QUESTION 1
Mary is a Conscientious Moral Agent. Identify a moral argument or arguments that Mary can apply in this case. Use the facts of this case to explain the moral reasoning and moral principle(s) that Mary applies in this case.
ANSWER:
Given the condition in which Mary was in, it is important that she addresses the situation as impartial as she can be. In this particular case, she should therefore forget that she is the mother of one of the students in the place of employment of one of their patients in the hospital who was having psychological health issues. If Mary decides to act based on this criteria, then she is not acting as a Conscientious Moral Agent, despite the intention of her action was for the best interest of the children from the school because it has already been clouded by her own self-interest.
While every individual’s interest is equally important, the common interest should always be considered. The common interest is taking into consideration every member of the community not only of her own child. Mary should consider taking her child out of the equation. If this was the case would she have pursued informing the school or would stick to the confidentiality clause that is implemented by the hospital. Nevertheless, in deciding Mary should consider the definition of a Conscientious Moral Agent.
“[Conscientious Moral Agent] someone who is concerned impartially with the interests of everyone affected by what he or she does. He or she is one who carefully examines facts and inspects their consequences. A conscientious moral agent who accepts principles of conduct only after analyzing them to that it is derived based on sound judgment. It is an individual who is prepared to “listen to reason” despite chances and possibilities that it means that prior beliefs may necessarily have to be modified. Finally, a conscientious moral agent should be prepared to act on the outcomes of this discussion” .
QUESTION 2
Explain an anti-Cultural Relativist might respond to the situation of Shaima Jastaniah who was condemned to ten lashes for driving a car through the coastal city of Jeddah. Her only offense was driving while female. In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, where women are not allowed behind the steering wheel, this is a serious breach of public order.
ANSWER: The best way to understand the case of Shaima Jastaniah is through the principle of cultural relativism. This emphasized that the principle of understanding other people’s behavior and action should be understood from the context of that person’s own culture . In the case of Shaima Jastaniah, who was a Saudian woman who was sentenced to receive ten lashes for a violating a law in Saudi Arabia. While the crime that Jastaniah may not necessarily be a heavy violation in comparison to if the crime was done in the United States, that fact remains that she is caught violating a law in Saudi and to which she should have previous knowledge of crime and the law. However, since the culture of Saudi Arabia is relatively different from the US, it implies the law of Saudi that must apply in the case of Shaima Jastaniah notwithstanding, whether the offender stayed in the United States for a long time. Nevertheless, from the argument that is drawn for an anti-cultural relativism theory one could assert that although Shaima Jastaniah is from Saudi Arabia,but she has stayed in the United States for a significant amount of time which may have largely influenced her belief and activities and because of this Shaima Jastaniah should not be assessed and evaluated based on the merit of being from Saudi Arabian but on the predominant influence of the western culture.
QUESTION 3:
Does morality depend upon religion? Divine Command Theory, Natural Law and Ethical Egoism are moral theories that exist inside and outside of religious bounds.
ANSWER:
According to the Divine Command Theory, an individual’s action is to be judged as morally good or upright if the said action is done in accordance to the order or the will of God . Considering this moral and ethical conduct, the driver of the armor car should not be accountable of the action that led to the incident when the money under his care has been disposed to the community. The man was in good fate given that he did not intentional left the door of the armor car open. Similarly, there was also no order of God that was violated by the driver of the armor van.
On the other hand, base in the Natural Law, the man driving the armor van might be held accountable for violation of social and natural order of things. The dispersion of money have caused a momentary commotion that disrupted the order and peace in the community. When the people saw that money were being flown from the opened door of the armor car they were ecstatic to get some of the money. The tendency was to create a system that would imply that everyone is against everyone. Given this situation, any injuries and social unrest that was the result of the incident will be subjected to the accountability of the driver.
Finally, according to the principle of Ethical Egoism, the moral agent should do what is in one’s best interest . Thus, if the driver wishes to acknowledge his personal accountability of the situation then he may very well do so because this was in effect a protection of his credibility. The agent can refuse to answer any question that would further infiltrate him for being negligent of actions which led to the incident.
QUESTION 4:
Using the concepts and principles of Social Contract Theory, explain a moral issue concerning the Wall Street management and protesters.
ANSWER:
The Social Contract Theory postulated that the society enters into an agreement for which they surrender some of their rights a few number of people who would represent them and their causes in an assembly in exchange of assuming power over the group as manifestation of the surrendered right. In the case of the issue involving Wall Street, it was obvious that labor leader clearly has a vision of what it specifically aims to achieve. While critics of the labor group criticizes their vision and their agenda, it can still be seen how greatly the causes are being carried and forwarded by the labor leader who stood to represent the entire community of workers. The effectiveness of the social leader to draw attention to the protest is an effective exchange of the power that was designated to him by the league of workers under the provisions stated in the Social Contract Theory.
Furthermore, with the advocacy of the protesters being summoned and forwarded to the proper arena only implies that the social issue has been carried effectively by the Social Contract that was entered upon by the labor leader and the workers who was calling the attention of Wall Street executives.
QUESTION 5
Identify and explain two (2) ethical advantages of Utilitarianism and then, proceed to identify and explain two (2) ethical disadvantages of Utilitarianism according to the deliberation of the federal unemployment insurance programs in the House of Congress.
ANSWER:
The ethical advantage of the proposal in the house of Congress based on the Principle of Utilitarianism is that it will place merits only to the actual tax payers to benefit directly from the taxes that they pay. The proposal to make the awarding of the federal unemployment insurance programs stricter by imposing additional requirements would make it more limited only to deserving people who have far greater need and offers assurance that the insurance benefits will not be used for illegal and unproductive vices.
However, the universal distribution of federal unemployment insurance programs by virtue of the principle of utilitarianism would condole dole outs being given by the government. Thus, majority of people who are qualified to work but are too lazy to do so will have an excuse not to exert much effort because they could easily turn to the government for financial support and assistance.
QUESTION 6:
Identify and define the primary principles of Virtue Ethics. Identify and explain two (2) ethical advantages of Virtue Ethics and then proceed to identify and explain two ethical disadvantages of Virtue Ethics according to the issues of Global Warming.
ANSWER:
The principle of the Virtue Ethics elaborates the role of an individual, entity or institution in determining the ethical and moral merits of an argument of the situation. In the case of global warming which is a universal phenomenon which could significantly impact the lives of many people. In the case of the individualized researches and studies conducted in the different part of the globe, the absence of a single group that would gauge, determine and warrant the impact of the studies makes it ethically impossible to determine whether other countries and institutions are merely taking advantage of the funding given by universal organizations whose intention is to address the issue simultaneously to determine how much of global warming has impacted the specific location.
There had already been numerous claims and assertions that leaders and officials had ben corrupting the fund and delivering alarming statistics in order to generate more funds because the unsubstantiated findings would create mass hysteria that would source more funds only to be corrupted. Hence, there should be an institution that would determine the authenticity of the reports to warrant its ethical basis.
QUESTION 7:
Immanuel Kant identified a Moral Philosophy for mankind to follow. Identify and explain the primary principles of Kant's moral philosophy. Also, identify and explain two (2) ethical advantages of Kant's moral philosophy. Finally, identify and explain two (2) ethical disadvantages of Kant's moral philosophy. All this evaluations should be within the context of the issue on death penalty.
ANSWER:
Kant’s Moral Philosophy is based on the Categorical Imperative which is determined by the basis of what is right and wrong. According to Kant, to determine the morality of an action one must primarily determine whether the said action is right or wrong. In the context of the death penalty, one should utilize the rule of logic or reason. This asserts that if killing is morally wrong, then killing someone regardless of reason and justification will always be wrong. Therefore, to establish that death penalty is morally correct, the proponents of the law should argue from the merit of establishing a premise that would make it categorically correct. For example, to make death penalty morally right the premise that is to be establish is that death penalty is applied by a civilized society that aims to foster justice by virtue of retribution. Retribution asserts that whatever is substantially owed shall be the equivalent of what is to be paid. Thus, is a criminal kills another person for whatever reason, the only appropriate action to forgive that person is also by the death of the criminal. Thus, if the government impose death penalty on a murderer, the death penalty would be morally right because it was done in accordance to what is determined by society as correct by virtue of a natural law.
QUESTION 8
Identify and explain how a Utilitarian would address the ethical issue of criminal punishment and rehabilitation. Identify and explain how a Kantian would address the ethical issue of criminal punishment and rehabilitation. Identify and explain which of these approaches have the most ethical value for you especially in the case of a minor or juvenile offender.
ANSWER:
If the welfare of the greater majority would be compromised, a minor offender should be punished and incarcerated where he will not serve as a threat. However, the rehabilitation of the young offender should be uphold because of the belief that the young offender would need guidance to rectify their deviant behavior. On the other hand, the Categorical Imperative accorded that young and minor offenders be punished based on the merits of their action similar to adult offenders of only to establish a reference for future offenders.
QUESTION 9
Do men and women follow the same standards of moral reasoning? Is moral reasoning gender specific? Identify and explain the stages of moral development devised by Lawrence Kohlberg. Explain how Kohlberg and Carol Gilligan addressed gender differences in moral reasoning. Explain the ethical implications of gender specific moral reasoning.Use the concepts of gender specific moral reasoning to explain how a male and a female might view the photo below. Does your answer support or refute gender specific moral reasoning? Explain.
ANSWER:
There had been numerous researches conducted on the light of gender relatedness on the standards of moral reasoning. Based on the merits in Lawrence Kohlberg’s model, it explains that woman are usually ruled by their emotions and are basically spiritually directed in making decisions. Furthermore, Kohlberg ascertain that the difference can be both physiological and psychological. The standards used by women are less egotistical and less self-motivated. In fact, majority of female decision makers weighs the options and the possibilities of the action. Women often have negatively motivated foresight which delays decision until they can decide that they are ready to face the consequence.
On the other hand, men are fiercer and their decisions are usually rushed and is a product of trial and error. Men do not undergo a long process of deliberation contrary to women. Substantially, men who has to make decisions are often basing their actions on the principle of utilitarianism. Men assume that whatever is generally preferred by the majority would be less plausible and is therefore easier to justify in case of failure.
QUESTION 10
The quest for a satisfactory moral theory has challenged moral philosophers for millennia. What should it look like? Is it possible to identify one?Identify and explain the primary principles that a satisfactory moral theory must include.Identify a moral theory that comes closest to satisfying these principles.Identify the primary reason why this moral theory is superior to others.Identify a reason why some people may not support this theory.Explain how this theory might become the satisfactory moral theory for mankind.
ANSWER:
The satisfactory moral theory gauge the morality and ethical justification of a decision is largely based on the personal satisfaction or the good feel of the decision. If an individual feels good about the decision, or the absence of guilty is experienced then this would validate that the decision was ethical and morally upright. Nevertheless, in the event the decision brings guilt on the decision maker or the individual doubts the goodness of his or her decision, then this would ensure that the decision is unethical. However, basing judgment on the feeling of the doer or what the individual’s conscience dictate may not be reliable. It can be argued that a person who has been used to lying would feel no remorse. This is the same for serial killers, pathological liars and alike. In this event, their lack of guilty feeling or the feeling of satisfaction they have derived from performing an action based on their personal decision would only warrant that the action is not correct. This makes this moral theory wholly inappropriate and incapable of being used by society.
The concept of guilt is applied only on situations and people where the doer experiences remorse for doing something that is wrong. In the same way, feeling satisfied and pleased is often associated with actions that is the result of an accomplished goal or objective. Accomplishment, however, is subjective. An individual’s sense of accomplishment is generally often determined if the individual is able to complete an action that is premeditated. Murders and robbers always have a premeditated plan before they perform their crimes. In this case, a criminal who had this plan initially before action would naturally feel pleased or satisfied that they are able to successfully complete their initial objectives. Again, this satisfies the provisions stated under the satisfactory moral theory but that does not ascertain that the action was moral and ethical. In fact, the action is to be ruled the opposite.
Works Cited
Barzilai, Gad. Communities and Law: Politics and Cultures of Legal Identities. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2003. Print.
Gilbert, Jack. Strenghtening Ethical Wisdom: Tools for Transforming Your Healthcare Organization. Buford, Georgia: Lad Custom Publishing, 2011. Print.
Kowalski, Dean. Moral Theory at the Movies: An Introduction to Ethics. Washington, D.C.: Rowman & Littlefield, 2011. Print.
Waller, Bruce. Consider Ethics: Theory, Readings, and Contemporary Issues. New York: Pearson Longman, 2005. Print.
