Situation Ethics: Flashcards
1
Q
Who founded Situation Ethics?
A
Joseph Fletcher in his book ‘Situation Ethics: The New Morality’
2
Q
Introduction to SE:
A
- many argue SE was a product of its age, ie the 1960s is seen as a ‘liberal era’ that resulted in the rejection of traditional ideas and institutions; including a rejection of traditional deontological moral theories.
- Fletcher designed SE as a direct rebellion against the deontological ethics of Christianity, eg Natural Law etc. However; it was still designed to be a Christian ethic, just without all the deontological rules.
3
Q
What is Situation Ethics not based on?
A
- legalism
- antinomianism
- conscience
4
Q
What is Legalism?
A
- the belief that all human actions should be governed by rules.
- in ethics legalism means there will be a rule for every ethical situation situation. Fletcher believe that Christianity had become too legalistic by following the strict rules of the Bible or the precepts of Natural Law.
5
Q
One reason for the rejection:
A
- stops people thinking for themselves - all the answers to moral dilemmas are either written down in the Bible or reasoned through NL.
- e.g. when lying one should only consider the commandment ‘do not lie’ (Exodus 20) and not to think about the issue for yourself.
- “choking web of laws”
6
Q
Another reason for the rejection of legalism:
A
- there are times when legalistic rules are inappropriate to apply in the real world.
- sometimes the situation demands the moral agent to reject the religious legalistic rule and it may be better/more appropriate to lie.
- Fletcher was influenced by Arthur Miller ‘the immorality of morality’
7
Q
What is antinomianism?
A
- the opposite of legalism, an approach to ethics where there are no rules at all.
- moral agents make ethical decisions in an unguided and spontaneous way.
- antinomianism came out of the theory of Existentialism (the belief that everyone is free and is solely responsible for their own actions.
8
Q
Why is antinomianism rejected by Fletcher?
A
- moral agents need some form of ethical guidance other they would do immoral things (rape, murder, etc) and not understand that their actions are wrong.
- society could slip into complete anarchy as people would become amoral.
9
Q
What is conscience?
A
- a God given intuitive ethical guide ie some Christians believe that the HS acts as a moral guide.
- therefore many religious moral agents believe ethical guidance comes from the conscience.
- when faced with a moral dilemma, the HS will guide the moral agent on what is the most God centred action in that particular situation
10
Q
Why is conscience rejected by Fletcher?
A
- he believes the conscience is not a thing but an action.
- therefore the conscience cannot be God working inside is but it’s the brain’s mechanical process of working out moral decisions and AAR the conscience cannot be used as a basis for decision making. “conscience is merely a word for our attempts to make decisions…”
11
Q
What is the middle ground between legalism and antinomianism?
A
- principled relativism - he believed this was the ideal place to put his ethic as it avoids the problems associated with legalism and antinomianism.
- laws can act as guidelines to morality.
12
Q
What is agape?
A
- the single guiding principle used in a moral dilemma that helps moral agents come to the correct decision and whether the consequences of their actions were right or wrong. The single principle was love.
- agape is Greek and translates as ‘selfless love’
13
Q
What are the three parts of agape?
A
- love is directed outwards towards inwards, ie love isn’t selfish
- love is given unconditionally ie love is not dependent on receiving anything back.
- love is given constantly, ie love is given to all.
14
Q
What passage in the Bible best sums up agape?
A
- 1 Corinthians Chapter 13
15
Q
Why is SE relativist?
A
- it states that there are no universal moral right or wrong actions eg the act or stealing in itself is not morally right or wrong
- as Fletcher states about SE: “there are no rules - none at all”
16
Q
Why is SE teleological?
A
- the right and wrong of an action should be judged by the end outcome of the action
- SE is a teleological ethic, the action itself should not be judged when deciding the morality of an action, instead it should be the end outcome of the action that is judged.
17
Q
Why is SE consequential?
A
- consequentialists believe that the morality of an action should be based on the consequence outcomes of our actions.
- SE accepts the consequentialist form of teleological ethics. SE will judge morality in terms of whether the consequences were based on agape.