HUMAN ACTS AND MORAL ACCOUNTABILITY Flashcards
refer to actions that proceed from insight into the nature and purpose of one’s doing and from consent of free will.
Human acts
These are those actions done by a person in certain situations which are essentially the result of his ______________________. Hence, these actions are performed by man knowingly, freely and voluntarily.
conscious knowledge, freedom and voluntariness or consent
BASIC ELEMENTS OF HUMAN ACTS
THE ACT MUST BE DELIBERATE
THE ACT MUST BE PERFORMED IN FREEDOM
THE ACT MUST BE DONE VOLUNTARILY
It must be performed by a conscious agent who is very much aware of what he is doing and of its consequences.
THE ACT MUST BE DELIBERATE
It must be done by an agent who is freely acting, with his own volition and power.
THE ACT MUST BE PERFORMED IN FREEDOM
It must be performed by an agent who decides willfully to perform the act. This willfulness is the resolve to do an act here and now, or in some other time in the future
THE ACT MUST BE DONE VOLUNTARILY
THE ABSENCE OR LACK OF ANY OF THESE ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS RENDERS AN ENTIRE ACT __________ AND LESS VOLUNTARY OR INVOLUNTARY,WHICH IN TURN ALSO AFFECTS ITS MORAL QUALITY.
DEFECTIVE
MAJOR DETERMINANTS OF THE MORALITY OF HUMAN ACTS
THE ACT ITSELF OR THE OBJECT OF THE ACT
THE MOTIVES OR THE INTENTION
They are the actions that are done or performed by an agent or simply what the person does. More concretely, the object of the act is that effect which an action primarily and directly causes.
THE ACT ITSELF OR THE OBJECT OF THE ACT
It the reason behind our acting. Depending on one’s motive or intention, a particular act can be modified in its moral worth
THE MOTIVES OR THE INTENTION
can become morally good or morally evil depending upon the intention of the person doing the act.
indifferent act
becomes morally evil due to a wrong or bad motive.
objectively good act
can receive added goodness if done with an equally noble intention or motive.
intrinsically morally good act
can never become morally good even if it is done with a good motive or intention.
intrinsically evil act
The moral goodness or badness of an act is determined not only by the object or act itself, plus the motive or intention of the moral agent, but also on the
circumstances or situation surrounding the performance of the action
are those conditions outside of the act
circumstances
They affect the act by aggravating, mitigating, exempting or justifying the voluntariness or freedom and thus affecting the morality of the act.
CIRCUMSTANCES
FOUR TYPES OF CIRCUMSTANCES THAT AFFECT THE MORALITY OF THE ACT
MITIGATING OR EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES
AGGRAVATING CIRCUMSTANCES
JUSTIFYING CIRCUMSTANCES
SPECIFYING CIRCUMSTANCES
They lessen or decrease the degree of moral good or evil in an act.
MITIGATING OR EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES
They increase the degree of moral good or evil in an act without adding a new and distinct species of moral good or evil.
AGGRAVATING CIRCUMSTANCES
They show adequate reason for some acts done. They diminish voluntariness and culpability.
JUSTIFYING CIRCUMSTANCES
They give a new and distinct species of moral good or evil of the act.
SPECIFYING CIRCUMSTANCES
Antecedent Concupiscence
MITIGATING OR EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES
Murder, Direct Abortion
AGGRAVATING CIRCUMSTANCE
Self-defense or Just war
JUSTIFYING CIRCUMSTANCES
The killer is minor or mentally challenge
SPECIFYING CIRCUMSTANCES
