Philosophy

Philosophy Study Guide

©2018 of 126 apply to the moral decisions that we encounter in our daily lives. The ultimate goal of moral philosophy is for us to use these moral theories to accurately calibrate our moral compasses, sharpen our moral intuitions, and refine our moral consciences, so that when we are faced with moral decisions and ethical issues, we will be able to choose confidently with decisions that are wise, enlightened, and justified. We should be able to provide a clear rationale for our decisions and cite compelling reasons why our point of view is ethically appropriate. To reach the point of moral confidence, we need to familiarize ourselves with the core theories of moral reasoning that constitute moral philosophy. The terms ethics and morals describes how we ought to behave, and the rules and standards that we should employ in the choices we make. The philosophical study of ethics and morals seeks to analyze and evaluate how different patterns of ethics have evolved and are applied by individuals as well as groups and cultures. Descriptive ethics is used to describe and analyze current moral and ethical beliefs and behaviors of an individual or a group. Normative ethics analyzes what ought to be the moral and ethical beliefs and choices of an individual or group. 8.3 Ethical Relativism Ethical relativism is the view that all moral values are relative to the individual or specific culture. Ethical subjectivism is the view that the ultimate moral authority is the individual or the subject. The flaw of ethical subjectivism is that it does not entail tolerance for the views or interests of others. It simply invests each individual with the moral authority to determine what is morally right or wrong, even if this means violating the rights or interests of others. The theory of ethical relativism holds that each individual determines what is morally right or wrong, that he or she should determine their own best course of action by following their own compass. Some believe that ethical subjectivism can lead to social isolation and moral apathy, a sort of every man for himself attitude. Descriptive ethics is an ethical approach that simply represents ethical beliefs without evaluating their accuracy or appropriateness. Normative ethics is an ethical approach that attempts to prescribe what ethical behaviors should be accepted or become cultural norms. The truth is, that while opinions are easy to come by, informed opinions are much more difficult to find. To express an informed opinion means that you have some idea of what you are talking about. You have explored the subject, examined different points of view, evaluated the supporting reasons and evidence, and synthesized your analysis into a compelling conclusion. 8.4 Cultural Relativism: Each Culture Determines what is Morally Right Cultural relativism is the view that cultural norms determine what is ethically right and wrong and is ethical subjectivism on a societal level. Cultural relativism makes a similar argument to ethical subjectivism but it includes the entire culture, not each individual that determines what is morally right and wrong. Both ethical theories are driven by the diversity of moral viewpoints that we find in the human species. Cultural relativism contends that because every culture has its own unique set of morals, it does not make sense to try to identify universal moral standards that transcend all cultures. In Ruth Benedict’s book, Patterns of Cultures , the term ‘morality’ should be defined as socially approved customs—nothing more and nothing less. There are no universal values that we can use to evaluate the moral values of any culture; there are only the moral values that each culture creates. Achieve Page 85