Ethics

Question 1

What is a moral system comprised of?

Answer 1

A moral system is comprised of codes of right and wrong; good and bad.

Question 2

What is ethical reasoning?

Answer 2

Ethical reasoning is the basis of moral systems and laws that serve as tools for making ethical judgement.

Question 3

What are the fundamental questions of ethics?

Answer 3

• how should I live?
• how do I decide on the right action?
• what is “good”?
• is “good” something independent of us or something we decide?

Question 4

What are ethics dependent on?

Answer 4

Ethics is a matter of personal opinion (or is dependent on culture or the social milieu.

Question 5

Give some examples of ethical (moral) theories.

Answer 5

• virtue ethics
• duty ethics
• consequentialism (utilitarianism)

Question 6

Describe virtue ethics.

Answer 6

Virtue ethics is an approach to ethics that treats the concept of moral virtue as central - achieve balance between extremes. It concerns the perception of ‘good’ related to human flourishing. Aristotle is one of the main faces of this theory.

Question 7

Describe duty ethics.

Answer 7

Duty ethics states that morality is a matter of adhering to fixed
standards and performing duties. It adheres to the philosophical concept of a categorical imperative and views people as ends in themselves, never as the means to other ends - taking care not to instrumentalize the person.

Question 8

Define categorical imperative.