Three Ethical Systems Paper (WK2)
Rosalie R King
Ohio Christian University
ET 3000 Ethics
Dr. Wolfe
March 25, 2013 We all have ethics that we follow even if we do not realize that we are following them. They are applied in the decisions we make in are day to day life and even the choices we make for our future. For many their ethics and morals are things that they learn through their upbringing and their life experiences. Others also apply their faith to their already instilled ethics and morals. In the paragraphs below I will be defining unqualified absolutism, conflicting absolutism, and graded absolutism and give examples of different scenarios involving all three ethical systems. Then finally I will conclude by identifying
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I know people of strong faith that tell a little white lie in order to protect others. This is one ethical system that I personal do not agree with. The system of conflicting absolutism states that moral laws cannot be avoided. It tells us that it maintains all moral absolutes and that there are no exceptions made (K, 2011). I find this to be untrue because I know that God has the power to change thing and he will always provide us a way out of situations. This ethical system basically tells us that it is our moral duty to choose the path of lesser evil. Most of our society is evil ultimate we live in an evil world and because of this conflict exists ("Three forms of,").
Under this ethical system if it came to lying to save someone’s life or tell the truth and have them die a person who uses this ethical way of think would make the choice to lie and save that person’s life because lying is doing the lesser evil. To me in this situation if I tell the truth and someone dies because of my decision then to me I had a part in killing them and that is worse than the lie I would have told in order to save their life. Under this system it is believe that we will be forgiven for choosing the less evil path. To me this ethical system is one that many people use when making the ethical decisions even though we all know that it is wrong to lie most people would never want to see anyone die.
Finally we come to graded absolutism the text book defines it as
When someone is making an ethical decision they are going through a process of making this decision based on their moral principles. Ethics are principles of behaviour that inform people how to act in certain situations are based on one’s environment
1. What were the costs and benefits to stakeholders of the actions taken by Massey Energy and its managers?
Batts, Denise Watson (2010). "Cancer cells killed Henrietta Lacks - then made her immortal". The Virginian-Pilot.
* --Is it ethical for an employer to require as a condition of employment or use as a consideration for advancement promotion, that an employee participate in organizations apart from the business (ie. community non-profit organizations)? Does the type or nature of the organization make a difference?
Creating and defining my own ethical framework is essential in future success as a businessman, a leader, and a team player. As a business student, I have learned that it can be a very cut throat industry and in order to get ahead, at some point and ethical dilemma will undoubtedly be an obstacle I have to overcome. The way I handle these dilemmas can make or break my career; business ethics are a key part of earning and sustaining respect, trust, and a good rapport with both clients and competitors in your industry. Therefore a solid ethical framework is an important tool for me to have as a standard for handling these types of dilemmas so that I can grow successfully while staying true to myself and to
In regards to choosing which ethical system, Polston provides a detailed overview of which absolutism is the best to follow. Graded absolutism believes that there are real moral conflicts (Geisler, 2010, p. 115). Real moral conflicts for Christians are appearing daily and the most recent event concerning Kim Davis a country clerk who has refused to hand out same sex marriage certificates. For her actions a judge has ordered to be jailed by U.S. District Judge David Bunning. As Proverbs 18:22 (NIV) says, “He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord.” For Davis, the issue came down to following civil law or adhering to God’s moral law. By adhering to the standards of graded absolutism then, anyone in Kim Davis’s
Belk provides a great outline of the differing major ethical systems along with breaking down the opposing absolutism’s. In addition to this, Belk states that a belief in moral conflicts defaults one to agree with graded absolutism. As Geisler points out, each absolute moral law is traceable to one of God’s unchangeable moral attributes (Geisler, 2010, p. 108). For Christians Isaiah 40:8 (NIV) says, “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” Because God’s word endures for ever, it is not changing which helps to further confirm that the moral laws God has put forth are absolute and will not change. Rodrigues describes the moral laws as those that are unchanging, based upon God’s character and apply
"Part of being human is the ability to" distinguish good from bad and vice versa (Rachels 9). Human nature is a ground for practical and moral norms that is; morality directs us to real human fulfilment. Great thinkers have formulated and developed a significant number of enduring moral principles over the centuries. Philosophy, like other social fields and also like individuals, draw on these principles, but this does not always make moral decisions easy. The principles are not entirely consistent, especially in sorting through dilemmas.
Health care professionals are subject to a multitude of professional, legal, and ethical responsibilities which call for personal judgment to be utilized in such a manner as to protect clients as well as public wellness and interests. Overall considerations in handling such duties may be considered to be respect of a client’s autonomy, confidence, and recognition of obligations owed to all clients. While the aforementioned acts fall within the professional realm, there are also legal implications that guide care. Therefore, it can be said that ethical considerations occur in observation of legal responsibilities. Confidential information is perceived as private facts which are disclosed with the
An ethical dilemma is an incident that causes us to question how we should react based on our beliefs. A decision needs to be made between right and wrong. I have experienced many ethical dilemmas in my lifetime, so I know that there is no such thing as an ethical dilemma that only affects one person. I also know that some ethical dilemmas are easier to resolve than others are. The easy ones are the ones in which we can make decisions on the spot. For example, if a cashier gives me too much change, I can immediately make a decision to either return the money or keep it. Based on Kant’s, categorical imperative there are two criteria for determining moral right and wrong. First, there is universalizability, which states, “the person’s
I was born in the late 1950s and spent my childhood in the 1960s and teen years in the 1970s. My upbringing was shaped very much, by how I was taught and raised. My parents were both members of a conservative religious organization and so with that said I learned this way of thought. We were raised to believe that the 10 commandments were the basis of all things right and wrong, that if we followed them our lives would be as God wanted. Not to mention our parents! As a child, we first believe all that our parents teach us. They are like God to us and must be right no questions asked. I had by then
Moral absolutism is an ethical theory which believes that there are absolute standards against which moral questions can be judged, and that certain actions are either right or wrong. Moral absolutists might, for example, judge slavery, war, dictatorship, the death penalty, or child abuse to be absolutely immoral regardless of the situations or beliefs of a culture that engages in these practices. Moral absolutism adopts the theory that certain actions are moral or immoral regardless of the circumstances in which they occur.
We human beings live in a society. The society or the social world we live in is based on human cooperation. In other words, the individuals in a society do not live in an isolated self-centered world. The human interactive system presupposes ethical and moral standpoint from which we operate. My personal ethical system is based on “service before self” and “love your neighbors as yourself”.
Using valid peer-reviewed sources on the Internet, update any dated facts in this case with more current information. How do these new facts reflect the current ethical culture of the Red Cross?
The word “ethics” comes from Greek ethikas meaning character. Today, we use ethics to describe the normative standard of behavior. The history of philosophical ethics has been broken up into five rational methods: Virtue, Traditional, Modern, and Post-Modern Ethics. Within these periods, the philosophy of ethics changed along with the changes being made within society.