Ethics
Ethics can be defined broadly as a set of moral principles or values. Each of us has such a set of values, although we may or may not have clearly expressed them. It is common for people to differ in their moral principles and values and the relative importance they attach to them. These differences reflect life experiences, successes and failures, as well as the influences of parents, teachers, and friends. Ethical behavior is necessary for a society to function in a orderly manner. It can be argued that ethics is the glue that holds a society together. Philosophers, religious organizations, and other groups have defined in various ways ideal sets of moral principles and values. The following are different approaches, from ancient and modern traditions and philosophers, depicting their meaning and understanding of ethics and how it can be applied in ethical decision-making. Utilitarianism was founded by the British philosopher Jeremy Bentham toward the end of the 18th century. He believed that all human actions are motivated by a desire to obtain pleasure and avoid pain. The principle of utility expresses that actions were right if they tended to produce the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. When fac
ed with a moral dilemma, utilitarianism identifies right and wrong and also considers the consequences that may result. This can be regarded as an appropriate action, but offers no realistic way to gather necessary information to make the required decision. Confronting certain situations in life, there is no time to weigh all possible outcomes and decide the one that provides the greatest benefit to all; majority of predicaments allow just enough time for a person to act on impulse alone. To calculate the welfare of the people involved in or effected by any given situation, utilitarianism requires that all individuals be considered equally. Quantitative utilitarians would contemplate the pleasure and pain that would be caused and evaluate how both sides would be affected. Through this calculation of pleasures and pains, one could tell what was right or wrong. John Stuart Mill, also a British philosopher, modified and expanded on Bentham's principles. Mill's approach insists on qualitative utilitarianism, which requires that one consider not only the amount of pain or pleasure, but also the quality of such pain and pleasure. An utilitarian must consider both the consequences of an action and the good and evil that accompanies it. There are advantages and disadvantages in applying this approach to my own life. I know when I am faced with decisions I do find myself weighing all outcomes, what is right and wrong, and what consequences might result. For example, I encountered a dilemma at my summer job two years ago. I was an usher at a concert venue and I was faced with turning my friend's nephew in for having marijuana on him. It was wrong for him to have the drugs with him but at the same time he would of gotten into a lot of trouble. Could I do that to my friend? Could I not do anything at all? As I contemplated this problem, I did take the utilitarianism approach in trying to decide what would be the best thing to do to handle this. In the end I did turn him in to my boss, as
Some common words found in the essay are:
Kant's German, Mill British, Jeremy Bentham, Ethics Ethics, Hobbes English, Roman Catholic, Hobbes Kant, moral principles, Word Count, Aquinas Italian, moral principles values, set rules, principles values, ethical decision-making, required read, own beliefs, utilitarianism requires, pain pleasure, consequences result, moral law,
Approximate Word count = 1340
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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