Virtue Ethics Flashcards
Bernard Williams, 1985
Argued that morality has become too concerned with abstractions, considering actions outside of their context, ignoring different situations people find themselves in.
Traditional moral philosophy has reached it’s limits and we need a new approach - one which engages with the real world.
Elizabeth Anscombe
She criticises traditional normative ethical approaches of Natural Law, Kant, Mill which focuses on actions.
Like Aristotle she argued that moral philosophers should consider what it really means to be a human and live a good life.
Alistair MacIntyre and ‘After Virtue’
He noted the existence of different virtue theories within different cultures. Although this might suggest goodness is relative, in fact these different theories are underpinned by the principle that goodness depends on moral integrity.
What does Virtue Ethics offer?
A ‘third way’ in ethics, which rejects looking at actions or consequences in isolation but looks at character as a whole.
Modern Virtue Ethics
Has been concerned to build on a range of insights on philosophy, sociology and psychology, compelling a full range of accounts of how virtuous people behave.
Virtue Ethics two principle branches:
Eudaemonism and agent based ethics.
Eudaemonism
Looks at Aristotle’s function argument and asks how a fully functioning human being would behave; they will be both a good and fulfilled life.
An important factor of being human
Rationality - Advocates of virtue ethics such as Rosalind Hursehoust and Philippa Foot.
Agent-based ethics
This attempts to get around the problem that Virtue Ethics depends on a ‘naturalistic fallacy’.
Michael Slate
Argued that we recognise the virtues intuitively, rather than from experience. Virtues are the characters of admirable people.
Criticisms of Virtue Ethics
1) It could be argued to be impractical and offering little guidance on modern dilemmas.
2) May encourage people to focus in on their own character development rather than looking outwards to the effects of each action.
3) It fails to respond to the problem of moral luck, there seems to be little way to avoid the conclusion that circumstances or luck plays a part in determining moral status.
Strengths of Virtue Ethics
1) It encompasses all aspects of life rather than certain actions.
2) It is more proactive than dilemma based actions.
3) It is involved in every aspect of human life.
4) It provides an alternative route for drawing on the tradition of moral philosophy.
5) It avoids the pitfalls of ethical systems
Julia Annas - critic of Virtue Ethics
There are ancient values that have value.
Robert Louden - critic of Virtue Ethics
Virtue ethics does not provide answers to specific ethical dilemmas such as Euthanasia, and it does not provide a list of wrong acts such as murder. Also how do we decide what is virtuous? The process of moral judgement is unclear.
Philippa Foot
She thinks that philosophers have neglected the subject of virtues. She argues that virtues are beneficial in as much as human beings do not seem to get on well without them.
Philippa Foot quote
“Nobody can get on well if he lacks courage, and does not have some measure of temperance…”
Applying virtue theory
You must look at the upbringing, education and general behaviour of people on a day-to-day basis. To simply look at a dilemma is to miss a crucial element of the theory.
Good actions will come virtuous behaviour.
Virtue Ethics and a view of human nature
VE requires some sense about what humans should be like - virtues are drawn from this. Perspectives of how humans are may be challenged by other ideas of human nature.
Philippa Foot quote about VE and human nature
“It is possible…that the theory of human nature lying behind the traditional list of virtues and vices puts too much emphasis on hedonistic and sensual impulses…”
Virtue Ethics and religious approaches to morality
VE is closely associated with religious traditions. Eg Aristotle’s idea of virtue ethics was embraced in Christian thinkers like Aquinas and is also prominent in modern Catholic philosophy. MacIntyre himself is a Catholic philosopher, Christianity is concerned with moral development, not simply moral acts.
