Transcript Ethical Theories File

A Superheroes (and villains) Guide to
Ethical Theory
T.A.J White - FNU Nasinu 18/06/12
Spiderman’s ethics?
Spiderman’s dilemma
Peter Parker has the typical
concerns of a geeky teenager:
How to win the girl who normally
doesn’t look at him.
How to pursue his dream of
being a scientist.
How to stand up to the bullies at
school…
Then on a school trip, he is
bitten by a radioactive spider.
Spiderman’s dilemma
After being bitten Peter Parker develops a range of spider-like
superpowers.
He can climb and swing between New York’s skyscrapers.
He can shoot spider-web from his wrists.
He is also a lot stronger and very acrobatic.
He now seems to be in a position to do the things he’s always wanted.
Spiderman’s dilemma
In an effort to make some
money, Peter Parker invented
“Spiderman”, and entered a
wrestling match.
After winning the match, and
about to leave the venue, a
burglar runs past being chased
by a security guard.
The guard calls out for Peter to
stop the thief, but he doesn’t
help.
He says, “that’s not my job”.
Spiderman’s dilemma
However, later on, the same
burglar comes across Peter
Parker’s guardian, Uncle Ben.
The burglar shoots Uncle Ben in
an attempt to steal his car.
Peter finds Uncle Ben dying,
and then chases after the
burglar.
It is only when he catches him
does he realize the
consequence of not helping the
security guard earlier.
Spiderman’s dilemma
Do you agree with Spiderman?
Spiderman feels he now has a moral responsibility to fight
crime with his superpowers.
He has taken a CONSEQUENTIALIST position. The right
thing is that which provides the best results. As
Spiderman, Peter Parker believes he can achieve the
most good.
However, we may take a NON-CONSEQUENTIALIST
position. Peter was a talented scientist, and this was
his calling in life. Indeed it can still provide GOOD, but
arguably not as much. Is this still not a valid choice?
Is being Spiderman above and beyond the call of duty? Is
it a REASONABLE ethical demand?
EVG501/502: Ethical Theory Super-lecture Plan
1. Branches of Ethical Theory
2. UTILITARIANISM and
DEONTOLOGY in The Dark
Knight (2008)
3. ALTRUISM AND ETHICAL
EGOISM, Captain America:
The First Avenger (2011) and
Watchmen (2009)
4. THE ETHICS OF CARE
5. VIRTUE THEORY, Superman
and the Incredible Hulk.
6. Applying your Reasoning
Powers and explaining your
super-self… in writing… in
the EXAM!!!
Branches of ethical theory
Utilitarianism
What is Utilitarianism? Utilitarianism declares that:
“An action is right if it produces as much or more of an increase in
happiness of all affected by it than any alternative action, and
wrong if it does not.” (Singer, P. 1999)
• It is about “utility”. What does an action accomplish, “what use is
it, what has you’re action achieved?”
• Therefore it is about (predicted!) consequences.
(consequentialism)
• It is a means/ends argument. The ends justifies the means.
The greatest happiness for the greatest number!!
Utilitarianism
 Jeremy Bentham (17421832) is identified as the
founder of utilitarian
thought
 His view was that ethics
is about maximizing
pleasure/happiness &
minimizing
pain/unhappiness
Utilitarianism
How do we measure happiness?
1. Utilitarianism is an egalitarian theory. Everyone’s
happiness is to be weighed equally.
Northstar marries
his gay partner in
the X-Men comics.
(2012)
Utilitarianism
How do we measure happiness?
2. It is mathematical. A cost/benefit analysis. We can
calculate future happiness.
Reality is reduced to its
numbers by Neo in the
Matrix.
(1999, Waskowski)
Utilitarianism
How do we measure happiness?
3. The attainment of pleasure/the avoidance of pain (the
pleasure principle).
QUESTION: What does this mean for animal rights? How
might it be used to argue either side of the argument?
4. Need to consider short term and long term
consequences.
Utilitarianism
How do we measure happiness?
1 Intensity: How intense/strong is the pleasure and emotional
satisfaction?
2 Duration: How long will the pleasure last?
3 Certainty: How certain am I that pleasure will occur?
4 Immediacy: How soon will the pleasure occur? How near is it?
5 Fecundity: How likely is it that this experience will cause more
pleasure in the future?
6 Purity: Is there any pain that accompanies this pleasure?
7 Extent: How many people will be affected?
Problems with Utilitarianism
How accurately can we predict our consequences?
The Time Machine - H G Wells.
Problems with utilitarianism
2. How does utilitarianism allow for justice?
eg: Race riots and false testimony
Problems with Utilitarianism
 Are there some things that are wrong, yet have no
visibly bad consequences? eg: Peeping tom
Problems with Utilitarianism
Too demanding.
Deontology - Kant
 Deontology regards ‘duty’
 What type of duty? Duty to
‘respect the moral law’.
 To ‘act purely from good will’,
‘good heart’, Yalo Vinaka.
 To make the correct moral
choices, we have to understand
what our moral duties are and
what correct rules exist to
regulate those duties. When we
follow our duty, we are behaving
morally. When we fail to follow
our duty, we are behaving
immorally
Deontology
 Acts are right or wrong in-themselves. Not
consequences! Must look at the motive/intention.
Immanuel Kant’s Categorical Imperative:
“Act only according to that maxim whereby you can, at the
same time, will that it should become a universal law”
(Kant, 1785)
What does this mean?
Deontology
• What is the motive for your action? What kind of world
would we live in if everyone acted from the same
motives? Essentially, “what if everybody thought like
that!” eg: Lying to the bank for a loan.
• As such, Murder is always wrong. eg. Axeman in the
living room. 10 Commandments
• Based on a respect for Persons. ‘Ends in themselves’.
We all have moral autonomy which demands respect.
Batman – The Dark Knight
Think about what is being said
by these characters:
 The Joker.
 Batman
 Alfred
The Dilemma in The Dark Knight
1) each ferry is packed with enough explosives to
kill everyone on board
2) the passengers of each ferry have been given a
radio-controlled detonator that will destroy the
other boat (the convicts can detonate the ship of
citizens, and vice versa)
3) unless one boat detonates the other by
midnight, the Joker will detonate both boats. Of
course, the Joker is monitoring the situation,
and any attempt by anyone to escape will result
in the Joker blowing up both boats.
What will they do?
The Dark Knight
The choice to a passenger on either boat looks like
this:
1) I don’t blow up the other boat, and either;
a. The other boat doesn’t blow us up, and the Joker
blows us both up at midnight; or
b. The other boat blows us up, meaning that we die but
they live.
2) I do blow up the other boat, meaning that they die
while we live.
The Dark Knight – Analysis - Utilitarianism
WHAT HAPPENS!! How do we choose
the ethically right action according to
utilitarianism?
A utilitarian would argue that it is right to
blow up the other boat. If we look at the
predicted consequences, greatest
happiness is served by at least half the
passengers surviving.
Problems?
Are consequences ever certain?
A Batman rescue? Joker betrays them?
Press the detonator at the same time!!
Is there something missing here?
The Dark Knight – Analysis - Deontology
How do we choose the ethically right action
according to deontology?
Deontology would argue that it is never right to
take another life for the motive of preserving
one’s own life. If this principle were
universalized what would be the result? Could
we in good heart wish for such an outcome?
No. We must do our moral duty and abstain
from killing.
Problem?
But surely this results in the worst possible
outcome!… or did it???
What happens when duties conflict?
Altruism
To act purely out of a concern for others, without any
thought to the self, or without any intent to receive a
personal benefit. “A good deed is its own reward.”
Key terms/ideas:
Taking others suffering as one’s own (empathy)
Evolutionary instinct (herd behaviour)
Socialisation: eg: offering a ride.
Self-sacrifice
Altruism
A key idea of what makes the superhero is indeed not their
superpowers, but their public spiritedness and self-sacrifice.
The next clip is taken from the film Captain America where they are
looking to select the test-subject for a medical experiment that will
create a new super-soldier to fight for the United States.
As we see, the doctor is more interested in their sense of altruism
then their physical prowess.
Chris Evans in Captain America: The
First Avenger. (2011, Johnston)
Ethical Egoism
“Immanuel Kant is the real villain of our age” Ayn
Rand.
We should all pursue our own self-interests!
Why:
1. Altruism is demeaning. Nietzsche – we ought not
deny the self, or willingly make ourselves a slave to
others.
2. It leads to a better world. Think of sports or
economic competition. We know what we
ourselves want best. It leads to self-reliance and
personal responsibility.
3. Its not that different, and it’s a lot more honest
about people’s motivations. ie: simply taking a
long-term view and thinking of psychological
egoism.
Ethical Egoism
“Yeah. Yeah, that's right.
Pregnant woman. Gunned her
down. Bang. And y'know what?
You watched me. You coulda
changed the gun into steam or
the bullets into mercury or the
bottle into god damn snowflakes!
You coulda teleported either of us
to goddamn Australia...but you
didn't lift a finger! You don't really
give a damn about human
beings.”
The Comedian (Watchman,
2009)
Is it still possible to have
friendship with this
understanding? Are we
now all in a world full of
strangers?
Do we know what’s best for
us?
Contradictory – The
command that you should
follow your self-interest, is
not in my self-interest!
Something missing?
Situation Ethics and Ethics of Care
In a world dominated by men, some feminist thinkers
argue that we have a very male dominated perspective.
Ethics of Care
“It is easy to see the influence of men’s experience in the
ethical theories they’ve created. Men dominate public life,
and in politics and business, one’s relations with other
people are typically impersonal and contractual. Often the
relationship is adversarial – others have interests that
conflict with our own. So we negotiate, we bargain and
make deals. Moreover in public life our decisions may affect
large numbers of people we do not know. So we may try to
calculate, in an impersonal way, which decisions have the
best overall outcome for the most people. And what do
men’s theories emphasise? Impersonal duty, contracts, the
harmonization of competing interests, and the calculation of
costs and benefits.” (Rachels, 1999, pg173)
Ethics of Care
Other theories are too detached or lack a human element.
A man’s world is full of impersonal relationships. No
wonder ethics is so abstract!
There are people who are personally dependent on us.
They deserve our special consideration
Ethics of Care
An Ethics of Care emphasises the importance of personal
relationships, of love (not obligation), and being a certain type of
person:
Think of weakness in previous theories regarding:
1. Why we look after our children.
2. The principle of treating everyone equally every time.
3. Animals – why sometimes a pet, other times… Lunch!
Why might women and men have different ethical approaches?
Virtue Theory – Ethics of Character
Virtue theory is different. Its
about moral character. The
question is not what is the right
thing to do, but what is it that
makes a person ‘good’.
Aristotle (384-322BC) talks of
‘Eudaemonia’, which is Ancient
Greek, and can translate to
‘excellence’, ‘happiness’, ‘virtue’
or perhaps best to ‘human
flourishing’.
What is it is to ‘flourish’? Quite
simply, to be the best you can
possibly be. For humans,
Aristotle says this is done by
being virtuous.
Virtue Theory
What are the virtues? Think of
Superman!
Truthfulness, courage, confidence,
compassion, loyalty, friendliness,
honour, integrity, helpfulness,
gentleness, strength, selflessness,
righteousness, toughness, to name
just a few!
Virtue Theory
As virtues must be part of our character we can not be honest one time,
and then dishonest at another. We must be consistently virtuous, and
through habitual virtuous action we then flourish.
Aristotle also spoke of how virtues often sit in the middle between to
extremes or vices. This is called the Golden Mean (not the Golden
Rule!!)
Eg: Cowardice
Bravery
Pessimistic
Hopeful
Timidity
Confident
Arrogant
Rashness
Over-optimistic
This is Aristotle’s principle of moderation.
Look at the next clip with Thor and The Incredible Hulk in The Avengers.
Where might a virtue be slipping to vice in the case of the Hulk?
The Avengers – The Hulk
How to apply Virtue Theory?
So how can we use virtue theory to tell us what we ought
to do?
We may take this approach:
An action is morally permissable, if and only if, it is the
action that a virtuous person would have taken in the
circumstances.
If a person X, displays the virtues, S1, S2, S3, S4… Sn in
action A, then person X is justified in performing action
A.
Weakness of VT
Sometimes, we may find one type of virtue is not the right
virtue for the situation, and lead to the wrong action.
eg:
friendliness to a serial killer
loyalty to a someone who betrays you
patience waiting for a parcel never posted
Sometimes, virtues actually result in more harm when
applied by the wrong people:
Eg:
the brave suicide bomber
the careful thief
the confident con-man
…the intelligent super-villain!!
Branches of ethical theory
5 Key Questions to Frame your Super-Arguments!
1. What is the ethical dilemma? What is the choice in the
case-study question?
2. What are the ethical issues being raised, what are the
possible consequences and whose interests must you
take into account?
3. What is the guiding principle provided by the ethical
theory you will be applying to the case-study?
Weighing happiness, obeying the moral law or being
virtuous?
4. How does this shape you’re conclusion that action A,
or instead action B, is the right thing to do?
5. Are you entirely happy with this conclusion? What’s
been left unsaid.