Ethics Flashcards
(27 cards)
Hendonism
The belief that pleasure is the main aim of human life and whatever is right is pleasant
Utilitarianism
The belief that good means the greatest good for the greatest amount of people.
If something benefits a lot of people it must be good
Teleological ethics
Consequentialism or concerned with the consequences or outcomes of something
E.g not committing murder because you could go to jail - not because it’s against the law
Deontological ethics
Rule based or concerned with the rules
E.g don’t do drugs because it is against the law not because they are bad for you and you could go to jail
Virtue ethics
These don’t apply to moral situations deontological and teleological
Ethical theories which emphasise virtues of mind, character and a sense of honesty
Focussed on the type of person you want to be
They deal with wider questions such as ‘how should I live?’
Ethics of care
Was proposed predominantly by feminist thinkers
One of the directions virtue ethics developed
Ethics of care Challenge the idea that ethics should focus solely on justice and autonomy, they argue that more feminine traits such as caring and nurturing should also be considered ethics
Ethical egoism
The idea that a persons one and only duty is to get the best, most good for him or herself
Supported by evolution which describes survival of the fittest
Situation ethics
The concept that there is not one right or wrong way to make decisions because there are no true rules, there is just one guiding idea of love or compassion
Descriptive ethics
The way things are, based on observation of attitudes of individuals and communities
E.g the statement ‘Innocent human lives are sometimes taken’
Normative ethics
The way things should be
This is then divided into categories deontological and teleological
E.g the statement ‘ it is always wrong to take and innocent life’
The eightfold path
The steps to reaching enlightenment for buddhists
- Right view
- Right intention
- Right speech
- Right action
- Right livelihood
- Right effort
- Right mindfulness
- Right concentration
The 5 precepts
Buddhist guidelines of how to live a moral life- not compulsory
- Respect life
- Respect property
- Respect personal relationships
- Respect truth
- Respect oneself
Beatitudes
Section in the gospel of Matthew in Christianity which is a collection of Jesus’ sayings in the form of a sermon
Teaching in support of peace making and being merciful
Used to determine and support Christian ethics
Natural law
Refers to the use of reason to analyse human nature to deduce binding rules of moral behaviour from nature’s or gods creation of reality and mankind
If we study nature we will learn how to behave
Thomas Aquinas
Authority
Element of Christian decision making
Scripture, tradition, church leaders, human experience, reasoning and logic
The Christian tradition tends to look more at authority than natural law
Agape
Christian word for and empathetic attitude of caring for everyone and anyone by understanding the needs of others
Three main approaches to determining ethical and moral conduct for Hindus
- Atman - conscious connection with everything
- Karma
- Ahimsa - do not harm
Karmic path of decision making
- Conduct or behaviour is the result of human will
- The effect of following the dharma is good conduct
- Good conduct results in good karma
Dharma
Hindu moral order for the universe and a code living that embodies the fundamental principles of law, religion, and duty that governs all Hindus
Moksha
What Hindus want to reach
Taqwa
The awareness which is the submission to the will of Allah
Basic source for Islamic ethical judgment
The Quran
Sometimes the Hadith and Sunnah
How do Islamic ethics differ for other religions?
Islamic ethics are different from other religions mainly navies the determining factor in ethical descision making is the basic Islamic faith, Islamic ethical behaviour is a requirement of being a Muslim
The 5 pillars
Fundamental statements in Islam
- Shahada or faith
- Salat or prayer
- Zakat or charity
- Sawm or fasting
- Hajj or pilgrimage
