Sexual Ethics Flashcards
aquinas + pope paul, natural law, 1
• Some forms of sexual behaviour are harmful as they are unnatural, thus they should not be tolerated. Aquinas natural law, Aristotelian teleological origins; For example, homosexuality and procreation/ ordered society. Pope Paul VI Humanae Vitae “every marital act must of necessity retain its intrinsic relationship to the procreation of human life”, “intrinsically disordered”, contra naturam, family unit would dissipate, society break down.
fletcher se response to aquinas + st paul
- However, attitudes towards sex are not universal. Some see sex for pleasure/ unitive, not reproduction, thus there is no harm in homosexual marriage. Joseph Fletcher’s situationalism, not fixed law.
- There is no intrinsic human nature, different people will have different sexual preferences.
summum bonus response to fletcher
But these people are ignorant and will not reach the Summum Bonum. Need strict laws to guide people and ensure they flourish. Homosexuality is an apparent good! Right reasoning about our telos would lead us to reject the idea.
foucault on sexual ethics
- French philosopher Michael Foucalt, “normal” and “abnormal”. Variety enriches society. Deontological religious approaches which force specific sexual behaviour are harmful in themselves, as they prevent autonomy.
- Foucault, in ‘The History of Sexuality’ argues that we generally read the history of sexuality since the 18th century in terms of what Foucault calls the “repressive hypothesis.” The repressive hypothesis supposes that since the rise of the bourgeoisie, any expenditure of energy on purely pleasurable activities has been frowned upon. As a result, sex has been treated as a private, practical affair that only properly takes place between a husband and a wife. Sex outside these confines is not simply prohibited, but repressed.
- Foucault suggests the repressive hypothesis is essentially an attempt to give revolutionary importance to discourse on sexuality. The repressive hypothesis makes it seem both defiant and of utmost importance to our personal liberation that we talk openly about sex.
st paul and kant stable society, 2
- It could be argued that modern secular attitudes to sex are too liberal and are in fact damaging – St Paul advocated celibacy as a state of holiness, yet if people needed to give into passion they should marry first, “it is better to marry than to burn with passion” (1 Corinthians)
- Goods of marriage – procreation, nurture, control of sex, “til death do us part”, convenant between God and his people encourages loyalty and respect for sex, avoids sex being cheapened (perhaps this religious value is attractive to atheists also, such as Kant who argued we must never treat any as a means to an end, and should respect other human beings as rational and autonomous)
sexual choices are personal, macintyre, response to stable society
• Sexual decisions are highly personal and would not make sense to universalise them (Macintyre, virtue ethicist). Puritanism – rules taking precedence over people; if an individual was lonely and unhappy in their marriage, disallowing them to seek pleasure from others surely restricts their autonomy.
sexual choices affects others argument
• However sexual decisions always impact at least one other person, and decisions about marriage and family life will likely impact children – religious conservative concept of a heterosexual family and monogamous life-long marriage is arguably favourable, as there is evidence to show that marriage is linked to happiness/ better education for children
mill non-harm principle response to affecting others
- Undoubtedly, people should be free to do what they please in sex, as it is a highly personal matter. However, as sexual decisions impact at least two people, all acts should be permitted providing they do not cause harm to another (J.S. Mill non-harm principle), harm meaning an affront to autonomy. 1957 Wolfendale Report Sexual Offences Act 1967 2014 full marriage rights.
- This would rule out only non-consensual sex acts – consensual homosexual marriage would be permitted, however extramarital sex would not be permitted if the adulterer did not have consent of their spouse.
society no longer framework, freud + augustine, 3
- Whereas Augustine seems obsessed with the sexual lusts of the body led by concupiscence and their negative impacts upon human relationships, Freud’s psychoanalysis of human nature saw the libido as a natural and vital element of human development
- Freud saw religious obsession with sin, and repressed sexual desires, as a major cause of neurosis and guilt (Oedipus Complex) – where Augustine saw the cure for the human condition laying in God’s grace, Freud argued the cause of the condition was religion. The answer is psychoanalysis.
fletcher christian agape response to society no longer religious
- Arguably religion is responsible for some fundamentally important values one must consider when making sexual decisions e.g. agape love, kindness, respect for God’s creation
- Joseph Fletcher’s situation ethics has been praised for its rejection of deontological morality, and focus on Jesus’ teachings of love, over dogmatic rules
POINT 3 - conclusive response
positive aspects of religion can be retained without need for belief in god (pope pius, foucault + freud)
- Situation has been rejected by the Catholic Church/ Pope Pius XII for not being authentically Christian, undermining the divine law
- It seems that one can still treat other human beings with respect and love, without the need to believe in God
- Foucalt argues that Freud may seem to have made open and frank discussions of sexuality possible, but this discourse is still confined to the academic and confessional realm of psychiatry. We cannot free ourselves from this repression simply by means of theory: we must learn to be more open about our sexuality, to talk about it, to enjoy it. Discourse on sexuality, seen as a revolt against a repressive system, becomes a matter of political liberation rather than intellectual analysis.
bentham act utilitarianism on sexual ethics
• Others would argue harm is only what causes physical, emotional or mental pain. Bentham’s act utilitarianism focuses on hedonism coupled with the principle of utility; extramarital sex may be permitted if the partner does not find out as it brings about greatest pleasure for greatest number.
patricia marino on sexual ethics
Patricia Marino ‘Philosophy of Sex’ – One can choose to be used, and when the choice to do so is fully autonomous, the objectification is unproblematic. Do we have free choice?
freedom reply to patricia marino
• Freedom – Prostitution – is a prostitute who consents because she will starve without the money really earned, preserving her autonomy through this consent, and if not is the consent then not valid?
kant response to bentham
- Kant believed that in having sex, we were allowing someone to use us to fulfil their desires (as a means to an end, thus going against the 2nd formulation of the CI). “Sexual love is degradation of human nature”. We can only do so if we first get married, giving ourselves to the other person in law, so that we have a common will.
- Kant strongly opposed adultery as it breaks the promises made in marriages; it “degrades human nature” by treating one of the parties as means to an end, and it would be difficult to universalise extramarital sex without making marriage meaningless.
