Ethics

Ethics is a branch of philosophy that addresses morality. It is the study of moral value, right and wrong. Ethics places value to personal actions, decisions, and relations. Traditionally, there have been five approaches to ethics—Greek, Christian, Kantian, Utilitarian, and Ethical Relativism.

First, Greek ethics includes the ethical approaches of the ancient Greek philosophers. The Sophists in the fifth century B.C. were the first philosophers to seriously raise questions about what morality really was. Protagoras held that all ethics was relative and was not anchored in any absolute moral truths. Plato, though, argued that ethics is rooted in eternal “forms” or “ideas.” Thus, there are absolute standards for right and wrong. With his Nicomachean ethics, Aristotle argued that virtue is natural and can be furthered through practice.

Second, Christian ethics is centered in God’s will, especially as revealed in the Bible. With this approach, right is what God wills and wrong is anything against God’s will.

Third, Kantian ethics is an ethical approach based on the teachings of the eighteenth century philosopher, Immanuel Kant. For Kant, motive is the most important factor and ethical decisions must be rooted in “sense of duty”—a moral oughtness to act a certain way apart from any feelings or opportunities for reward.

Fourth, Utilitarianism is the view that what is right or good is that which brings the greatest happiness for the most people. Utilitarianism focuses on the potential consequences of actions and makes decisions on what will be best for the most people. Jeremy Bentham founded utilitarianism. John Stuart Mill refined the utilitarian approach that Bentham started.

Fifth, ethical relativism is the perspective that morality and truth are relative to particular societies or individuals. There are no absolute standard for ethics. Moral standards are what people make them to be and can vary widely from culture to culture.