Transcript Deontology
Deontology The Ethics of Duty Deontology Claims: Moral law is not defined in terms of consequences or whether it promotes some goal as it is in ethical egoism or utilitarianism. Moral duties are transcultural and universally binding When a moral law conflicts with a cultural norm, the moral law takes precedence They agree that duty is the basis of morality but they disagree on the source of the morality. – Kant says it comes from reason – Sir W. David Ross says they are self-evident: Intuition Often presented as being opposed to utilitarianism – a sense of duty toward the maximum happiness Confucius and Duty Deontology and Virtue Believed that the way to put the world back on track was to instill a sense of respect for duty – Duties were established by the ancient sages – yi- righteousness: moral duty to do what is right – yi is established through the uniting of our minds with the universe – The Tao- the way: “the principle that nourishes and develops all things” – Western deontologists focus on the individual while Confucian deontology focuses on communitarian duties The family and the community are more important than the self – Three virtues that help carry out our duties: Wisdom, Compassion, and Courage Kant Product of the Enlightenment- he coined the phrase Believed that most people already knew right from wrong Problem is not knowing what is right but doing what is right Only reason can provide a sound foundation for universal morality Morality is a priori- we know it to be true without any reference to actual experience Reason demands that moral duties are universal and absolutely binding Hypothetical imperative- what we ought to do in order to achieve a defined goal Three Propositions of Morality To be moral the act must be done from a sense duty. Moral value comes from the maxim by which action is determined and not in the purpose; Depends on my personal motivation Duty is the necessity of an action with respect to the law Categorical Imperative Categorical Imperative- we ought to do something regardless of consequences – Act only on that maxim through which you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law – Act as to treat humanity whether in thine own person or in that of any other in every case as an end in itself, never as a means only