Sexual ethics

Question 1

Conservative secularists

Answer 1

the traditions regarding sexual ethics are useful for our society and so we should maintain them. Kantian ethics can be interpreted as an example of this

Question 2

Liberal secularists

Answer 2

the traditions regarding sexual ethics might have been useful in the past but are increasingly outdated and harmful. Utilitarianism is an example of this.

Question 3

Mill

Answer 3

• J.S. Mill, a secular liberal, argues that trying to make things illegal because they go against religious morality must be rejected because it has been the foundation of all religious persecution.
• He puts forward his non-harm principle; that people should be free to do as they like as long as they do not harm others. This includes consensual sexual behaviours which are private

Question 4

Who provides a counter to Mills contractarian view and what is it?

Answer 4

Devlin argued that society has the right to protect itself; the purpose of the law is to guard against threats to the existence of the society. A society cannot survive without some moral standards of the sort which are imposed on all. He claims ‘history shows’ that loosening moral bonds is ‘often the first stage of disintegration’. A society is not held together ‘physically; it is held by the invisible bonds of common thought’. Since a society has a right to continue existing it must therefore have a right to impose some moral standards by law.

Question 5

Devlin part two + counter

Answer 5

If the feelings of an ordinary average person towards homosexuality are of ‘intolerance, indignation and disgust’ then that is an indication of potential danger to the social fabric should those feelings not be backed by law. Devlin claimed that society has the ‘right to eradicate’ vices so ‘abominable’ that their ‘mere presence is an offense’.
Although I agree that moral laws and standards should be in place to prevent harm, these vews of ‘intoleranse, indignation and disgust’ may be the presnt of previously outdated and often religious view which are incompatible with our increasingly secular society. Therefore, whilst Devlin presents a compelling argument as to why we need to enforce laws, it is somehwat outdated. +

Question 6

Homosexuality has not harmed society

Answer 6

Legalising and normatively accepting homosexuality arguably has not caused the damage to the family that secular thinkers like Devlin and some religious leaders like Archbishop J Welby worried that it would. There is no evidence that children raised by homosexual parents are worse off, for example.

Question 7

Homosexuality has not harmed society - elaboration

Answer 7

Furthermore, communities can change and indeed should progress. Devlin’s argument seems to make that difficult in any area, not only homosexuality. While community is dependent on shared bonds, Mill’s view that they can be freely chosen or not by different individuals is arguably sufficient for cohesion and clearly allows for change.

Question 8

Christianity general

Answer 8

Historically, the UK has taken much of its moral thinking from Judeo-Christan ethics, which view premarital sex, extra-marital sex and homosexual relationships as falling short of God’s ideal.

Question 9

Weakness of Mills view

Answer 9

However, it fails to adequately recognise the longer-term implications of actions such as extra-marital affairs. Even if consent is given and no instant harm appears evident, such affairs can lead to the breakdown of families. This dissolution may cause significant psychological trauma to children and negatively impact their ability to trust in future relationships. Therefore, Mill’s principle may overlook important relational and societal harms that unfold over time.

Question 10

Reasons why sexual behaviour may not be seen as just a private or personal matter

Answer 10

• Fails to recognise laws such as age of consent, adultery laws and the facts that marriage is a binding contract
• Social norms around sexual behavior, when left unchallenged or unsupported by proper education, can become harmful. Without accurate information and open discussion, harmful stereotypes, stigma, and misinformation may persist, leading to shame, discrimination, and risky behaviors. This shows that sexual behavior is not merely a private matter but one that requires societal responsibility to ensure well-being and informed choices.
• Health reasons such as STI’s

Question 11

NL on homosexuality

Answer 11

The focus of Natural law is not merely on following God’s commands in the Bible (the divine law) but also on comprehending and maintaining the purpose (telos) of our natural desires as part of the natural law. Aquinas regarded homosexuality as unnatural because it required a divergence from what he thought was the natural mode of sex. This means the homosexual orientation, though feeling natural to homosexuals, cannot be so. Aquinas thought that not all inclinations were natural in the sense that they were part of God’s natural law.

Question 12

NL on homosexuality: the catechism

Answer 12

The catechism of the catholic church claims that homosexuality is against the natural law as it divorces sex from the gift of life and is thus against God’s design

Question 13

NL general + pre/extra marital sex

Answer 13

Natural law theory is based on the idea that God created all things, including us, with the potential to flourish if we live according to the natural law. The telos of human life is achieving ultimate happiness through glorifying God by following the natural moral law. Going against God’s natural law is not just wrong because it is a sin, it is also bad for our own happiness and well-being. This type of argument has led to critiques of sex outside marriage as detrimental to happiness.

Question 14

Aquinas primary precepts in relation to pre/extra marital sex

Answer 14

The focus of Natural law is not merely on following God’s commands in the Bible (the divine law) but also on comprehending and maintaining the purpose (telos) of our natural desires. Aquinas thinks we have a natural desire to reproduce, educate, protect and preserve human life and live in an orderly society. All of these primary precepts are threatened by sexual immorality. The only way for children to be provided for such that they can receive education is if they are born to married parents. So, Aquinas thinks that to follow the primary precepts requires confining all sexual behaviour to marriage – so pre/extra marital sex is wrong.

Commands in Bible include the ten comandments: Do not commit adultery

Question 15

Steven Fry + Augustine

Answer 15

Stephen Fry criticized religion for repressing homosexuality, highlighting that stigmatizing gay youth contributes to high rates of suicide and bullying. However, Augustine said ‘Love the sinner hate the sin’. Many Christians claim only to be against homosexual acts, since that is all the bible mentions, not the homosexual orientation. So Christians respond that they don’t claim Fry is evil only that his homosexual actions are evil.

Question 16

Who rejects Augustines response to Fry and why?

Answer 16

Christopher Hitchens rejects the kind of arguments Augustine makes as ‘revolting casuistry’ and claimed that this supposed separation of sinner from sin was absurd in the case of homosexuality since their homosexual actions come from their nature. In addition, Hitchens points out that there have been a significant amount of cases of peadophillia in the Church, thus are utter hypocrites for marginalising people for their sexual orientation.

Question 17

Aquinas’ laws as outdated

Answer 17

• They may have had their role in histroy, when society was more chaotic. Furthermore, In Aquinas’ time, sex usually led to children which without married parents usually led to being underprovided for and probably death since society was in a more economically deprived state. It was useful to restrict sexual behaviour to marriage, because of how economically fatal single motherhood used to be.
• Aquinas’ theory was a reaction to his socio-economic context and since that has changed, Natural law is no longer relevant.

Question 18

Fletchers critique of NL

Answer 18

there is no natural law, or our minds are unable to know it, as shown by cross-cultural moral disagreement. There are clear cases of different moral views on sexual ethics between different societies. This suggests it’s not true that we are born with the ability to discover the primary precepts. May be a naturalistic fallacy.

Question 19

Further problems with NL

Answer 19

• Does not apply to everyone, such as the elderly or infertile people
• Possibly opressing
• Advancements in reproductive technologies (contraception)
• Relient on the existence of God

Question 20

Freud

Answer 20

• He thought that traditional Christian attitudes towards sex resulted in a feeling of shame about sexual desire which led to unhealthy repression and mental illness.
• It claims that sex is a natural biological desire which shouldn’t be a source of shame but of well-being.
• Augustine’s insistence that there is something shameful about lust is absurd and pointless once you understand it is the result of evolution, not original sin. Conservative religious attitudes towards sex are therefore unnecessarily repressive and puritanical. They become an unhealthy and pointless obsession with self-control borne from insecurity over a mythical fall from grace.

Question 21

Situation ethics general

Answer 21

Situation ethics holds that an action is good if it leads to the most loving outcome possible. This will depend on the situation. So, if acts involving homosexuality or pre/extra marital sex involve consent and those involved are happy, it seems that the outcome is loving and therefore those acts would be morally good. However, if manipulation was involved in persuading people into such acts, then the outcome would not be loving, and it would be wrong.

Question 22

Fletcher: private vs public matter

Answer 22

Fletcher was critical of legalism – the view that ethics must be based on rules which do not take the situation into account. It is up to the individual person to decide in a moral situation what would have the loving outcome. This suggests that sexual behaviour should not be subject to public norms and legislation – it should only be subject to the principle of Agape.
- Premarital and homosexuality are not morally wrong provided that the acts ae based on love
- Even extramarital can be supported e.g.Mrs Bergmeier

Question 23

Problems with SE

Answer 23

• It offers no fixed guidelines, which can lead to confusion or justify harmful behavior if people claim it’s the “most loving” choice.
• Subjective: such complex and potentially harmful matters need rigid rules in place to protect others
• Consequences are difficult to predict
• Goes against the teachings in the Bible
• May cause confusion or alienation
• May encourage moral subjectivism

Question 24

Religious ideas to not continue to have an influence on sexual ethics

Answer 24

• Outdated, society has changed/evolved
• Laws e.g. leaglisation of homosexuality and age of consent to protect people
• Too narrow
• Repression and guilt/harmful effects - Freud
• Potential for harm and oppression

Question 25

Kant on homosexuality

Answer 25

Homosexuality doesn’t seem universalisible, since if everyone were homosexual then the species could not continue and then no one would exist to follow the duty to be homosexual. However, people arguably do not choose to be homosexual thus procreation can still co-exist with heterosexuality. Also, if the maxim is simply ‘follow your own orientation’, then that does seem universalisible.

Question 26

Kant thinks that sex which is not within a marriage for the purpose of procreation pretty much involves each person using the other as a mere means to their own gratification. This is a kind of objectification – treating someone as an object, which involves treating them as a mere means. However, kant thinks.... ## Footnote The second formulation = treat others as a end in themselves

Answer 26

However, Kant thinks that marriage is a contractual agreement involving the granting of “lifelong possession of each other’s sexual attributes,”. The idea seems to be that if each person agrees to being used by the other, then both are respecting each other’s end and thus only treating them as a means, not a mere means.

Question 27

Reasons why kantian ethics is not a helpful approach to sexual ethics

Answer 27

- Universal law: not every desires homosexual relationships - Kants rationality is oddly out of place in this topic. Arguably, emotions and passions are at the center of this topis and to suggest an ethical system that dismisses these seems to dismiss a key aspect of our humanity - Would struggle with complex cases, it is too rigid - Although Kant values autonomy and consent, his system is about duty, not desire or mutual emotional connection. This can make sex seem like a cold, mechanical obligation rather than an intimate and personal experience. - Kant believed sexual desire could lead us to treat others as a means to an end, making it morally dangerous. This negative view of sexuality makes it hard to celebrate healthy sexual relationships. - Cmpletely ignores outcomes and consequences

Question 28

What is a problem with Kants optimism towards marriage

Answer 28

Over 40% of marriages end in divorce and feminist writers such as Simone de Beauvoir argue thyat the institution of marriage enslaves women and takes away their freedom

Question 29

Bentham approach

Answer 29

- Case-by-case basis - Pleasure is the key purpose of sex - Whatever brings the mos pleasure is the right action - pre marital sex and homosexuality are allowed - Extra marital is not always allowed

Question 30

What type of pleasure is sex for Mill?

Answer 30

A lower pleasure compared to some of the more important intellectual and social pleasures.

Question 31

What is a core strength of utilitarianism

Answer 31

it moves with the times; views can be changed accordingly

Question 32

What did Mill recognise was a potential problem with utilitarianism

Answer 32

is the 'tyranny of the majority', where minority views of what may constitute pleasure may be supressed. This could lead to either homophobic laws or the banning of religious criticism of homosexuality, depending on what the majority view may be.

Question 33

Utilitarianism is based on pleasure, what could a potential problem with this be?

Answer 33

It is not a solid basis for ethical reasoning. Our emotions change; we may come to regret and see as painful, an encounter that we considered pleasurable at the time. Wehn our passions are involved, it is difficult for us to objectively consider pleasure and pain, and wigh consequences. In addition, the hedonic calculus creates problems such as how we can predict the duration of pleasure or an future consequences whatsoever.