ETHICS:

CONTEMPORARY

PROBLEMS













JERICHO
NEIL
E.
DELA
ROSA

De
La
Salle
College
of
St.benilde




This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.
TABLE
OF
CONTENTS



CONTEMPORARY
MORAL
PROBLEMS


Chapter
I

Egoism
and
Moral
skepticism
‐
James
Rachels…………………………………………………………………………..............3

Chapter
2

Religion,
Morality,
and
Conscience
‐
John
Arthur……………………………………………………………………….
4


Chapter
3

Master
and
Slave
Morality
‐
Friedrich
Nietzche…..……………………………………………………………………...5

Chapter
4

Trying
Out
One’s
New
Sword
‐
Mary
Midgley……………………………………………………………………………..6


Chapter
5

Utilitarianism
‐
John
Stuart
Mill…………………………………………………………………………………………………7

Chapter
6

The
Debate
Over
Utilitarianism
‐
James
Rachels……………………………………………………………………….

8


Chapter
7

Categorical
Imperative
–
Immanuel
Kant
……………………………………………………………………………
9‐10

Chapter
8

Happiness
and
Virtue
–
Aristotle
………………………………………………………………………
11

Chapter
9

The
Nature
and
Value
of
Rights
…………………………………………………………………………12

Chapter
10

Taking
Rights
Seriously
…………………………………………………………………………………….13




















 2

Chapter
1



Egoism
and
Moral
scepticism



James
Rachels



What
I
expect
to
learn:



I
expect
to
learn
the
concept
of
egoism
and
moral
scepticism.



Quote:



“Why
shouldn’t
you
do
actions
that
will
harm
others?
Because,
doing
those
actions
would
harm

others.”



Review:









Moral
skepticism
denotes
a
class
of
metaethical
theories
all
members
of
which
entail
that
no
one

has
any
moral
knowledge.
Many
moral
skeptics
also
make
the
stronger,
modal,
claim
that
moral

knowledge
is
impossible.
Moral
skepticism
is
particularly
opposed
to
moral
realism:
the
view
that

there
 are
 knowable,
 mind‐independent
 moral
 truths.

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_realism)



All
of
us
have
egos
some
people
really
have
a
big
ego
because
of
some
reasons.
It
is
very
influential
it

can
 make
 a
 person
 change
 a
 lot.
 it
 can
 sometime
 ruin
 your
 relationship,
 sometime
 you
 have
 this

opportunity
and
your
ego
comes
in
then
suddenly
you
will
just
turn
around
on
that
situation
for
the

sake
of
your
ego
and
just
to
satisfy
your
self
because
you’ve
done
it
your
way.



What
I
learned:

1.
Egoism

2.
Moral
skepticism.


3.
The
concept
of
moral
scepticism
and
egoism.

Integrative
Questions:

1.
What
is
egoism?


2.
What
is
moral
scepticism?


3.
What
is
the
concept
of
moral
scepticism?



 3

Chapter
2



Religion,
Morality,
and
Conscience




John
Arthur




What
I
expect
to
learn:



I
expect
to
learn
how
Religion,
Morality
and
Conscience
related.




Quote:



“Morality
is
therefore
inherently
social
in
a
variety
of
ways.
It
depends
on
socially
learned

language,
is
learned
from
interactions
with
others,
and
governs
our
interactions
with
others
in

society”



Review:













Let
me
first
define
religion,
morality
and
conscience.
A
religion
is
a
set
of
beliefs
concerning
the

cause,
nature,
and
purpose
of
the
universe,
especially
when
considered
as
the
creation
of
a

supernatural
agency
or
agencies,
usually
involving
devotional
and
ritual
observances,
and
often

containing
a
moral
code
governing
the
conduct
of
human
affairs.

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion).
Second
is
Morality,
concern
with
the
distinction
between

good
and
evil
or
right
and
wrong;
right
or
good
conduct.

(wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn).
And
last
is
concscience,
is
the
ability
or
a
faculty
that

distinguishes
whether
one's
actions
are
right
or
wrong.
In
psychological
terms
conscience
is
often

described
as
leading
to
feelings
of
remorse
when
a
human
does
things
that
go
against
his/her

moral
values,
and
to
feelings
of
rectitude
or
integrity
when
actions
conform
to
such
norms.

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conscience).

Like
in
religion
it
may
have
a
different
example
but

same
concept,
Religion
has
different
laws
or
something.
For
some
it
is
okay
to
reveal
their
skins

for
some
it
is
not,
for
some
going
to
church
every
Sunday
is
a
must
for
some
it
is
not.
That’s
why

we
should
not
base
our
morality
in
our
religion,
because
we
different
beliefs.
For
me
I
think
we

should
just
respect
each
other
beliefs
and
try
not
to
violate
them.





What
I
learned:



1.
The
divine
command
theory



2.
Social
morality



3.
Religion



Integrative
Question:



1.
Why
morality
tangled
with
religion?



2.
What
is
the
connection
of
religious
morals
with
society’s
morals?



3.
What
is
Divine
command
theory?



 4

Chapter
3



Master
and
Slave
Morality



Friedrich
Nietzche



Quote:



“A
similar
transaction
between
us
and
the
samurai
might
take
even
longer.
But
that
is
no
reason
at

all
for
deeming
it
impossible.
Morally
as
well
as
physically,
there
is
only
one
world,
and
we
all
have

to
live
in
it.”



What
I
expect
to
learn:



I
expect
to
learn
about
power.



Review:



I
never
thought
of
something
like
morality
slave
and
master
morality.
In
our
history
the
world

revolves
in
the
hands
of
the
master
or
the
kings
they
are
the
one’s
who
has
the
power
and
they

can
do
what
ever
they
want
to
do
and
some
do
not
consider
other
people
feelings
because
it
is
not

important
for
them
the
only
thing
that
matter
is
that
they
rule
and
they
have
this
feeling
that
they

are
very
powerful.
In
reading
this
article
I
learned
about
the
concept
of
power
in
Friedrich

Nietzche’s
perspective
the
one
who
has
power
is
happy.
For
him
being
powerful
is
happiness.
The

perfect
example
of
this
is
our
country
and
our
government.
Come
to
think
of
it,
the
one
who
has

power
I
mean
the
who
has
the
position
in
our
government
who
has
a
lot
of
money
that
is
because

of
power
and
for
them
if
they
have
a
lot
of
money
they
are
happy.








What
I
learned:



1.
Will
to
life.



2.
Will
to
power.



3.

The
desire
for
power.



Integrative
Question:



1.
What
is
the
will
to
power?



2.
What
is
the
will
to
life?



3.
What
you
can
do
just
to
have
power?



 5

Chapter
4



Trying
Out
One’s
New
Sword



Mary
Midgley




Quote:



“A
similar
transaction
between
us
and
the
samurai
might
take
even
longer.
But
that
is
no
reason
at

all
for
deeming
it
impossible.
Morally
as
well
as
physically,
there
is
only
one
world,
and
we
all
have

to
live
in
it.”



What
I
expect
to
learn:



To
learn,
what
he
means
by
saying
trying
out
one’s
new
sword.



Review:













There
is
this
part
in
the
story
that
the
samurai
just
can
hit
a
stranger
with
his
sword
because
for

him
stranger
doesn’t
have
a
value.
But
it
is
for
them
only
in
Japan.
In
reading
this
article
I
felt
like
I

studied
the
whole
Japanese
culture
which
also
known
as
tsujigiri.
Tsujigiri
means
trying
out
a
new

sword
to
another
person.
For
us
people
who
are
not
Japanese
this
action
of
them
is
so
gruesome

for
us
because
we
don’t
chop
other
people
in
half
from
shoulders
to
the
other
side.
If
the
samurai

didn’t
do
this,
if
he
didn’t
try
the
new
sword
he
is
a
humiliation
for
his
family.
Again
this
is
a

culture
for
the
Japanese,
what
I
am
saying
here
is
that
we
have
different
culture
and
yet
we
live
in

the
same
world.
Now
what
I
suggest
that
we
do
is
that
we
should
try
our
best
not
to
violate
the

cultures
of
other
community.



What
I
learned:





1.
That
we
all
have
different
cultures.



2.
Moral
isolationism.



3.
The
barriers
between
us
people.




Integrative
Questions:





1.



What
is
isolationism?



2.



What
is
tsujigiri?



3.



Why
do
we
need
to
respect
other
culture?



4.



How
culture
differs
from
each
other?



 6

Chapter
5



Utilitarianism



John
Stuart
Mill




Quote:




“It
 has
 been
 remarked,
 that
 questions
 of
 ultimate
 ends
 do
 not
 admit
 of
 proof,
 in
 the
 ordinary

acceptation
of
the
term.”


What
I
expect
to
learn:



To
learn
about
utilitarianism



Review:










Let
me
first
define
what
utilitarianism
is.
Utilitarianism
is
the
idea
that
the
moral
worth
of
an

action
is
determined
solely
by
its
utility
in
providing
happiness
or
pleasure
as
summed
among
all

sentient
beings.
It
is
thus
a
form
of
consequentialism,
meaning
that
the
moral
worth
of
an
action
is

determined
by
its
outcome.
Utilitarianism
is
often
described
by
the
phrase
"the
greatest
good
for

the
greatest
number
of
people",
and
is
also
known
as
"the
greatest
happiness
principle"

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utilitarianism).
Utilitarianism
is
like
the
opposite
of
what
friedrich

Nietzche
said,
because
utilitarianism
is
not
all
about
power
it
doesn’t
have
to
do
with
power
for

John
Stuart
Mill
power
is
not
the
key
to
happiness.
Utilitarianism
is
like
when
your
in
a
situation

flip
it
around
and
think
like
if
your
in
the
top
think
that
you
in
the
bottom.








What
I
learned:



1.Utilitarianism



2.Theory
of
morality



3.The
principle
of
utility



Integrative
Questions:





1.



What
is
utilitarianism?



2.

What
is
principle
of
utility?



3.



What
is
the
theory
of
morality?



 7

Chapter
6



The
Debate
Over
Utilitarianism
 



James
Rachels




Quote:



“There
must
be
still
other
countless
errors
of
the
same
sort
that
no
living
man
can
yet
detect,

because
of
the
fog
within
which
our
type
of
western
culture
envelop
us.”



What
I
expect
to
learn:



I
expect
to
learn
to
debate
over
utilitarianism.



Review:








Let
me
first
define
what
utilitarianism
is.
Utilitarianism
is
the
idea
that
the
moral
worth
of
an

action
is
determined
solely
by
its
utility
in
providing
happiness
or
pleasure
as
summed
among
all

sentient
beings.
It
is
thus
a
form
of
consequentialism,
meaning
that
the
moral
worth
of
an
action
is

determined
by
its
outcome.
Utilitarianism
is
often
described
by
the
phrase
"the
greatest
good
for

the
greatest
number
of
people",
and
is
also
known
as
"the
greatest
happiness
principle"

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utilitarianism).








For
some
people
they
think
that
this
approach
will
get
them
to
the
happiness
they
want,
but
for

some
of
it
is
not
the
way
for
them
like
Nietzsche
the
way
to
happiness
for
him
is
to
be
powerful,

what
I
am
saying
here
that
there
is
a
lot
if
view
of
people
and
they
have
different
opinions
to
how

to
become
happy.





What
I
learned:

1.
I
learned
about
justice.



2.
I
learned
about
rights.



3.
I
also
learned
that
there
is
a
consequence
even
if
we
are
happy.



Integrative
Questions:





1.
What
is
standard
of
utilitarianism?



2.
How
we
value
our
happiness?



3.
The
state
of
happiness.



 8

Chapter
7

The
Categorical
Imperative

Immanuel
Kant


Reference:

http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/kant‐moral/#CatHypImp


What
I
expect
to
learn:


I
expect
to
learn
the
role
of
duty
in
morality.


Quote:

“Act
in
such
a
way
that
you
will
always
treat
humanity,
whether
in
you
own
person
or
in
the

person
of
any
other,
never
simply
as
a
means,
but
always
at
the
same
time
as
an
end.”

Review:


In
reading
the
categorical
imperative
by
Immanuel
Kant,
First
I
understand
that
we
must
have
a

good
will,
because
it
will
lead
us
to
our
own
contentment
or
should
I
say
happiness.
I
also
learned

that
a
good
will
is
not
good
because
of
it
effects,
it
is
good
because
it
will
help
us
attain
what
we

really
want
in
the
end.

Motive
of
duty
taught
me
what
duty
is
all
about;
I
learned
that
are
motives

should
be
treated
as
our
duty
for
example
I
helped
a
friend
with
her
problems,
I
don’t
have
any

self‐interest
or
what
so
ever.
I
just
want
to
help
her.
As
she
solved
her
problems
my
motive
to
help

her
 is
 accomplished
 and
 I
 am
 happy
 with
 what
 I
 have
 done,
 in
 doing
 this
 I
 got
 a
 feeling
 of

contentment
or
should
I
say
happiness.


Categorical
imperative,
it
is
an
imperative
because
it
gives
us
command
for
example
(“freeze
don’t

move”,
”drop
your
weapon”).
Categorical
refers
our
rational
wills,
it
is
natural
for
us
because
we

are
 humans
 and
 we
 should
 be
 rational
 by
 nature.
 On
 the
 other
 hand
 Hypothetical
 imperative

different
 from
 categorical
 imperative
 because
 it
 does
 not
 give
 us
 any
 command,
 for
 example

“when
I
say
jump”
you
will
jump.
Its
like
you
have
an
option
not
to
do
it.
Also
in
hypothetical
you

cannot
determine
the
end
while
in
categorical
you
most
likely
have
an
idea
of
you
end
and
that
is

because
of
you
will.

The
will
functions
as
a
basis
of
subjective
voices,
in
which
he
calls
“maxims”.

Maxims
can
be
defined
like
this;
lets
just
say
that
you
are
in
a
situation
and
your
situation
is
very

difficult
of
course
you
think
of
an
action
for
you
to
get
out
of
whatever
bad
situation
that
you
are

in
now,
and
of
course
you
have
a
goal
that
you
will
set
and
this
will
your
basis
if
you
are
already

out
of
whatever
situation
you
are
in.

maxims
is
the
totality
of
the
three
which
is
how
you
act
to

have
your
goals
in
a
certain
situation.


What
I
learned:

1.

I
learned
what
hypothetical
imperative
is
all
about.


2.

I
learned
Maxim’s
in
kant’s
sense.

3.

The
definition
of
categorical
imperative.


Integrative
Questions:

1.
What
is
practical
rationality?


 9

2.
What
is
“maxims”?

3.
What
is
hypothetical
imperative?


4.
What
is
assertoric
imperative?

5.
What
is
categorical
imperative?



 10

Chapter
8

Happiness
and
Virtue

Aristotle


Reference:

http://coachingtohappiness.com/aristotle‐virtues‐happiness.html


What
I
expect
to
learn:


I
expect
to
learn
the
connection
of
virtue
with
happiness.


Quote:

“For
the
life
of
man
who
is
active
in
accordance
with
virtue
will
be
happy.”


Review:

Let
me
start
first
by
defining
the
meaning
of
Virtue
and
Happiness.
Virtue
can
be
defined
as
moral

excellence.
A
virtue
is
a
character
trait
or
quality
valued
as
being
good
while
happiness
refers
to
a

state
of
well‐being
characterized
by
emotions
ranging
from
contentment
to
intense
joy.
Aristotle

relates
 happiness
 and
 virtue
 together.
 He
 said
 that
 happiness
 is
 attainable
 through
 virtue.
 He

believes
that
a
person
can
be
happy
by
practicing
good
acts.
Nowadays
some
people
often
think

that
 happiness
 can
 attain
 by
 doing
 something
 pleasurable
 or
 like
 doing
 some
 enjoyable
 activity.

For
Aristotle
perspective,
He
thinks
that
living
out
your
virtue
would
lead
to
happiness,
in
a
way

that
you
can
be
all
that
you
can.
Aristotle
said
something
about
eudaimonia.
In
his
point
of
view

eudiamonia
 is
 not
 like
 an
 emotional
 state,
 it
 is
 more
 likely
 about
 the
 being
 that
 we
 can
 possibly

can,
His
idea
of
this
that
we
should
live
out
the
way
we
can,
the
best
way
we
can
live
our
live,
we

should
reach
our
full
potential
and
act
the
best
way
we
can
possibly
do.

For
Aristotle
b
y
practicing
our
virtues
it
would
result
to
happiness.
He
is
sim
ply
saying
that
if
we

act
right,
the
right
things
will
follow
and
by
this
we
will
feel
contented.
For
him
contemplation
is

the
highest
activity
that
a
man
could
do,
which
is
the
act
of
the
mind
in
considering
with
attention.

This
activity
would
involve
a
long
and
thoughtful
observation
and
if
we
continuously
do
this
it
will

help
us
get
to
our
highest
potential.


What
I
learned:

1.

Happiness
can
be
attained
through
virtue.

2.

I
learned
about
moral
virtue.


3.
The
relationship
of
happiness
and
pleasure.


Integrative
Questions:

1.
How
virtue
can
lead
to
happiness?

2.
How
happiness
relates
to
pleasure?


3.
What
is
moral
virtue?

4.
What
is
happiness
in
Aristotle’s
perspective?


 11

Chapter
9

The
nature
and
value
of
rights

Joel
Feinberg


Reference:

What
I
expect
to
learn:


I
expect
to
learn
what
rights
are
all
about
and
also
it’s
true
value.


Quote:

“All
duties
entails
other
people’s
rights
and
all
rights
entails
other
people’s
duties.”


Review:

Let
me
start
first
by
defining
what
duty
is.
It
is
which
one
is
morally
or
legally
obligated
to
do;
a

period
of
time
spent
at
work
or
doing
a
particular
task
(en.wiktionary.org/wiki/duty).
Duty
and

obligation
are
always
related.
It
is
our
duty
to
do
our
obligations
because
if
we
don’t
something

that
we
don’t
want
to
happen
might
happen.
For
example
in
our
house
it
is
my
duty
to
lock
the

doors
 and
 check
 it
 every
 time
 we
 will
 go
 out
 and
 since
 I
 didn’t
 do
 my
 obligation
 I
 put
 our
 own

house
and
all
the
things
that
are
in
our
house
in
danger.
Why
am
I
saying
this?
It
is
simply
because

I
want
to
emphasize
the
importance
of
duty
and
if
we
don’t
do
our
duties
in
life
it
may
lead
to
a

situation
that
is
not
very
pleasing
to
us.
Joel
Feinberg
gives
us
an
imagination
of
a
world
that
has

no
 rights,
 which
 he
 calls
 nowherseville.
 By
 just
 simply
 imagning
 it
 I
 know
 already
 that
 there
 is

chaos
 in
 that
 world,
 just
 imagine
 our
 world
 without
 rights
 no
 one
 would
 give
 a
 damn
 about

anything.
People
will
do
anything
they
want
to
and
would
not
take
into
consideration
what
other

might
 feel
 about
 it.
 We
 will
 not
 do
 our
 duty
 as
 people
 to
 respect
 others
 and
 we
 will
 not
 do
 our

obligations
 as
 a
 human
 being
 to
 act
 as
 a
 human
 being.
 
 Now
 I
 can
 say
 that
 rights
 our
 very

important
and
we
should
value
it.




What
I
learned:

1.

The
importance
of
morality.

2.

To
respect
others
more.


3.
The
nature
and
value
of
rights.


Integrative
Questions:

1.
How
important
moral
is?

2.
What
is
nowherseville?


3.
What
is
the
notion
of
a
sovereign
right‐monopoly?

4.
How
would
the
earth
be
without
morality?

5.
What
duty
requires
us
to
do?



 12

 Chapter
10



Taking
Rights
Seriously



Ronald
Dworkin




What
I
expect
to
learn:



I
expect
to
learn
more
about
rights
and
to
take
it
more
serious.



Quote:



“In
most
cases
when
we
say
that
someone
has
“right”
to
do
something,
we
imply
that
it
would

be
wrong
to
interfere
with
his
doing
it,
or
at
least
that
some
special
grounds
are
needed
for

justifying
any
interference.”



Review:













Let
me
first
define
what
right
is
according
to
wikipedia
right
is
defined
as
Rights
are
variously

construed
as
legal,
social,
or
moral
freedoms
to
act
or
refrain
from
acting,
or
entitlements
to

be
 acted
 upon
 or
 not
 acted
 upon.
 While
 the
 concept
 is
 fundamental
 to
 civilized
 societies,

there
is
considerable
disagreement
about
what
is
meant
precisely
by
the
term
rights.
It
has

been
 used
 by
 different
 groups
 and
 thinkers
 for
 different
 purposes,
 with
 different
 and

sometimes
 opposing
 definitions,
 and
 the
 precise
 definition
 of
 the
 concept,
 beyond
 having

something
to
do
with
normative
rules
of
some
sort
or
another,
is
controversial.
Nevertheless,

the
concept
of
rights
is
of
vital
importance
in
such
disciplines
as
law
and
ethics,
especially

theories
of
justice
and
deontology.
If
we
hear
the
word
right
we
always
thought
that
it
is
like

a
law
or
something
but
the
some
rights
doesn’t
have
to
do
anything
with
law,
for
example

you
respect
you
mother
it
doesn’t
necessarily
mean
that
she
has
to
respect
you
I
mean
there

is
no
law
that
she
should
do
that
but
as
a
person
it
is
by
nature
that
we
respect
the
rights
of

other
people.
That’s
the
right
that
I
am
talking
about.



What
I
learned:




















1.the
rights
of
people.




2.

To
take
rights
more
seriously.




3.
The
right
not
to
follow
the
law.



Integrative
Questions:







1.



What
are
the
rights
of
the
people?





2.



How
can
we
have
the
right
to
break
the
law?





3.



Why
we
should
take
rights
seriously?





4.



What
are
controversial
rights?



 13