Midterm: The Act

• Feelings


  Instinctive response to moral dilemmas
• Some ethicists believe that ethics is also a matter of emotion
• Moral judgments at their best should also be emotional
• Reason and emotion


  Not really opposites, both have relative roles in ethical thinking
• Emotions


  Judgments about the accomplishment of one's goals, can be rational based on good judgments
• Feelings


  Visceral or instinctual, provide motivations to act morally
• Moral sentiments highlight the need for morality to be based also on sympathy for other people
• Being good involves both thinking and feeling
• Ethical Subjectivism


  Moral judgments are dependent on the feelings, attitudes, or standards of a person or group, not objective facts
• Emotivism


  Moral judgments express positive or negative feelings, not statements of fact
• Ethics-without-feeling goes against Christian philosophy's emphasis on love
• Subjective feelings sometimes matter when deciding between right and wrong
• Emotions like love for friends and family are a crucial part of what gives life meaning and ought to play a guiding role in morality
• Feelings or emotions involved in moral thinking should be anchored on careful consideration of a full range of right goals, including altruistic ones
• Reason


  Basis or motive for an action, decision, or conviction, capacity for logical, rational, and analytic thought
• Moral truths are truths of reason, a moral judgment is true if it is espoused by better reasons than the alternatives
• Impartiality


  Principle of justice holding that decisions ought to be based on objective criteria, rather than on the basis of bias, prejudice, or preferring the benefit to one person over another for improper reasons
• Impartiality in morality requires that we give equal and/or adequate consideration to the interests of all concerned parties
• 1. Step Moral Reasoning Model

  1. Gather the facts

  2. Determine the ethical issues

  3. Identify the principles that have a bearing on the case

  4. Consider the consequences of the available options

  5. Consider your gut feelings about the case

  6. Consult others and consider their perspectives

  7. Make a decision and be prepared to defend it
• When analysing markets, a range of assumptions are made about the rationality of economic agents involved in the transactions
• The Wealth of Nations was written

  1776
• Rational


  (in classical economic theory) economic agents are able to consider the outcome of their choices and recognise the net benefits of each one
• Rational agents will select the choice which presents the highest benefits
• Consumers act rationally by


  Maximising their utility
• Producers act rationally by


  Selling goods/services in a way that maximises their profits
• Workers act rationally by


  Balancing welfare at work with consideration of both pay and benefits
• Governments act rationally by


  Placing the interests of the people they serve first in order to maximise their welfare
• Rationality in classical economic theory is a flawed assumption as people usually don't act rationally
• A firm increases advertising

  Demand curve shifts right
• Demand curve shifting right

  Increases the equilibrium price and quantity
• Marginal utility


  The additional utility (satisfaction) gained from the consumption of an additional product
• If you add up marginal utility for each unit you get total utility
• A good rational moral decision is not always executed
• Moral courage


  Doing the right thing even at the risk of inconvenience, ridicule, punishment, loss of job or security or social status, etc.
• Will


  The faculty of the mind which chooses, at the moment of making decision, the strongest desire from among the various desires present
• Willpower


  The inner strength to make a decision, take action, and handle and execute any aim or task until it is accomplished, regardless of inner and outer resistance, discomfort, or difficulties
• Moral courage sounds like

  • "I believe strongly in ____"
  • "Let's volunteer."
  • "Dad, I'm in trouble."
  • "I am going to campaign for _____"
  • "It's not fair that ______"
  • "I broke this, Mom. I'm sorry."
  • "I'll march with you."
  • "No, thanks, I don't want to hear a secret!"
  • "You shouldn't talk behind his/her back."
  • "You can depend on me."
• Lack of moral courage sounds like


  • "That's got nothing to do with me."
  • "How could you do this to me?"
  • "It's not for me to judge." (as a way to avoid personal responsibility)
  • "I only did it once."
  • "This is all your fault!"
  • "Just let it slide."
  • "There's no use trying to change the system; it's just too strong."
  • "Nobody else is doing anything about it. So, why should I?"
  • "I might get into trouble."
  • "She got what she deserved."
• Tips to develop will and moral courage

  • Develop and practice self-discipline
  • Do mental strength training
  • Draw inspiration from people of great courage
  • Repeatedly do acts that exhibit moral courage and will
  • Avoid deeds that show lack of moral courage and will