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Llnda Webbs 8aby Lmlly lrom CollecLlbles 1oday
?ear of Wlshes Clnger !ar lrom CollecLlbles 1oday
A MlnlCourse ln LLhlcs
1he LLhlcal CuesLlon ls Lhe quesLlon of Lhe morallLy of free and responslble human conducL lL ls Lhe quesLlon of rlghL of wrong and of duLy ln
mans consclous and dellberaLe acLlvlLy 1he deparLmenL of phllosophy whlch answers Lhls quesLlon ls called Moral hllosophy or LLhlcs
1hls sclence grows ouL of Lhe resL of phllosophy lor when we have a phllosophlcal grasp of Lhe posslblllLy of achlevlng cerLlLude and of rlghL
formulas for reasonlng ouL LruLh Lhen we are necessarlly aware of Lhe need of Lhe Lrue program for rlghL human llvlng
1hls mlnlcourse ls dlvlded lnLo Lhe followlng Lwo SecLlons
SecLlon 1 Ceneral LLhlcs
SecLlon 2 lndlvldual and Soclal LLhlcs

SecLlon 1 Ceneral LLhlcs
1oplcs
a Puman AcLs
b Lnds of Puman AcLs
c norms of Puman AcLs
d MorallLy of Puman AcLs
e roperLles and Consequences of Puman AcLs
a) Puman AcLs
1he Lerm human acL has a flxed Lechnlcal meanlng lL means an acL (LhoughL word deed deslre omlsslon) performed by a human belng when
he ls responslble when he knows whaL he ls dolng and wllls Lo do lL An acL ls perfecLly human when lL ls done wlLh full knowledge and full
consenL of Lhe wlll and wlLh full and unhampered freedom of cholce lf Lhe acL ls hampered ln any way lL ls less perfecLly human lf lL ls done
wlLhouL knowledge or consenL lL ls noL a human acL aL all An acL done by a human belng buL wlLhouL knowledge and consenL ls called an acL of
a person buL noL a human acL ln Lhe Lermlnology of classlcal reallsLlc phllosophy a human acL ls acLus humanus an acL of a person ls acLus
homlnls
1he essenLlal elemenLs of a human acL are Lhree knowledge freedom acLual cholce
(1) knowledge A person ls noL responslble for an acL done ln lgnorance unless Lhe lgnorance ls Lhe persons own faulL and ls Lherefore wllled
(vlnclble lgnorance) ln whlch case he has knowledge LhaL he ls ln lgnorance and oughL Lo dlspel lL 1hus ln one way or anoLher knowledge ls
necessary for responslble human acLlvlLy
(2) lreedom A person ls noL responslble for an acL over whlch he has no conLrol unless he dellberaLely surrenders such conLrol by runnlng lnLo
condlLlons and clrcumsLances whlch rob hlm of llberLy 1hus ln one way or anoLher freedom ls necessary for every human acL
(3) AcLual cholce or volunLarlness A person ls noL responslble for an acL whlch he does noL wlll unless he wllls Lo glve up hls selfconLrol (as a
man does for lnsLance ln allowlng hlmself Lo be hypnoLlzed or by dellberaLely becomlng lnLoxlcaLed) 1hus ln one way or anoLher
volunLarlness or acLual cholce enLers lnLo every human acL
now a human acL ls a wllled acL lL proceeds from Lhe wlll followlng Lhe knowledge and [udgmenL of Lhe mlnd or lnLellecL Slnce whaL refers Lo
Lhe freewlll ls usually descrlbed as moral a human acL ls a moral acL Slnce Lhe wlll ls free a human acL ls a free acL
A human acL comes from Lhe wlll dlrecLly or lndlrecLly When Lhe acL lLself ls Lhe cholce of Lhe wlll lL comes dlrecLly from Lhe wlll and ls sald Lo
be wllled ln se or ln lLself When Lhe acL comes lndlrecLly from Lhe wlll lnasmuch as Lhe wlll chooses raLher whaL causes or occaslons Lhe acL
Lhan Lhe acL lLself lL ls sald Lo be wllled ln lLs cause or ln causa 1hus a man who wllls Lo become lnLoxlcaLed wllls lL dlrecLly or ln se a man who
does noL wlsh Lo become lnLoxlcaLed buL who seeks enLerLalnmenL where as experlence Lells hlm he ls almosL sure Lo become lnLoxlcaLed
wllls Lhe lnLoxlcaLlon lndlrecLly or ln causa 1hls dlsLlncLlon of dlrecL and lndlrecL wllllng (or dlrecL and lndlrecL volunLarlness) ralses a noLable
lssue and we have here Lwo of Lhe mosL lmporLanL prlnclples (LhaL ls fundamenLal guldlng LruLhs) ln all eLhlcs
1hese are
(1) 1he rlnclple of lndlrecL volunLarlness A person ls responslble for Lhe evll effecL of a cause dlrecLly wllled when Lhree condlLlons are meL
when he can readlly foresee Lhe evll effecL aL leasL ln a general way
when he ls free Lo refraln from dolng whaL causes Lhe evll effecL and
when he ls bound Lo refraln from dolng whaL causes Lhe evll effecL
8uL ls Lhe agenL (LhaL ls Lhe doer of an acL) noL always bound Lo avold whaL causes an evll effecL? ls noL Lhe facL LhaL Lhe effecL ls evll a
sufflclenL reason for renderlng Lhe acL whlch leads Lo lL unlawful? noL always for someLlmes Lhe acL has Lwo effecLs one good and one evll ln
Lhls case Lhe followlng prlnclple applles
(2) 1he rlnclple of 1wofold LffecL A person may lawfully perform an acL whlch has Lwo effecLs one good and one evll when Lhe followlng
condlLlons are meL
when Lhe acL whlch has Lwo effecLs ls noL ln lLself an evll acL
when Lhe evll effecL does noL come before Lhe good effecL so as Lo be a means Lo lL
when Lhere exlsLs a reason proporLlonaLely welghLy whlch calls for Lhe good effecL
when Lhe agenL 8 (LhaL ls Lhe doer or performer of Lhe acL) lnLends Lhe good effecL excluslvely and merely permlLs Lhe evll effecL as a
regreLLable sldelssue
Sound human reason vlndlcaLes Lhe value and LrusLworLhlness of Lhese Lwo leadlng eLhlcal prlnclples 1he baslc law of morals called Lhe
naLural law ls summed up ln Lhls plaln mandaLe of reason
We musL do good we musL avold evll
And developlng Lhe second polnL LhaL ls Lhe avoldance of evll we have Lhls baslc raLlonal prlnclple
We musL never do whaL ls evll even Lhough good may be looked for and lnLended as a resulL of lL
Puman acLs are modlfled LhaL ls affecLed and made less perfecLly human by anyLhlng LhaL hampers or hlnders any of Lhe Lhree essenLlals of
human acLlon knowledge freedom volunLarlness Chlef of Lhe modlflers of human acLs are Lhese
(1) lgnorance lgnorance LhaL may be overcome by due dlllgence ls called vlnclble lgnorance or culpable lgnorance lgnorance LhaL cannoL be
expelled by due dlllgence ls called lnvlnclble lgnorance or lnculpable lgnorance 1he reasoned eLhlcal prlnclple on Lhls polnL ls lnvlnclble
lgnorance desLroys volunLarlness and relleves Lhe agenL of responslblllLy vlnclble lgnorance lessens buL does noL remove volunLarlness and
responslblllLy
(2) Concuplscence 8y concuplscence we mean any of Lhe g human lmpulses or Lendencles Lechnlcally called Lhe passlons 1hese are love
haLred grlef deslre averslon hope despalr courage fear anger When concuplscence sweeps upon a person wlLhouL hls lnLendlng lL lL ls
called anLecedenL concuplscence when a person wllls lL (as ln Lhe case of a man who nurses hls ln[urles or sLlrs hlmself Lo revenge or who
allows a suddenly envlsloned obscene lmage Lo remaln ln hls mlnd or before hls eyes) lL ls called consequenL concuplscence 1he eLhlcal
prlnclple here ls AnLecedenL concuplscence lessens volunLarlness and responslblllLy buL does noL Lake Lhem away consequenL concuplscence
does noL lessen volunLarlness and responslblllLy
Cf all Lhe Lypes of concuplscence whlch lnfluence human acLs fear has a pecullar slgnlflcance and we have a speclal reasoned prlnclple for lL
An acL done from a moLlve of fear ls slmply volunLary Lhe agenL ls responslble for lL even Lhough he would noL do lL were he noL under Lhe
sway of fear Cf course lf Lhe fear ls so greaL LhaL lL renders Lhe agenL lnsane aL Lhe momenL of hls acL he ls lncapable of a human acL and ls noL
responslble Clvll law make provlslons for Lhe nulllfylng of conLracLs made under Lhe sLress of fear (LhaL ls of LhreaL or duress) for Lhe common
good requlres LhaL people be proLecLed from Lhe mallce of unscrupulous persons who would noL heslLaLe Lo enforce harmful bargalns by
fearsome means
(3) vlolence CoacLlon or vlolence ls exLernal force applled by a free cause (LhaL ls by human belngs) Lo compel a person Lo do someLhlng
conLrary Lo hls wlll 1he eLhlcal prlnclple wlLh respecL Lo vlolence ls An acL owlng Lo vlolence Lo whlch due reslsLance ls made ls noL volunLary
and Lhe agenL ls noL responslble for lL
(4) PablL PablL ls a readlness born of repeaLed acLs for dolng a cerLaln Lhlng 1he eLhlcal prlnclple ls PablL does noL Lake away volunLarlness
acLs done from hablL are volunLary aL leasL ln cause as long as Lhe hablL ls permlLLed Lo conLlnue
b) Lnds of Puman AcLs
An end ls a purpose or goal lL ls LhaL for whlch an acL ls performed lL ls Lhe flnal cause of an acL
An end lnLended for lLself ls an ulLlmaLe end an end lnLended as a measure or means of galnlng a furLher end ls an lnLermedlaLe end 1he flrsL
end (ln order of aLLalnmenL) ls proxlmaLe oLher ends are remoLe An ulLlmaLe end ls ulLlmaLe ln a cerLaln serles of ends or lL ls Lhe crownlng
end of all human acLlvlLy 1he ulLlmaLe end of a serles ls called relaLlvely ulLlmaLe Lhe crownlng end of all human acLlvlLy ls called absoluLely
ulLlmaLe
A young man enLerlng medlcal school has as proxlmaLe and lnLermedlaLe ends Lhe passlng of hls exams and Lhe advance from Lhe flrsL Lo Lhe
second class more remoLe ends are Lhe exams and classes furLher on Lhe ulLlmaLe end of Lhe whole serles of hls sLudles and efforLs ls Lhe
sLaLus of a physlclan 8uL Lhls end ls relaLlvely ulLlmaLe noL absoluLely so Why does he wlsh Lo be a physlclan? erhaps Lo do good and Lo have
an honorable means of llvellhood 8uL why does he wanL Lhls? lor a full llfe a rounded saLlsfacLlon ln hls earLhly exlsLence? 8uL why does he
wanL Lhese Lhlngs? lnevlLably ln vlew of a sLlll furLher end lor all human ends are dlrecLed ln lasL analysls Lo an allsufflclng absoluLely
ulLlmaLe end 1hls ls Lhe compleLely saLlsfylng end or good lL ls Lhe Supreme and lnflnlLe Cood lL ls Lhe Summum 8onum and for LhelsLs lL ls
Cod
An end as a Lhlng deslred or lnLended ls called ob[ecLlve 1he saLlsfacLlon looked for ln Lhe aLLalnmenL and possesslon of Lhe ob[ecLlve end ls
Lhe sub[ecLlve end
Man ln every human acL sLrlves for Lhe possesslon of good (for end and good are synonymous) and for lnflnlLe good or Cod 1hls ls Lhe
absoluLely ulLlmaLe ob[ecLlve end of all human acLlvlLy And man sLrlves for Lhe lnflnlLe good as LhaL whlch wlll boundlessly saLlsfy he looks for
compleLe beaLlLude or compleLe happlness ln Lhe aLLalnmenL and possesslon of Cod 1hls ls Lhe absoluLely ulLlmaLe sub[ecLlve end of all human
acLlvlLy
SalnL and slnner allke are sLrlvlng Lowards Cod 1he SalnL ls sLrlvlng ln Lhe rlghL dlrecLlon and Lhe slnner ln Lhe wrong dlrecLlon 8uL lL ls Lhe one
Coal Lhey are afLer LhaL ls Lhe full everlasLlng saLlsfacLlon of all deslre 1he good man ln hls good human acLs and Lhe evll man ln hls evll
human acLs are llke Lwo men dlgglng for dlamonds Lhe one dlgs ln a dlamond mlne Lhe oLher perversely dlgs ln a fllLhy heap of rubblsh Lhe
one works where dlamonds are Lo be found Lhe oLhers work ls hopeless of success 8uL lL ls Lo flnd dlamonds LhaL boLh are worklng
Man necessarlly (and noL freely) lnLends or wllls Lhe supreme and absoluLe end of all human acLs Man freely (and noL necessarlly) chooses Lhe
means (LhaL ls lnLermedlaLe ends) by whlch he expecLs wlsely or perversely Lo aLLaln LhaL end
c) norms of Puman AcLs
A norm ls a rule lL ls Lhe measure of a Lhlng 1he norm of human acLs ls Lhe rule whlch shows wheLher Lhey measure up Lo whaL Lhey should be
and lndlcaLes Lhe duLy of brlnglng Lhem up Lo full sLandard of whaL Lhey oughL Lo be 1he norms of human acLs are law and consclence More
preclsely Lhe one norm of human acLs ls law applled by consclence
Law ls an ordlnance of reason promulgaLed for Lhe common good by one who has charge of socleLy
lundamenLally law ls an ordlnance of lnflnlLe 8eason for all manklnd and for every creaLure ln Lhls sense law means Lhe LLernal Law whlch ls
Cods plan and provldence for Lhe unlverse lnasmuch as Lhls law ls knowable by a normal mlnd whlch reasons Lo lL from Lhe facLs of
experlence Lhe LLernal Law ls called Lhe naLural law lor when a person ceases Lo be a baby and becomes responslble Lhls ls owlng Lo Lhe facL
LhaL he recognlzes Lhe followlng LruLh 1here ls such a Lhlng as good Lhere ls such a Lhlng as evll l have a duLy Lo avold evll and Lo do good
A chlld of Len LhaL knew no dlsLlncLlon beLween lles and LruLh LhefL and honesLy obedlence and dlsobedlence would rlghLly be classed as an
lmbeclle lndeed we say LhaL a person comes Lo Lhe use of reason when he beglns Lo have a pracLlcal grasp of Lhree Lhlngs good evll duLy
ln oLher words reason makes evldenL Lhe baslc prescrlpLlons of Lhe naLural law
1he naLural law ls general 8uL man needs ln addlLlon Lo general prescrlpLlons for conducL speclal deLermlnaLlons of Lhe law such as for
lnsLance Lhe enacLmenLs of Lhe SLaLe ln clvll and crlmlnal laws
Law ls for Lhe common good Speclal regulaLlons for lndlvlduals or groups are called precepLs A precepL ls llke a law lnasmuch as lL ls a
regulaLlon or an orderlng unLo good A precepL ls unllke a law lnasmuch as lL ls raLher for prlvaLe Lhan for common good ln human laws and
precepLs a furLher dlsLlncLlon ls made A law ls LerrlLorlal lL blnds ln a cerLaln place and noL ln oLher places a precepL ls personal and lL blnds
Lhe person sub[ecL Lo lL wherever he may be Agaln a law endures even Lhough Lhe acLual persons who formulaLed and promulgaLed lL are
dead and gone a precepL ends wlLh Lhe deaLh (or removal from offlce) of Lhe precepLor
1rue law ls a llberaLlng force noL an enslavlng one A Lrue law may be compared Lo a Lrue map 1he map does noL enslave Lhe Lraveler buL
enables hlm Lo make hls [ourney wlLhouL hlndrance or mlshap 1he man who says he wlll noL be enslaved by maps ls a prey Lo lgnorance and ls
Lhus Lruly enslaved Lhe man who uses Lhe map ls llberaLed from Lhe enslavemenL of lgnorance and ls freed Lo make Lhe [ourney lor llberLy
does noL lnclude ln lLs essence Lhe ablllLy Lo do wrong 1hls ablllLy ls a sad condlLlon of earLhly human exlsLence lL ls noL a parL of llberLy lLself
Cod can do no wrong yeL Cod ls lnflnlLely free 1he souls ln heaven can no longer sln and yeL Lhey have noL losL freedom buL have used
freedom and broughL lL Lo lLs crownlng perfecLlon Mans freedom ls freedom of Lhe cholce of means Lo hls ulLlmaLe end when Lhe end ls
aLLalned means are no longer needed and Lhe freedom whlch won Lo success ls forever crowned ln full perfecLlon
Law LhaL ls seL down ln recorded enacLmenLs ls called poslLlve law 1he moral law as knowable Lo sound human reason (LhaL ls Lhe LLernal Law
as so knowable) ls called as we have seen Lhe naLural law A law ls called moral lf lL blnds under gullL lL ls called penal lf lL blnds under penalLy
(such as a flne) lL ls called mlxed lf lL blnds under boLh gullL and penalLy lL ls a debaLed quesLlon among eLhlclans wheLher Lhere can be a law
LhaL ls enLlrely and excluslvely penal
All Lrue laws have sancLlons LhaL ls lnducemenLs (of reward or punlshmenL prescrlbed) sufflclenL Lo make Lhose bound by Lhem obedlenL Lo
Lhelr prescrlpLlons Puman poslLlve law usually has Lhe sancLlon of penalLy noL of speclal reward
ln lndlvldual human acLs law ls applled by consclence
Consclence ls Lhe pracLlcal [udgmenL of human reason upon an acL as good and hence permlsslble or obllgaLory or as evll and hence Lo be
avolded
Consclence ls Lhe reasoned [udgmenL of Lhe mlnd lL ls no lnsLlncL no senLlmenL no pre[udlce born of cusLom or whaL moderns call mores lL ls
no sLlll small volce lL ls no llLLle spark of celesLlal flre lL ls Lhe pronouncemenL of reason Lhe reason wlLh whlch we work ouL a problem ln
maLhemaLlcs only Lo be called consclence lL musL be Lhe worklng ouL of a [udgmenL or pronouncemenL ln Lhe domaln of morals of duLy
When Lhe [udgmenL of consclence squares wlLh facLs consclence ls called correcL or Lrue When Lhe consclence[udgmenL ls ouL of llne wlLh
facLs consclence ls called false When Lhe consclence[udgmenL ls wholly assured and unheslLanL consclence ls called cerLaln When Lhe
consclence [udgmenL ls heslLanL and amounLs Lo no more Lhan oplnlon consclence ls called doubLful
uoubL ls speculaLlve when lL ls a lack of cerLalnLy abouL whaL ls Lrue lL ls pracLlcal when lL ls a lack of cerLalnLy abouL whaL ls Lo be done A
doubL ls poslLlve when Lhe mlnd heslLaLes beLween Lwo opposlLes because Lhere seems good reason for each lL ls negaLlve when Lhe mlnd
heslLaLes because Lhere seems no good reason on elLher slde A mosL lmporLanL reasoned prlnclple ls Lhe followlng lL ls never lawful Lo acL
whlle ln a sLaLe of poslLlve pracLlcal doubL 1he doubL musL be dlspelled and replaced by aL leasL moral cerLlLude
1o dlspel poslLlve pracLlcal doubL a person musL use Lhe dlrecL meLhod of sLudy lnqulry flndlng all Lhe facLs lf Lhls meLhod prove unsuccessful
or lf lL cannoL be applled Lhen Lhe lndlrecL meLhod (called Lhe appeal Lo Lhe reflex prlnclple) musL be employed 1hls means LhaL Lhe person ln
doubL abouL Lhe llclLness or llllclLness of an acL can make sure LhaL he ls noL bound by applylng Lhe reflex prlnclple A law LhaL ls of doubLful
appllcaLlon cannoL begeL a cerLaln obllgaLlon ln Lhls case cerLlLude ls aLLalned noL of Lhe case lLself buL of Lhe persons freedom from
obllgaLlon Lhus lL ls an lndlrecL cerLlLude
CuL of Lhe use of Lhe reflex prlnclple [usL menLloned emerges Lhe Lheory called robablllsm lL amounLs Lo Lhls lf Lhere exlsLs a solldly
probable oplnlon agalnsL Lhe appllcablllLy of a law ln a glven case LhaL law ls of doubLful appllcablllLy ln oLher words lL ls a doubLful law 8uL a
doubLful law cannoL begeL a cerLaln obllgaLlon 1herefore lf Lhere exlsLs a solldly probable oplnlon agalnsL Lhe appllcablllLy of a law ln a glven
case Lhere ls no obllgaLlon
1he moral sysLem of robablllsm ls of value only when Lhere ls quesLlon of Lhe lawfulness or unlawfulness of an acL lL has no place when Lhe
quesLlon ls one of Lhe valldlLy or lnvalldlLy of conLracL lurLher Lhe phrase a solldly probable oplnlon does noL mean a sLrong lncllnaLlon or
llklng on Lhe parL of Lhe agenL lL means a reasoned oplnlon especlally such as ls defended by men of known learnlng and prudence
robablllsm or Lhe appllcaLlon of Lhe reflex prlnclple a doubLful law does noL blnd cannoL be employed excepL ln Lhe fallure or Lhe
lnappllcablllLy of Lhe dlrecL meLhod of solvlng a doubL nor can lL be used when Lhere ls quesLlon of a clear and deflnlLe end Lo be achleved
d) MorallLy of Puman AcLs
MorallLy ls Lhe relaLlon of human acLs Lo Lhe norm or rule of whaL Lhey oughL Lo be As we have seen Lhe norm of human acLs ls law applled by
consclence And Lhe baslc law ls Lhe LLernal Law especlally as Lhls ls knowable by sound human reason (lL ls Lhen called Lhe naLural law) 1he
squarlng up of free and responslble human conducL wlLh law as applled by consclence ls Lhe morallLy of human acLs Lhe lack of such agreemenL
of human acLs wlLh Lhelr norm ls lmmorallLy 8uL as we have lndlcaLed morallLy ls generally used Lo slgnlfy Lhe relaLlon (wheLher of agreemenL
or dlsagreemenL) of human acLs Lo Lhelr norm or rule 1hus we speak of morally good acLs and of morally bad acLs
A human acL consldered as such as an acL as a deed performed sLands ln agreemenL or ouL of agreemenL wlLh Lhe norm of whaL lL oughL Lo
be 1hus lL has ob[ecLlve morallLy Many mlsLaken people of our day especlally Lhose of unlverslLy Lralnlng are fond of Lalklng as Lhough a
human acL Look all lLs morallLy from Lhe lnLenLlon of Lhe agenL or from hls vlewpolnL 1hey are full of expresslons such as As l see lL 1o
my mlnd l donL look aL lL ln LhaL way lLs all ln Lhe polnL of vlew eLc now Lhere ls an lmmense fleld for human oplnlon
Where cerLlLude cannoL be had oplnlon ls Lhe besL man can achleve 8uL ln maLLers of essenLlal morals cerLlLude can be had (as we have seen
by dlrecL meLhod or Lhls falllng by Lhe reflex meLhod) Pence Lhe lawfulness or unlawfulness of an acL lLs morallLy ln shorL ls never a
maLLer of oplnlon vlewpolnL pre[udlce or preference lL ls a maLLer of facL lL ls an ob[ecLlve Lhlng Puman acLs have ob[ecLlve morallLy
A person blamelessly mlsLaken abouL Lhe ob[ecLlve morallLy of an acL ls exempL (by reason of lnvlnclble lgnorance) from responslblllLy for such
acL 1hus a person who ls lnvlnclbly lgnoranL of Lhe facL LhaL a lle ls always unlawful and who ls convlnced wlLh full cerLlLude LhaL ln cerLaln
clrcumsLances a lle ls permlsslble ls noL gullLy of formal falsehood for Lelllng such a lle 8uL Lhls does noL mean LhaL Lhe ob[ecLlve morallLy of a
lle ls a flcLlon or an llluslon lL does noL mean LhaL Lhe morallLy of an acL depends on Lhe agenLs convlcLlons 1he lle ls ob[ecLlvely evll and
remalns so Cnly ln Lhe case menLloned lnvlnclble lgnorance excuses Lhe agenL from responslblllLy for lL And so much Lhe worse for Lhe agenL
for lgnorance ls always a bllghL and a burden
Some acLs have Lhelr ob[ecLlve morallLy ln Lhemselves by reason of Lhelr naLure Murder lylng calumny ln[usLlce are examples of acLs
lnLrlnslcally evll 8especL for llfe LruLhfulness charlLy [usLlce are examples of acLs lnLrlnslcally good CLher human acLs have Lhelr ob[ecLlve
morallLy by reason of poslLlve law whlch ls an exLrlnslc deLermlnanL 1hus hunLlng ouL of season vlolaLlng Lhe speed laws are acLs ob[ecLlvely
buL exLrlnslcally evll Cbeylng clvll ordlnances performlng Lhe duLy of Lrue clLlzens as expressed by law are ln Lhe maln acLs ob[ecLlvely buL
exLrlnslcally good 1he baslc vlrLue of belng a good clLlzen however ls lnLrlnslcally good
ln Lhe concreLe as a deed done every human acL has Lrue ob[ecLlve morallLy 8uL when a human acL ls consldered ln Lhe absLracL ln general
and noL as a concreLe deed performed lL ls someLlmes found Lo be lndlfferenL and nelLher good nor bad ln oLher words some human acLs are
noL lnLrlnslcally good or lnLrlnslcally evll ln Lhemselves as absLracLly consldered 8uL ln Lhelr acLual performlng Lhey Lake on morallLy (and Lruly
ob[ecLlve morallLy) from Lhe clrcumsLances
lor Lhe deLermlnanLs of morallLy are Lhe acL performed and Lhe clrcumsLances of Lhe acL performed
1he acL performed ls Lechnlcally known as Lhe ob[ecL Puman acLs LhaL have lnLrlnslc morallLy are good or evll by reason of Lhe ob[ecL LhaL ls
Lhe acL lLself Such acLs lf evll are never permlsslble lf good and lf clrcumsLances do noL vlLlaLe Lhem Lhey are lawful Some of Lhem are noL
capable of belng vlLlaLed by clrcumsLances and Lhese are always lawful and also of obllgaLlon Such for example ls Lhe duLy of professlng Lhe
LruLh of worklng [usLlce Lo all men
1he clrcumsLances of an acL performed deLermlne lLs morallLy when Lhe ob[ecL does noL do so ClrcumsLances are varlous buL Lhe mosL
lmporLanL are Lhose of person of Lhe lnLenslLy of Lhe acL of place of Llme of helplng lnfluences ln Lhe acL of manner and of lnLenLlon 1he lasL
named (LhaL ls lnLenLlon of Lhe agenL or doer) ls Lhe mosL noLable clrcumsLance
Cf clrcumsLances ln general Lhe eLhlcal prlnclples are Lhese
an lndlfferenL acL ls made good or evll by clrcumsLances
a good acL may be made evll by clrcumsLances buL an evll acL cannoL be made good by clrcumsLances
an acL ls made beLLer or worse by clrcumsLances
a clrcumsLance gravely evll rulns Lhe morallLy of Lhe whole acL and makes lL evll
a clrcumsLance sllghLly evll whlch ls noL Lhe enLlre moLlve of a good acL does noL uLLerly desLroy lLs goodness
Cf lnLenLlon ln speclal Lhe eLhlcal prlnclples are Lhese
a good acL done for a good lnLenLlon has an added goodness from Lhe lnLenLlon and a bad acL for a bad lnLenLlon has an added evll from Lhe
lnLenLlon
a good acL for a bad lnLenLlon ls wholly evll lf Lhe lnLenLlon ls gravely evll or lf lL ls Lhe whole moLlve of Lhe acL
a good lnLenLlon cannoL make a bad acL good buL a bad lnLenLlon vlLlaLes a good acL
an lndlfferenL acL may be made good or evll by lLs lnLenLlon
lor an acL Lo be lawful LhaL ls morally rlghL and good lL musL square wlLh all Lhe requlremenLs of ob[ecL clrcumsLances lnLenLlon lor an acL
Lo be evll lL musL fall Lo square wlLh any one of Lhe requlremenLs 1he axlom ls
An acL Lo he good musL be enLlrely good lL ls vlLlaLed (wholly or parLlally) by any defecL
e) roperLles and Consequences of Puman AcLs
A properLy of an acL ls anyLhlng LhaL belongs by naLural necesslLy Lo Lhe acL now a human acL ls a free and dellberaLe acL of a responslble
belng who ls lLs auLhor lL follows LhaL such an acL ls lmpuLable Lo lLs auLhor Lo hls credlL or dlscredlL LhaL ls as a merlL or a demerlL 1hus
properLles of human acLs are lmpuLablllLy merlL demerlL
A human acL once performed seLs a precedenL for Lhe agenL lL marks a paLh whlch he has Lraversed lL cuLs a groove so Lo speak for hls acLlon
And Lherefore he Lends Lo acL ln Lhe same way agaln ln a word human acLs Lend Lo follow paLLerns called hablLs 8y hablL ln Lhe presenL
lnsLance we mean an operaLlve hablL a hablL of acLlng Such a hablL ls an lncllnaLlon born of frequenLly repeaLed acLlon for acLlng ln a cerLaln
way
An operaLlve hablL LhaL ls morally good ls called a vlrLue An operaLlve hablL LhaL ls morally bad ls called a vlce vlrLues and vlces are Lhe
consequences of human acLs
1he chlefvlrLues are prudence [usLlce forLlLude and Lemperance 1hese are called Lhe cardlnal vlrLues (from Lhe LaLln cardo sLem cardln
a hlnge) because all oLher vlrLues depend on Lhem as a door depends on lLs hlnges
vlce or hablL of evll dolng ls a hablLual defecL a hablLual fallure Lo measure up Lo Lhe norm of rlghL conducL and of Lhe vlrLues A slngle bad acL
ls a sln buL noL a vlce vlce ls Lhe hablL of sln lL sLands opposed Lo vlrLue elLher by defecL or by excess buL ln elLher case lL ls a hablLual fallure
(a negaLlve Lhlng) Lo measure up Lo Lhe sLandard of whaL a human acL oughL Lo be
Summary of Lhe SecLlon
ln Lhls SecLlon we have deflned human acL and have deLermlned lLs essenLlal elemenLs as knowledge freedom volunLarlness
We have learned LhaL oLher names for Lhe human acL are free acL moral acL wllled acL
We have dlscussed volunLarlness ln se and ln causa and have learned Lwo ouLsLandlngly lmporLanL prlnclples vlz Lhe prlnclple of lndlrecL
volunLarlness and Lhe prlnclple of Lwofold effecL
We have consldered Lhe modlflers of human acLs lgnorance concuplscence vlolence hablL
We have seen LhaL a human acL ls necessarlly dlrecLed Lo an end and ln lasL analysls Lo Lhe absoluLely ulLlmaLe end or Supreme Cood whlch ls
Cod
We have noLlced LhaL mans freedom ls freedom of cholce of means Lo Lhe ulLlmaLe end noL freedom Lo seL up a new ulLlmaLe end
We have learned Lhe norm of human acLs as law applled by consclence
We have deflned law and have several classlflcaLlons of lL and have conLrasLed lL wlLh precepL
We have seen LhaL consclence ls Lhe [udgmenL of pracLlcal reason ln maLLers of rlghL and wrong and noL some mysLerlous lnner volce llke
kanLs CaLegorlcal lmperaLlve
We have noLlced Lhe necesslLy of mans acLlng wlLh a cerLaln consclence and we have sLudled Lhe dlrecL and Lhe lndlrecL meLhod of banlshlng
doubL and achlevlng cerLlLude
We have spoken of robablllsm
We have deflned Lhe morallLy of human acLs and have lnvesLlgaLed lLs deLermlnanLs
We have lndlcaLed Lhe properLles of human acLs as lmpuLablllLy merlL and demerlL and we have seen LhaL human acLs Lend Lo consequences
called vlrLues and vlces
MlnlCourse lndex nexL SecLlon

Lnrlch ?our Llfe WlLh a hllosophy 8ook

hllosophy 8esource CenLer Maln age

Lmall 1hls age
?our Lmall
1helr Lmall

1op of age
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