Situation Ethics

Question 1

What are the 3 main points of situation ethics?

Answer 1

• Agape Love
• 4 working principles
• 6 Propositions

Question 2

Who is the creator of Situation ethics?

Answer 2

Joseph Fletcher

Question 3

What main religious teaching does Fletcher use to defend situation ethics?

Answer 3

The Golden Rule - ‘Love thy neighbour’

Question 4

What is legalism?

Answer 4

Making decisions based on a system of laws

Question 5

What is antinomianism?

Answer 5

Come from the Greek word Nomos = Law. using no laws at all.

Question 6

Why was situationism in the middle between legalism and antinomianism?

Answer 6

People must follow the rules but also must know when to break them to follow agape love.

Question 7

What example does fletcher use to show the need to break the rules sometimes?

Answer 7

The Taxi Driver who was a long time Republican but decided he had to vote for democrat because he had to the right thing.

Question 8

What are the 4 assumptions (working principles) fletcher starts with?

Answer 8

Pragmatism, Personalism, Relativism, and Positivism

Question 9

What is Pragmatism?

Answer 9

It is focusing on ‘what will work’ rather than ‘what is true’ - there can be no theoretical but rather all about what will work in practice.

Question 10

What is Relativism?

Answer 10

Love is the absolute. everything else is relative to it. - Love is the ‘why’ for our actions and the ‘how’ is contingent on the ‘why’ - Rejects absolutes such as ‘perfect’ and ‘always’.

Question 11

What is Positivism?

Answer 11

we cannot determine morality from the world (NL suggests) - we must start with faith and ‘positively’ reason to create ‘Good’ - we do not discover it.

Question 12

What is Personalism?

Answer 12

People are the ultimate moral value (not rules or laws) - ‘Love is of people, by people and for people’

Question 13

What does fletcher call the ideas that are essential to Situation ethics?

Answer 13

The 6 Propositions

Question 14

What is the first Proposition? (goodness)

Answer 14

Love is the only true intrinsic goodness. other things are extrinsically good because they serve some end e.g. walking.

Question 15

What is the second Proposition? (governing principle)

Answer 15

Love should govern Christian decisions - Jesus replaces The OT with principles of love - such as Healing on the sabbath which shows love over rules.

Question 16

What is the third Propositions? (Justice)

Answer 16

Love and justice are not opposing but the same - justice is Love distributed - this is not sentimental love but love which doctors and political leaders should have to benefit the majority.

Question 17

What is the fourth Proposition? (Neighbour)

Answer 17

Love wills the neighbour good whether we like him or not - love is an attitude not a feeling - It is selfless not reciprocal and can be anyone we come across - e.g. The Good Samaritan.

Question 18

What is the fifth Proposition? (justifies the means)

Answer 18

as long as love is the outcome then it can justify any means. - fletcher user the example of WW2 resistance fighters who lie and kill their own - importance of Cause.

Question 19

What is the sixth Proposition? (situationally)

Answer 19

Love’s decisions are made situationally, not prescriptively. - Does not tell us what to do in specific circumstances. we must gather facts of the case not absolutes.

Question 20

Applying Situation ethics to abortion after rape - what was Fletchers example and what is the key point?

Answer 20

Patient was raped by fellow patient before abortion was legalised. the doctors refused abortion because the mother’s life was not in danger. - Fletcher thinks this is wrong as it shows how legalism can create the wrong decision. Situations ethics is Person Centred not legalistic.

Question 21

Applying situation ethics to Sacrificial suicide/ euthanasia - what was Fletchers example and what is the key point?

Answer 21

A terminally ill man can take medication to prolong life but then his family won’t gain the medical insurance money.
- Situation ethics is teleological (leads to good outcome)
- Fletcher is a pragmatist so it is more important the action works rather than is it right.
- in this case it may be okay to break the moral law and refuse treatment.

Question 22

Applying situation ethics to Adultery (sexual ethics) - what was Fletchers example and what is the key point?

Answer 22

Mrs Bergmeier was in Russian war prison - the only way to get out was through being pregnant so she slept with a prison guard - she was married.
- SE is relativist - what is wright or wrong depends on the situation.
- Fletcher said on the matter of adultery to ‘give me a real case’ when discussing its morality
- in this case the adultery would be justified because it brings about love for both her and her family.

Question 23

Applying situation ethics to prostitution (sexual ethics) - what was Fletchers example and what is the key point?

Answer 23

agent was told to seduce enemy spy for information which could shorten the war and save lives.
- Fletcher did not give an answer to this dilemma but left it to us.
- left to the women’s conscience - for fletcher conscience is a verb not a noun.

Question 24

Support for Situation ethics as a Religious Theory - 2 commandments

Answer 24

Fletcher is correct that Jesus says jewish law only needs two commandments ‘love God’ and ‘love your neighbour as yourself’

Question 25

Support for Situation ethics as a Religious Theory - Opposition to legalism

Answer 25

Jesus is seen to oppose the legalism of the Pharisees of his day. he gives moral principle not rules which are hard and fast.

Question 26

Support for Situation ethics as a Religious Theory - Love as primary evidence for faith

Answer 26

Jesus argued that love is the primary evidence of the genuine of religious faith. - "by this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another" - John 13

Question 27

Counter to Situation ethics being a Religious Theory - Selective choice of teachings

Answer 27

Argued that fletcher's readings of Jesus' teachings are highly selective. He condemns divorce and adultery quite clearly he references hell more than he references heaven. (weak - Stoned adulterer)

Question 28

Counter to Situation ethics being a Religious Theory - Commandments are different to love

Answer 28

Jesus states that if his disciples love him they are to obey his commands - this implies there are commandments than just love.

Question 29

Counter to Situation ethics being a Religious Theory - love thy neighbour

Answer 29

The interpretation of agape as an unconditional wishing of the best for neighbour is not explicitly christian. There is little difference between situation ethics and act utilitarianism.

Question 30

what does fletcher believe conscience is?

Answer 30

unlike other conscience thinkers, fletcher does not believe conscience is a noun (a thing we have) but rather a verb a thing we do when making our moral decisions.

Question 31

what is Fletchers final case study in his book?

Answer 31

The atomic bomb being dropped which killed 150,000 immediately and would lead to thousands more (but unknown at the time) but did shorten the war and there was no other suggestions or alternatives.

Question 32

Advantage of situation ethics - relativist and flexibility

Answer 32

The relativism in the theory makes it flexible in any given situation - there are occasions where applying rigid rules would be unfair - SE provides flexibility which takes circumstance into account.

Question 33

Advantage of situation ethics - Conflicting duties

Answer 33

Enables us to answer difficult moral dilemmas where we may have 2 conflicting duties - e.g. telling the truth or saving a life. gives us one principle to follow.

Question 34

Advantage of situation ethics - a good principle

Answer 34

It demands that we do whatever is most loving for those around us whether we like them or not which saves us from personal Bias

Question 35

Disadvantages of Situation Ethics - Not absolute boundaries

Answer 35

This is worrying as it means child torture could be allowed as long as it leads to a more loving scenario. - e.g. the child is a terrorists and can be tortured to get information and save lives.

Question 36

Disadvantages of Situation Ethics - Too Vague

Answer 36

The principle of Agape love is too vague as what each person sees to the be the most loving is matter of opinion.

Question 37

Disadvantages of Situation Ethics - McQuarrie's argument

Answer 37

suggests SE is individualistic and involves individuals deciding based on specific circumstances. difficult to apply to society as a whole.

Question 38

Disadvantages of Situation Ethics - Where does a situation end?

Answer 38

We may resolve the immediate situation but set off an unexpected chain of consequences that do not lead to a loving outcome. How far do we need to calculate for? what are we morally responsible for?

Question 39

Disadvantages of Situation Ethics - Same and ACT Utilitarianism

Answer 39

Some believe it is the same as Act utilitarianism which has its own disadvantages such as being too subjective.

Question 40

Who supported Fletcher on agape love? and what does he say?

Answer 40

C.S.Lewis (1960 book - the four loves) - there are 4 different loves but agape is the most important and is specific to christianity. can only be used with gods help as its not within our nature.