Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION: KEY CONCEPTS IN ETHICS

Module 1: Ethics, and Its key Concepts

Introduction

This module is concerned with developing your understanding of Ethics as one of the key areas
under the division of practical philosophy. The discussion , description and explanation in this module
hope to equip your students with ideas on the important od ethics and the key concepts related to the
moral experience. Make use of this module to provide you with insights and ideas to help you
understand difficult and pressing experiences that need proper discernment.

Test Yourself( place your answer on p.84)

Instruction. Identify whether the following is moral (M) or Non-moral (MS) standards

1.Thou shall not kill 4.honoe your father and your mother

2.No trespassing 5.No over speeding

3.Do not talk when your

mouth is full

Learning Objectives

With the completion of this self-learning module, you should be able to:

1.Illustrate knowledge of what ethics and its importance.

2.Recall rules you have to follow and why you need to follow them.

3.Differentiate a moral from non-moral standards.

4.Recall a moral experience and defect the moral dilemma present on it.

5.Define why only human beings are moral.

Content

Preparatory Activity

Exercise (place your answer on p.84)

List down a rule (one each) you find in your home, and in your school

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and assess why you need to follow them.

a. Home
b. School

Developmental Activities

A. Ethics: Its definition And Importance

Have you experience a situation where it requires that you have to choose on what to do and
part of it is to decide which of the choices is right or wrong? Can you recall an experience where
you really felt bad and sad because you hurt somebody because of your wrong action? Did you
ever wonder why people need to be good and avoid what is evil? Did it ever come to your mind
why we need to be pleasing in our action?
There are many people who ask why study ethics? Why be moral? Webster’s dictionary
has a number of definitions for moral including: of or relating to principles of right and wrong in
behavior – conforming to standard of right behavior. This is an important question for a course
on ethics- is being moral important to you, why (or why not)? Most people think doing well in
life is associated with being “good”.(philonotes.com)

For example: do you think a person who gains money dishonestly is a success? Is a
politician who beats his wife and children a success? Is Mother Theresa a success-she had very
few of the things society commonly associates with doing well. Most people like fairness,
justice , truthfulness, compassion in society. Ethics help give direction to societies and people
who think they cannot flourish without some form of morality. Morality is said to be breaking
down in society today- juvenile crime, drug abuse, alcoholism , teenage pregnancies, crime
rates- all seems to indicate that the moral fabric of society is breaking down. Moral questions
are the heart of life’s vital issues including those affected by the actions above. “ Morality is
primarily concerned with the questions of right and wrong, the ability to distinguish between
the two, and the justification of the distinction.( philionotes.com)

Montemayor (1994) mentions in his introduction on his book. Ethics : The Philosophy of
Life that Ethics is the philosophy of life and that is delves into the deepest why and wherefore of
human existence, men’s actions, problems and destiny.

He further mentions that to live well and happy, we must know what we are living for.
He says this is taught by ethics that investigate the meaning and purpose of human life. He
mentions that according to Socrates the unexamined life is not worth living for man.

Montemayor (1994) also states that Plato one of the greatest philosophers of all times
proclaimed Ethics as the supreme science, the highest in the hierarchy of human values, as it is
ethics that is concerned with the attainment of life’s greatest Good and Goal- happiness.
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Definitions of Ethics

The book of Montemayor (1994) provides the following definitions of Ethics.

1.Ethics is the practical science of the morality of human actions.
2.ethics is the science of human acts with reference to right and wrong.
3.Ethics is the scientific inquiry into the principles of morality.
4. Ethics is the study of the rectitude of human conduct.
5.Ethics is the human conduct from standpoint of morality.
6.Ethics is the science which lays down the principles of right living.
7.Ethics is the practical science that guides us in our actions that we may live rightly and
Well.
8.ethics is normative and practical science , based on reason, which studies human
conduct and provides norm for its natural integrity and honesty.
9.according to Socrates, ethics is the investigation of life.

Looking into these definitions we can say that they are similar to each other. The
definitions speak of the field of study of ethics as human conduct; and of the
investigation of such human conduct in terms of its morality. The important terms that
can be seen in them are:

1. Science –systematic study or a system of scientific conclusions clearly

demonstrated, derived from clearly established principles and duly coordinated.
2. Morality- the quality of human acts as right, wrong or indifferent, moral immoral
amoral.
3. Human acts- acts done with knowledge , freedom and free wilkl or consent.

Importance of ethics

Montemayor (1994) proclaims that the important of the study of ethics follows
immediately from the importance of ethics itself. His ideas is manifested in the
following:

1.Ethics means right living and good moral character and it is good moral character that
man finds his true worth and perfection. All the great teachers of the ages maintain that
the supreme purpose of human living lies not in the acquisition of material good or
bodily pleasures, nor in the attainment of bodily perfections such as health and
strength: nor even in the development of intellectual skills but in the development of
the moral qualities which man far above brute creation.

2. Education is the harmonious development of the whole man of all man’s faculties; the
moral, intellectual, and physical powers in man. Now then highest of man’s power are
his reason and will. Hence, the primary objective of education is the moral development
of the will.
B. Rules and its importance To social Beings (lifted from the book of De Guzman, (2017)-
Ethics Principles of Ethical Behaviour in Modern Society)

You find rules everywhere. But did you ever yourself why you need to follow
them? Try to recall an experience where you followed a rule and assess what you did.
Did you just follow it without asking yourself why you need to follow it? Did you have
doubt about following it?

Rules refer explicit or understood regulations or principles governing conduct

within specific activity or sphere. Rules tell us what is or is not allowed in a particular
context or situation. In many ways, rules serve as a foundation for any healthy society.
Without rules, society would like fall into anarchy.

Rules benefit social beings in various manners.

1. Rules protect social beings by regulating behavior. Rules build boundaries that place
limits on behavior. Rules are usually coupled with means to impose consequences
on those who violate them. One of the reasons people follow accepted rules is to
avoid negative consequences.
2. Rules help guarantee each person certain right and freedom. Rules form framework
for society. Nations are generally nations of laws and the governing principles are
outlined in what is called constitution. Because the majority has agreed to follow
and consent to be governed by such a constitution, the freedoms outlined exist.
3. Rules produce a sense of justice among social beings. Rules are needed in order to
keep the strong from dominating the weak that is prevent the exploitation and
domination. Without rules, schemes in which those with the power control the
system, would take over. In effect, rules generate a stable system that provides
justice, in which even the richest and then most powerful have limitations on what
they can do. If they transgress rules such laws and ordinances and take advantage of
people, there are laws and ordinance and take advantage of people, there are
consequences both socially and criminally.
4. Rules are essential for a healthy economic system. Without rules regulating business
power would centralize around monopolies and threaten the strength and
competitiveness of the system. Rules are needed to ensure product safety,
employee’s safety and product quality. Copy right and patents help protect
people’s intellectual property. Rules and regulations also keep the banking system
stable so as to avoid depression and the like.

In short, society could not soundly functions without rules and regulations. Rules are
necessary to protect the greater good. Even the frees society ought to have rules in
order to avoid exploitations and tyranny while

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upholding the common good.

C.Moral Standards versus Non-moral Standards (lifted from the book of de Guzman. (2017)- Ethics of
Ethical Behaviour in Modern Society).

Do you know the meaning of standards? Have you been in a situation where you were chosen
because you met the standards or you were disregarded because you did not meet the standards? But
are you aware that there are different kinds of standards and the kind is dependent on their
implication or effect on people and situations? Why do you think there is the need to distinguish moral
standards from non-moral ones?

It is important to note that different societies have different moral beliefs and that our beliefs are
deeply influenced by our own culture and context. For this reason, some values do have moral
implications, while others don’t. let us consider, for example, the wearing the hijab. For sure, in
tradition Muslim communities, the wearing of hijab is the most appropriate act that women have to do
in terms of dressing up. In fact, for some Muslim, showing parts of the woman’s body, such as the face
and legs, is despicable. However, in many parts of the world, especially in Western societies, most
people don’t mind if women barley cover their bodies. As a matter of fact, the Hollywood canon of
beauty glorifies a sexy and slim body and the wearing of extremely daring dress. The point here is that
people in the West may have pitied the Muslim women who wear hijab, while some Muslim may find
women who dress up daringly despicable.

Again, this clearly shows that different cultures have different moral standards. What is matter of
moral indifference , that is a matter of taste (hence, non- moral value) in one culture may be a matter
of moral significance in another.

Now, the danger here is that one culture may impose its own cultural standard on others, which
may result in a clash in cultural values and beliefs. When this happen, as we may already know,
violence and crime may ensue, such as religious violence and ethnic cleansing.

This is where the importance of understanding the difference between moral standards (that is, of
what is a moral issue) and non- moral ones (that is, of what is a non-moral issue- thus, a matter of
taste) comes in. This issue may be too obvious and insignificant for some people, but understanding
the difference between the two many have far-reaching implications. For one, once we have
distinguished moral standards from non-moral ones, of course, through the aid of the principles and
theories in ethics, we will be able to identify fundamental ethical values that may guide our actions.
Indeed, once we know that particular values that particular values and beliefs are non-moral, we will
be able to avoid turning the risk of falling into the pit of cultural reductionism (that is, taking complex
cultural issues are simple and homogenous ones) and the unnecessary imposition of one’s own cultural
standard on others. The point here is that if such standards are non-moral (that is, a matter of taste),
then we don’t have the right to impose them on others. But if such standards are moral ones, such as
not killing or harming people, then we may have the right to force others to act accordingly. In this
way, we may be able to find a common moral ground, such as agreeing not to steal, lie, cheat, kill,
harm, and decieve

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our fellow human beings.

Now, we are moral standards, and how do they differ from non-moral ones?

Moral Standards and their Characteristics.

Moral standards are norms that individuals or groups have about the kinds of actions believed
to be morally right or wrong, as well as the values placed on what we believed to be morally good or
morally bad. Moral standards normally promote “the good”, that is, the welfare and well-being of
humans as well as animals and the environment. Moral standards, therefore, prescribe what humans
ought to do in terms of rights and obligations.

According to some scholars, moral standards are the sum of combined norms and values. In
other words, norms plus values equal moral standards. One of the one hand, norms are understood as
general rules about our actions or behaviors. For example, we may say “We are always under the
obligation to fulfill our promises” or “it is always believed that killing innocent people is absolutely
wrong”. On the other hand, values are understood as enduring beliefs or statement about what is good
and desirable or not. For example, we may say “Helping the poor is good” or “Cheating during exams is
bad”.

According to many scholars, moral standards have the following characteristics, namely.

1) Moral standards deal with matters we think can seriously injure or benefit humans, animals,
and the environment, such as child abuse, rape, and murder.
2) Moral standards are not established or changed by the decisions of authoritative individuals or
bodies. Indeed, moral standards rest on the adequacy of the reasons that are taken to support
and justify them. For sure, we don’t need a law to back up our mural conviction that killing
innocent people is absolutely wrong.
3) Moral standards are overriding, that is, they take precedence over other standards and
considerations, especially of self-interest.
4) Moral standards are based on impartial considerations. Hence, moral standards are fair and just:
5) Moral standards are associated with special emotions( such as guilt and shame) and
vocabulary(such as right wrong good, and bad)

Non-moral Standards

Non-moral standards refer to standards by which we judge what is good or bad and right or
wrong in a non-moral way. Examples of non-moral standards are standards of etiquette by which we
judge manners as good or bad, standards we call the law by which we judge something as legal or illegal,
and standards of aesthetics by which we judge art as good or rubbish. Hence, we should not confuse
morality with etiquette, law, and aesthetics or event with religion.
 As we can see, non-moral standards are matters of taste or preference. Hence, scrupulous
observance of these types of standards does not make one a moral person. Violation of said standards
also does not pose any threat to human well-being.

Finally, as a way of distinguishing moral standards from non-moral ones, if a moral standard say
“Do not harm innocent people” or “Don’t steal”, a non-moral standards says “Don’t test while driving”
or “Don’t talk when your mouth is full”.

D. Dilemma and Moral Dilemma (lifted from the book of De Guzman, (2017) -Ethics: Principles of
Ethical Behaviour in Modern Society)

Do you have any idea of what a dilemma is? Have you ever encountered a situation where you
need to choose between two alternatives, yet choosing any could lead to negative consequence on what
you did not choose? What did you do? How did you feel?

The term dilemma refers to a situation in which a tough decision has to be made between two
or more options, especially more or less equally undesirable ones. Not all dilemmas are moral dilemmas.

Also called ‘ethical dilemmas’, moral dilemmas are situations in which a difficult choice has to be
made between two courses of action, either of which entails transgressing a moral principle. At the very
least, a moral dilemma involves conflicts between moral requirements.

What is common to moral dilemmas is conflict. In each ethical dilemma, an agent regards
himself as having moral reasons to do each of two actions, but doing both actions seems to be ethically
not possible.

The key features of a moral dilemma are these: a.) the agent is required to do each of two (or
more) actions; b.) the agent can do each of the actions; but the agent cannot do both (or all) of the
actions. In a moral dilemma, the agent thus seems condemned to moral failure no matter what he does,
he will do something wrong, or fail to do something that he ought to do.

Some ethicists propose that when one of the conflicting moral requirements overrides the
other, the case is not a ‘genuine moral dilemma’. Thus in addition to the features mentioned above, in
order to have a genuine moral dilemma, some add that it must also the case that c.) Neither of the
conflicting moral requirements is overridden.

Three Levels of Moral Dilemma

Moral Dilemmas can be categorized according to these levels:

1. Personal Dilemmas. Personal Dilemmas are those experienced and resolved on the personal
level. Since many ethical decisions and personally made, many if not most of moral dilemmas
fall under, or boil down to this level. If a person makes conflicting promises, he faces a moral
conflict. When an individual has to choose between the life of a child who is about to be
delivered and the child’s mother, he faces an ethical dilemma.
 2. Organizational Dilemma. Organizational moral dilemmas refer to ethical cases encountered and
resolves by social organization. The category includes moral dilemmas in business, medical fields
and public public sector.

A medical institution which believes that human life should not be deliberately shortened and
that unpreventable pain should not be tolerated encountered a conflict in resolving whether to
withdraw life support from a dying patient. This is common moral dilemma faced by healthcare
organizations.

Administrative bodies in business are confronted with situations in which several courses of
actions are possible but none of them provide a totally successful outcome to those affected by the
decision or actions taken. Moral dilemmas in business involve issues about corporate practices, policies,
business behaviors, and the conducts and relationships of individuals in the organizations.

In a public sectors, government leaders and employees have a moral duty to act in a manner
that is fair unbiased, that is loyal to the public by putting public interest, accountability and
transparency. In fulfilling these responsibilities, public officials may encounter foreseeable moral
dilemmas. These dilemmas include whether or not favour family, friends, or campaign contributors over
other constituents; favoring the agenda of one’s political party over a policy one believes to be good for
the community; dealing with conflict public duties inherent in serving both as a council member and as a
member of an agency of commission; resigning from organizations in which membership may give rise
to future conflicts; becoming a whistle blower even if it means potentially derailing a policy policy
objective one is pursuing; and if it means potentially derailing a policy objective one is pursuing; and
accepting gifts if it is legally permitted but creates the appearance of impropriety.

3. Structural Dilemmas. Structural moral dilemmas refer to cases involving network of institutions
and cooperative theoretical paradigms. As they usually encompass multi-sectoral institutions
and organizations, they may be larger in scope and extent than organization dilemmas.

Case in point is the prices of medicine in the Philippines which are higher compared to other
countries in Asia and in other countries of similar economic status. Factors affecting medicine prices
include cost of research, presence of competition in the market, government regulation, and patent
protection. Institutions concerned may want to lower the cost of medicine, thereby benefiting the
Filipino public, but such a move may ruin the interests of the involves researchers, inventors or
discoverers, and pharmaceutical companies which own the patent of the medicines or healthcare
technologies.

E. Only human beings can be Ethical (lifted from the book of De Guzman, (2017) -Ethics:
Principles of Ethical Behaviour in Modern Society)

Oftentimes we experience something that test or being and often also we wonder whether we
deserve to be the highest form of animal. If we commit something, we often hear “animal ka”. But we
are as Aristotle say “rational animals”. We are animals minus the rationality.
 Another basic tenet in ethics is the belief that only human beings can truly be ethical. Most
philosophies hold that unlike animals, human beings possess some traits that make it possible for them
to be moral.

Only human beings are rational, autonomous, and self-conscious. The qualities of rationality,
autonomy, and self-consciousness are believed to confer a full and equal moral status to those that
possess them as these beings are the only capable of achieving certain moral values.

Closure Activities (place your answer on p. 84)

1. Write in one sentence the important learning you got from this module.

2. Write in the space below one word that best describe what you feel right now on
finishing this module.

3. Write in one sentence what you think these learning can contribute in developing your
moral behaviour.

Synthesis/Generalization

1. As ethics is defined as the science of the morality of human act, it provides as with set of
rules or principles needed so we can be guided in our actions in society.
2. Rules are important to social beings as they protect the greater good avoiding
exploitations and tyranny in society. Society could function soundly without rules and
regulations.
3. Not all rules are moral rules and not all standards are moral standards as moral
standards are equated by some ethicists to moral values and moral principles.
4. Moral Dilemmas are situations in which a difficult choice has to be made between two
courses of actions, either which entails transgressing a moral principles. They involve
conflicts between moral requirements and they can happen in the personal,
organizational or structural level.
5. Only human beings can be ethical as only human beings are rational, autonomous, and
self-conscious, can act morally and immorally, and are part of the moral community.

Knowledge Check

(place your answer on page 85)

A. Answer the following meaningfully:

According to Socrates, “The unexamined life is not worth living for man”. Explain this in connection with
the definition by Socrates that ethics is the investigation of life.
 B. Instruction: Identify whether the following is a moral (M) or non-moral (MS) standard.

1. Thou shall not kill 4. Honor your father

2. No trespassing and mother
3. Do not talk when you 5. No over speeding
Mouth is full

Assignment (place your answer on pp. 86-87)

1. Ask somebody to relay a difficult experience where he/she has to choice between two
processing outcome or result. Make a reflection essay about his/her story.
2. Write an essay on your thoughts about Ethics and its importance to Today’s Society.

References:

Agapay, R. B. (1995, 2008) Ethics and the Filipino: A Manual on Morals for Students and Educators, 2 nd
ed. Manila: National Bookstore, Inc.

Ardales, V. B. (1987) Introductory Text to Philosophy. Quezon City: Great Books Trading , Inc.

Barbor, E. R. (1999) Ethics: The Philosophical Discipline of Action, 1st ad. Manila, Philippines, Rex Book
Store.

Cruz, C. C. (1995) Contemporary Ethics, Manila: National Bookstore, Inc.

De Guzman, J. M. Et al. (2017) Ethics: Principles of Ethical Behavior in Modern Society. Malabon City:
Mutya Publishing House, Inc.

Dela Torre, J. (1993) Ethics: The man’s Tool for the Development of Sound Professional and Civil Life.
Manila: Educational Publishing House, Inc.

Dy Jr., M B. (1986) Philosophy of Man: Selected Readings. Manila: Goodwill Trading Co. Inc.