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TOPIC

10-

Midterm Period (Lecture and Discussion)

Introduction to & Overview of the Course
Human Acts
Modifiers and End of Human Acts
Norms of Morality
Ethical Theories 1
Ethical Theories 2
MIDTERM EXAMINATION
Pre Final Period (Argumentation and Debate)
Sexual and Reproductive Ethics

11
12-

Justice and Human Life

13
14-

War and the Environment

15
16
17
18

Morality, Society and Law

Ethics Bowl
FINAL EXAMINATION

1
2
3
4
5-6
7-8
9

Applied Ethics
Midterm Period
Introduction and Overview of the Course:
The Applied Ethics discusses the insights of moral philosophers within the context of
everyday living. In this course, students isolate and reflect upon questions of conscience and
natural law, to facilitate choice and decisions, morally justifiable or acceptable action in
relation to issues that typically confront them and their family life, personal and institutional
power relationships, health issues and end of life dilemmas.
Definition OF ETHICS:
1. moral principles that govern a person's or group's behavior.
"Judeo-Christian ethics"
synonyms: moral code, morals, morality, values, rights and wrongs, principles, ideals,
standards (of behavior), value system, virtues, dictates of conscience
the moral correctness of specified conduct.
2.
3.

the branch of knowledge that deals with moral principles.

a set of moral principles, especially ones relating to or affirming a specified group, field,
Origin
late Middle English (denoting ethics or moral philosophy; also used attributively): from Old
French thique, from Latin ethice, from Greek ( h) thik (tekhn ) (the science of) morals,
based on thos.
Human Act
Nature of Man & its Dignity

Choosing the GOOD

To will something, one has to know beforehand.

Man cannot choose or act unless he knows which is a better good.
When a person chooses to act according to what he knows is right He acts freely
Only man is capable of acting free HUMAN ACTS
But the intellect does not always determine the will.

When is MAN FREE in his actions?

When is an act freely done?
1. Under the control of the WILL - It is the power tending toward, choosing, adhering to &
taking pleasure in a GOOD KNOWN BY THE INTELLECT - voluntary
2.

We do things because we want to, we own the decision or the action

3.

We face the consequence of our actions/decisions we face it with full responsibility

Nature of Freedom

Proceeds from the intellect and will

Based on reason which the will followed

When man makes decisions, he is free.

Man is accountable for what he is doing because he is CONSCIOUS of what he is doing,

why he is doing it & how he is doing it.

Sense of
responsibility

...and the
truth shall
make you
free.

Human Acts versus Act of Man

A. Human acts

Actions done Consciously and freely by the agent/or by man

ESSENTIAL QUALITIES/ Constituent Elements of Human Acts

1.

Knowledge of the act

2.

Freedom

3.

Voluntariness

Man takes into responsibility of these actions

B. Acts of Man

Actions beyond ones consciousness; not dependent on the intellect & the will

ESSENTIAL QUALITIES of Acts of Man

Done with out knowledge

Without consent

Involuntary

Ex: unconscious, involuntary, semi-deliberate, spontaneous actions

Acts of man can become human acts when he employs his intellect & will in performing
the act.
ACTS not morally accountable

Acts of persons asleep or under hypnosis.

Reflex actions where the will has no time to intervene.

Acts of performed under serious physical violence

e.g. a hostage obliged to do an evil action.
Since the will is constrained, then it is not a moral act which could be evaluated.
Morality of Human Acts
What is morality?

From the Greek word MORES - behavior

Refers to the sense of rightness or wrongness of an act.

Quality of the human act that is either good or bad, right or wrong based on some
norms that are either inherent in the act or are observed due to some individual or
social conventional acceptance

Morality is based in part upon the fundamental conviction that:

1. There is an objective moral law which can be known by the intellect NATURAL
MORAL LAW
2. Some actions are intrinsically evil not justifiable regardless of the circumstance

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Seek food including the

highest good which is God.
Preserve himself in
existence
To preserve the species
Live in community with
other men
To use his intellect & will
to know the truth & make
his own decisions

All Human acts are subjected to morality.

Human acts are different from animal act because man by nature acts towards an end.
His life has a purpose.

Human acts are those that are freely chosen in consequence of a judgment of
conscience.

They are either good or evil.

Their morality depends on: the

object

chosen, the

intention

and

circumstances.
Moral Determinants of Human Acts
HUMAN ACTS are neutral in themselves but they acquire morality when we speak of:
1. OBJECT OF THE ACT
2. CIRCUMSTANCE
3. INTENTION
4. CONSEQUENCES
OBJECT OF THE ACT
1. Substance/nature of the action
2. Good which the will deliberately directs itself
3. OBJECT specifies the act of the will
4. Nature of what was done to its distinct species

the

5. What was performed by the moral agent?

6. An object if the act is good when it is in conformity with reason or when it fulfills or
fits the demand of reason. Otherwise, the object of the act is evil.
HUMAN ACTS are neutral in themselves but they acquire morality when we speak of:
1. OBJECT OF THE ACT
2. CIRCUMSTANCE
3. INTENTION
What makes an act good or bad?
1. Goodness of object, end or intention & circumstance all together as well as
consequence
2. Evil end or intention corrupts the action even if the object is good
3. Avoid concrete acts that are always wrong to choose object of the act
4. The acts which in & of themselves independent of circumstance & intention are
always gravely illicit by reason of their object.
Error: to judge only the intention & circumstance
Judging the Morality of Human Acts
The moral object can either be
good

(e.g. praying)

bad

(e.g. stealing)

indifferent

(e.g. eating)

The intention can be either good or bad.

There are some actions that are evil by their very nature.
(e.g. murder, adultery).

These are never morally allowable, even if the intention and the circumstances are
good.

HUMAN ACTS AS FREELY CHOSEN

Human Acts are not merely physical events that come & go, like the falling of rain or the
turning of the leaves, nor do they as Karol Wojtyla emphasized in THE ACTING PERSON,
happen to a person.

They are, rather, the outward expression if a persons choices for at the core of a human
act is free, self determining choice, an act of the will, which as such is something
spiritual that abides within the person, giving him his identity as a moral being.

Although many human acts have physical, observable components, they are morally
significant because they embody and carry out free human choices.

We are free to choose what we are to do and, by so choosing, to make ourselves the
kind of person we are.