessed through human, God given, rationality i.e. humans can reason that the purpose of life is to re-establish a right relationship with God.
Finnis natural law response
Finnis accepts the idea that there is a natural justice, that is applicable to all humanity. However, unlike Aquinas, he argues that Natural Law’s purpose is to ensure a person is able to live a worthwhile life and to ‘flourish’ i.e. to establish what is really ‘good’ for humankind.
Finish natural law rejection of Aquinas primary precepts
Finnis instead argues that to flourish humans need seven basic, self-evident, universal goods, which apply equally to everyone at all times.
• Finnis believed the basic goods exist independent of human thought, and so we can put them in ‘reality’ in the same sense that maths lives in reality.
Basic goods reasonings can be proved
Belied that the basic goods are evident from practical reasoning and not theoretical reasoning.
We can distinguish between theoretical reasons which describes what is true with practical reasons which describes how to act.
Basic good reasonings cannot be proven
Practical reasonings cannot be proven such as assumptions that experience corresponds to reality or the preference for a simple explanation over a complex one (the principle of Ockham’s Razor).
• However, if you deny principles like the above you will find it impossible to pursue knowledge and you won’t be able to get anywhere at all. Moreover, you can just see that principles, like the above, are true by simply looking around.
Finnis argument on basic goods are the same
They are self-evident truths. Therefore, they cannot be derived from God’s law, or logic, or the inclinations of a human brain. They just obviously exist i.e. if you deny them, you cannot get anywhere, you cannot make decisions about what is best for your life.
• Finnis calls them ‘basic goods’ because they are self-evident basic needs of all human beings.
List of seven basic goods
Life
Knowledge
Play
Aesthetic experience
Sociability (friendship)
Practical reasonableness
Religion
Seven basic goods (life)
covers various aspects of life from bodily health to procreation- in 2011 he added marriage between male and female to his book.
Seven basic goods (knowledge)
Means been well informed
Seven basic goods (play)
Refers to recreation,enjoyment and fun
Seven basic goods (aesthetic experience)
An appreciation of beauty and art
Seven basic goods (friendship and sociability)
Acting in interest of one’s friends
Seven basic goods (practical reasonings)
Using ones intelligence to solve moral problems such as what to do,how to live shaping ones character
Like Aristotle’s practical wisdom
Seven basic goods (religion)
A connection with and participation with the order that transcends individual humanity I,e concerns for answering ultimate questions but not necessarily been involved in religious institutions
Finish distinction on basic goods
Stated that not everyone is automatically aware of the basic goods, e.g a toddler may not understand the need for practical reasonableness, but such principles are known to every educated mature person.
Finnis on importance of political authority
Emphasis the importance of political authority in protecting the basic goods and for resolving conflicts, civil laws provides further authoritative rules that protect the pursuit of basic goods as these form the common good , they also help solve the coordination problems that arisen when people purse their basic goods.
The nine requirements of practical reason
These help to create the optimum conditions in which to achieve the seven basic goods i.e. in order to make right moral decisions in your life, you act rationally in accordance with the nine requirements, that then helps you successfully achieve the basic goods.
• Finnis argued that, like the seven basic goods, the nine requirements of practical reason were self-evident.
Nine requirements
You should view your life as a whole, and not live moment to moment, based on achieving the basic goods.
2. You naturally have to prioritise certain goods over others (e.g. a student would prioritise knowledge over fun!!), but you should always do so with good reason. You should never arbitrarily discount one of the basic goods.
3. Basic goods apply equally to all people. You can be self-interested to the extent that you are in the best position to look after yourself, but you should always take into account the good of others i.e. you must not neglect others.
4. You should make sure that you do not become obsessed with a particular project i.e. if is not helping you flourish then find another project that fulfils a basic good.
5. You should actually do projects and make an effort to flourish i.e. don’t just sit around or repeat old habits
6. Aim to do good and avoid evil, by actions that fulfil the basic goods.
7. You should never commit an act that directly harms a basic good, even if it will indirectly benefit a different basic good. For example, you should not kill even if it will indirectly save more lives later.
8. You should foster the common good of the community, not just for you as an individual.
9. You should act according to your conscience and practical reason, not the authority of someone else.
Making decisions using nine requirements
The seven goods and the nine requirements apply equally to everyone. To make specific decisions in your life, you think reasonably, in accordance with the nine requirements, and then decide how you will pursue the basic goods.
• There is plenty of scope for discretion in Finnis’ version of Natural Law. If you are deciding what to do with your day, you could choose to listen to music, or to go college, or to go to a party, or to volunteer for disaster relief. These are all, in principle, valid choices I.e. they all support one of the basic goods.
Making decisions of nine requirements wrong choices
some choices are wrong, e.g. murdering someone, or spending all day in an empty room doing nothing, but there are many equally correct choices.
• The seven goods are all equally fundamental, and do not exist in a hierarchy. Therefore, although some acts are wrong (because they do not participate in a basic good), there is no single correct act.
• This is an important distinction between theoretical and practical reason: in theoretical reason, if two statements contradict then at least one of them must be false. In practical reason, there can be two contradictory acts that are both morally correct choices. It is up to a human’s free will to choose which act they will adopt.
• In this way, the seven goods and the nine requirements specify the overarching structure and goals, but do not determine the minutiae of day-to-day life.
What is the common good?
Humans naturally need to live in groups. This is both required explicitly by the basic good of sociability, and implicitly by all the other goods, because we are most productive when we are working together. Hence, one of the nine requirements of practical reason is ‘You should foster the common good of the community.’
• The common good is the situation where each member of the community can effectively pursue the basic goods for themselves. Like one of the basic goods, the common good is never achieved, it is only participated in.
