ETHICAL APPROACHES

by

Professor Jon Saul

 

As an introduction to the study of ethics, I offer you the following six different ethical approaches:

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OUTCOMES: based on results of action (regardless of motivation)

Consequentalist/teleological theories: Utilitarian Ethics           Bentham & Utilitarians

Consequentalist/teleological theories: Egoist Ethics                 Ayn Rand & Objectivists

Consequentalist/teleological theories: Care/Feminist Ethics     Carol Gilligan

PROCESS: based on properties intrinsic to the action (regardless of the result)

Nonconsequentalist/deontological theories: Kant’s Duty ethics         Kant

Nonconsequentalist/deontological theories: Virtue Ethics                 Aristotle

Nonconsequentalist/deontological theories: Natural Law Ethics        Jefferson 

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I ask you to consider the actions, issues, concepts,  problems and dilemmas introduced in your readings from the standpoint of these six ethical approaches and to choose the point of view you judge to be correct.

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Here's a very brief (simplified) overview of each ethical perspective:

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1. Utilitarian ethics is represented by principles established by Jeremy Bentham (1748 - 1832) and James Mill (1773–1836) at the beginning of the 19th century. The fundamental moral principle governing all decision-making is "the greatest good for the greatest number". This perspective has been referred to as a 'moral calculus" and essentially legitimizes majority rule. One simply 'counts' the 'goods' on the one hand and then counts the 'goods' on the other hand, and it is evident which is greater.

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Note that James Mill's son, John Stuart Mill, although he supported Utilitarianism, became a staunch champion of minority rights (see On Liberty) as he recognized the tyranny of the majority tends to eliminate individual freedom.

Are you a Utilitarian? soldiers at war operate this way: a small unit is sent to scout (and be sacrificed) rather than putting the entire army at risk...

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2. Egoist ethics is represented by Ayn Rand (1095-1982) who supported the 'rugged individualist" (see The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged). The basic moral idea of Objectivism is that "man—every man—is an end in himself, not the means to the ends of others. He must exist for his own sake, neither sacrificing himself to others nor sacrificing others to himself. The pursuit of his own rational self-interest and of his own happiness is the highest moral purpose of his life."

Are you an Objectivist? This could be thought of as a "me-first" or "looking out for number one" approach to ethics. "Opportunistic" or "practical" are other descriptors for this perspective.

3. Care Ethics, also known as Feminist Ethics, is based on principles established by Harvard psychologist Carol Gilligan (1936-present). Her 1982 book, In a Different Voice, argued that "women tend to follow a different path of moral development than do men." 

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The moral idea is to utilize "an orientation of care, which emphasizes the importance of maintaining relationships and tending to the needs of others."

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This could be thought of as considering the affect of one's actions on others, rather than one oneself.

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Are you a follower of ethics of care? Do you consider the needs of others before your own?

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4. Immanuel Kant’s (1724-1804) Duty Ethics are based on the principle of his "Categorical Imperative". It is categorical because it applies to all people in all situations at all times (universal). It is imperative because it clearly defines moral action. One must always act towards other human beings as ends in themselves, not as means to an end. 

Duty is the necessity of acting out of reverence for universal law. Moral value is essentially established by the intention of the person acting. 

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Maxim: a particular directive, a subjective principle of volition (a principle upon which you act). The nature of the maxim upon which an action is based is the manner in which intentions are expressed.

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Hypothetical Imperative: a conditional maxim based on relative means/ends in the everyday world or every-day circumstances. The goal is not based on pure reason alone but usually upon desires. E.g., "If you want to be confident, then study hard."

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Categorical Imperative: a rule stating what ought to be done based upon pure reason alone and not contingent upon sensible desires.  "I am never to act otherwise than to will that my maxim should become universal law."

Moral rules, then, have no exceptions. Killing is always wrong. Lying is always wrong.

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Do you follow such a "golden rule" ethic? Do you "do onto others as you would have them do onto you"?

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5. Virtue Ethics are exemplified by Aristotle (384-322 BCE). Essentially, a human must act virtuously, according to virtue. Ethics is not merely a theoretical study for Aristotle. Unlike any intellectual capacity, virtues of character are dispositions to act in certain ways in response to similar situations, the habits of behaving in a certain way. Thus, good conduct arises from habits that in turn can only be acquired by repeated action and correction, making ethics an intensely practical discipline. a hierarchy of virtues.

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Each of the virtues is a state of being that naturally seeks its mean relative to us. According to Aristotle, the virtuous habit of action is always an intermediate state between the opposed vices of excess and deficiency: too much and too little are always wrong; the right kind of action always lies in the mean. Thus, for example:

with respect to acting in the face of danger, courage is a mean between the excess of rashness and the deficiency of cowardice;

with respect to the enjoyment of pleasures, temperance is a mean between the excess of intemperance and the deficiency of insensibility;

with respect to spending money, generosity is a mean between the excess of wastefulness and the deficiency of stinginess;

with respect to relations with strangers, being friendly is a mean between the excess of being ingratiatingand the deficiency of being surly; and

with respect to self-esteem,magnanimity is a mean between the excess of vanity and the deficiency of pusillanimity.

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Does virtue guide your actions?

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6. Natural Law Ethics were firmly established in the Declaration of Independence, which was chiefly authored by Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826). Natural Rights are enjoyed by every human being, as in "All men are create equal and are endowed by their creator with the inalienable rights of Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness". The U.S. Bill of Rights (the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution) is an attempt to formulate civil rights on this basis. The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which lists 30 basic human rights, is also based on these principles.

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Are you an adherent of human rights?