Philosophy + Ethics

• Theft: NML and proportionalism


  - Theft breaches the primary precept "living in an ordered society".

  - It also breaches the secondary precept to not steal, which is reinforced by divine law "thou shall not steal".

  - Aquinas made an exception in the case of desperate need.

  -> A starving man might steal food from someone who had plenty.

  -> In this case, the precept of preserving life would take priority over living in an ordered society, as it would not be ordered for people to be dying of starvation.

  - Proportionalism would agree with Aquinas' exception, since:

  -> The intention behind it would be good (saving a life).

  -> The value of saving life would be proportionally greater than the disvalue of injustice to the victim of theft.
• Theft: Situation Ethics

  - The interest of people involved takes priority over rules/laws.

  - Consider agape.

  - The motive and foreseeable consequences of the action would be considered.

  - The agapeic calculus would be applied, to ensure justice.
• Theft: Virtue Ethics

  - Aristotle denounced all theft as a base action.

  -> He included it in a list of actions that has no mean, since it can never be the act of a virtuous person.

  -> There is no excess or deficiency.

  -> It is always the action of an unjust person.
• Lying: Natural Moral Law and Proportionalism

  - Lying breaches the primary precept of living in an ordered society. It is also breaching the secondary precept of not lying.

  -> It is included within the 10 commandments.

  - Lying breaches the cardinal virtues of courage and justice.

  - Aquinas viewed all forms of lying as wrong, even those intended to save a life.

  - However, he did view 'prudently keeping back the truth' as morally permissible. This can be termed as a necessary lie in the context that it is protecting someone from danger.

  
  

  Proportionalism would agree that lying in most cases is morally wrong, but there are some exceptions.

  -> In the case of a necessary lie, the intention would be to save life or protect from harm.

  -> The value of saving life or protecting from harm would be proportionally greater than the disvalue of injustice to the person being told the lie.
• Lying: Situation Ethics

  - Fletcher believed that lying was neither intrinsically right or wrong.

  -> Depends on what would affirm love in each situation.

  -> If applying agapeic calculus showed love would be best served by withholding information, then lying would be the best option.
• Lying: Virtue Ethics

  - Would consider lying to be viceful.

  - Truthfulness can be a virtue. There can be a golden mean to it (e.g. deficiency=self-deprecation, excess=boastfulness). You get your virtues and vices through habituation, if you lie you won't be achieving the virtue of truthfulness.

  - Some people could say that lying can be something a virtuous person does (cunning, courageous, caring) as in some cases it can do more harm to be truthful.

  - The virtue of practical wisdom (phronesis) enables a virtuous person to know which virtue takes priority in difficult situations.

  - Lying once (not making it a habit) does not make you viceful. Vices only develop through habituation.
• Abortion debate

  - Personhood problem

  -> Establishing whether or not the foetus is a person. Once this is established, the foetus is granted equal basic rights of protection as another person.

  -> Philosophers and theologians disagree about personhood and argue it begins at certain points:

  - Ensoulment (receiving a soul at conception).

  - Delayed ensoulment (40 days=boys, 90 days=girls - Aristotle).

  - Primitive streak (up to 14 days. after this, twins cannot be formed and a foetus forms individually).

  - Brain activity (consciousness).

  - Viability (ability for the foetus to not be dependent on the mother).
• Abortion: NML

  - Views are heavily based on the strong Sanctity of Life principle. (all life is sacred).

  - NML = against abortion.

  - Breaches a range of primary precepts (ordered society, does not protect the innocent, not preserving life, etc).

  - UK law permits abortion if the mother's life is in danger.

  - The Catholic Church only permits it only if the four criteria of the principle of double effect can be applied (e.g. the removal of a pregnant woman's cancerous uterus in order to save her life).
• Abortion: Situation Ethics

  - Fletcher made reference to the holocaust. Pregnant women would immediately be killed. A doctor performed abortions to save these women's' lives.

  - The agapeic calculus would say that this is the most loving thing to do.

  - If a mother or baby would suffer due to the mother being financially/mentally unable to care for a child, etc and the baby having a severe disability causing its quality of life to be close to none, the agapeic calculus may say that the most loving thing to do is to have an abortion to avoid suffering.

  - Situation ethics used on a case-to-case basis, but you can never be sure what is 100% the most loving thing to do as people can disagree.
• Abortion: Virtue Ethics

  - In his 'Politics', Aristotle wrote that if parents had too many children, abortion should happen "before sense and life have begun".

  - Modern virtue ethicist (Hursthouse) did not believe that abortion shouldn't have rules and rights applied to considering it. Abortion doesn't reflect your character, more your circumstances. You don't make a habit out of abortion, so it can't be a vice.

  - Individualistic approach to abortion. You're acting on behalf of your virtues, and even then, you won't necessarily develop virtues/vices as you are what you repeatedly do.
• Embryo Research

  - UK law:

  -> Research permitted up to 14 days (primitive streak ends, some people consider this being the start of personhood).

  
  

  - Purposes

  -> To understand causes of infertility and repeated miscarriage and to develop effective treatments.

  -> To develop more effective contraception.

  -> To understand more about and to be able to prevent or correct genetic conditions.

  -> To treat very serious and currently untreatable diseases such as Parkinson's.

  
  

  - Source of embryos

  -> Donated IVF embryos.

  -> Embryonic clones (therapeutic cloning - embryonic clone of the patient through use of their stem cells).

  
  

  - Designer babies

  -> Created through IVF.

  -> Result of editing DNA cells or embryos.

  -> Selection of sex on medical grounds and the creation of a saviour sibling is lawful in the UK.

  -> Some would like to alter appearance and intelligence.
• Embryo research: NML

  - Creation of the embryo via IVF breaches the primary precepts of:

  -> Worship God (those responsible for the IVF process='playing God'. God alone is the creator of life - "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you").

  -> Reproduction (It is wrong to separate the sexual act from the reproductive act).

  -> Living in an ordered society (can pose a threat to marriage and family harmony, which is needed in society).

  
  

  - Destruction of embryos

  -> At 14 days, embryos are destroyed if being used for research.

  - Breaches primary precept of preserving life.

  - Breach of commandment to not kill and secondary precept.

  -> In NML, the intention and action must be good. The intention of most uses of embryo research=good (curing motor neurone disease, correcting infertility), but the action is wrong.

  
  

  - Creation of designer babies for social reasons

  -> Goes against two primary precepts:

  - Worship God (God's ability of creation is put into the hands of humans).

  - Living in an ordered society (assesses value in terms of usefulness to society and devalues the weak, may lead to a race of 'super-humans' as all imperfections are corrected).
• Embryo research: Situation ethics

  - Fletcher = personhood was what granted rights. He thought this began when self-awareness and capacity to communicate occurred. The embryo is only a potential person as it cannot yet possess these characteristics. Therefore, embryo research, cloning and designer babies do not pose moral concerns.

  - Reproductive cloning might be seen as a loving thing to do for parents who can't conceive.

  - If people will benefit from these things, it is loving. e.g. removing genetic diseases from bloodlines.
• Embryo research: Virtue Ethics

  - Impossible to know what Aristotle thought as this technology was not around.

  - Modern virtue ethicists like Hursthouse tend to think of it as irrelevant as we cannot know what stage personhood exists.

  
  

  - Modern virtue ethicists may focus on the virtue of compassion.

  -> A compassionate person would focus on lives being ruined by infertility and life-threatening genetic disorders.

  -> Finding cures for this through embryo research seems to be compassionate.

  -> An important virtue for Aristotle is justice and the skill of practical wisdom (phronesis). This would allow individuals to know when the use of cloning, saviour sibling technology and the creation of designer babies for non-medical reasons would demonstrate that virtue or not.

  -> Can be seen as selfish as it can be used for personal gain (having your child genetically modified to be intelligent, etc).

  -> Can turn into eugenics - similar to Nazism in the holocaust. Creating a 'superior race'.
• Euthanasia

  - Active euthanasia

  -> A person deliberately intervenes to end someone's life.

  
  

  - Passive euthanasia (legal in UK)

  -> Lifesaving treatment is withdrawn.

  
  

  - Sanctity of life = all life is sacred.

  -> Life=gift from God.

  -> Only God has the power to end life.

  -> "God created man in his own image".

  
  

  For euthanasia:

  - Quality of life is so terrible it's not worth living.

  - People have the right to want to die. We have personal autonomy and are free to act independently.

  - God is forgiving.

  
  

  Against euthanasia:

  - Sanctity of life.

  - Painful for those who love the person.

  - Slippery slope argument: the more you legalise, the more will become desensitised, it will become normalised and habitual.
• Euthanasia: NML

  - Not preserving life.

  - Not worshipping God (rejecting God's gift of life, playing God).

  - Not ordered society (can get out of control, slippery slope argument).

  - Modern Catholic Church argues there is value in suffering and it is part of our given path from God.

  - Can't do a bad thing for a good outcome.
• Euthanasia: Situation ethics

  - Fletcher himself saw suicide and euthanasia as

  justified if out of compassion

  
  

  PRAGMATISM

  - Each case has to be judged according to the situation.

  - No intrinsic laws which prohibit the use of

  euthanasia.

  - Using limited resources to keep a terminally ill

  patient alive at the expense of the other patients

  welfare isn't justifiable.

  
  

  RELATIVISM

  - Killing innocent people cannot be an absolute

  wrong as each case has to be judged according

  to love and compassion.

  
  

  POSITIVISM

  - No law which states that life must be preserved at

  all costs.

  - Laws and rules are invented by humans to assist

  in the humane treatment of each other.

  - Might mean allowing or helping someone to die.

  
  

  PERSONALISM

  - Principle of love means acknowledging that a person's life might cease to be of value to them.

  - Recognises that humanity is more significant than

  mere biological existence.
• Euthanasia: Virtue ethics

  - Aristotle considers it as murder. Murder is a base act, of which you can never justify.

  - Aristotle's function argument: we all have a purpose/function and must work to fulfil this. Ours is to flourish and the doctors' is to preserve life.

  - Modern virtue ethicists may say it shows the virtues of compassion, bravery and love.
• Capital punishment

  - Being sentenced to death by the law.

  - Abolished in UK in 1970.

  - Fear of innocent people being executed.

  - Not having capital punishment is a condition of being a member of the EU

  - Can be seen as justice and people being punished in accord to the severity of the committed crime.

  - Can bring justice to the victims' family.

  - Innocent people have been executed.

  - Life=sacred.
• Capital punishment: NML

  - Aquinas regarded capital punishment as legitimate if carried out by the state.

  - If others performed it, it would be revenge.

  - Supports the primary precept of living in an ordered society.

  - Can be seen as serving God in protecting society.

  - Upholds cardinal value of justice as it fulfils the aim of retribution.

  -> However, in modern society, it may not follow the precept of living in an ordered society as innocent people can be killed.

  
  

  - The Catholic Church generally teaches to oppose capital punishment. Pope Francis has expressed strong opinions against it.

  - If death penalty is "the only possible way of effectively defending human lives", it is accepted. You also need to be sure that the person is 100% guilty.

  - We should try other ways. Capital punishment=last resort.
• Capital punishment: Situation ethics

  - No set view on capital punishment.

  - A case of what would affirm the most love in each situation.

  - It would take into account the concerns of all of those involved, including society as a whole.

  - Must consider all working principles.
• Capital punishment: Virtue ethics

  - Aristotle never referred to capital punishment, it could've been an accepted part of society at the time.

  - Virtue of justice applies.

  -> Interests of society must be taken into account.

  -> The execution of murderers might be justified on the grounds that they pose a threat to the security of society.

  -> Justice requires people to possess many of the other virtues. e.g. courage and temperance.

  -> "all virtue is summed up in dealing justly".

  - Justice is about balance. When one person murders somebody, the state should kill the murderer.

  - Aristotle would say we need to use our phronesis to determine what justice is and how to carry it out.
• The moral status of animals

  - There are sentient organs that are self-aware.

  -> Experience pain and pleasure.

  -> Aware of their own existence and context.

  -> Prefer to experience pleasurable lives.

  -> Prefer to stay alive.

  
  

  - Key moral issues raised by ethical issues relating to the use of animals.

  -> Whether or not humans have the right to use animals for food, in scientific procedures, in blood sport or a source of organs for transplant without their consent, given that they possess sentience, social organisation and cognitive skills.

  -> Whether or not animals have a right to life.

  -> Whether or not animals have a right to protection from unnecessary and avoidable suffering.
• Ethical issues relating to the use of animals: intensive farming

  - Use of animals for food; intensive farming.

  -> Farming animals in mass quantities for maximum efficiency to get the most profit and meet high demand.

  -> Animals for use in the food industry are often kept in crowded and filthy conditions or in tiny cages where they can't even turn around.

  -> They are subject, often with no anaesthetic, to painful procedures such as debeaking, having their tails cut off and branding.

  -> The meat industry contributes to the global problem of hunger since cattle require far more grain than they can produce meat.
• Intensive farming: NML

  - Aquinas adopted Aristotle's hierarchy of souls, which placed humans above plants and animals.

  - Animals are irrational, so they have instrumental value.

  - Their final end is to serve our needs.

  - "There is no sin in using a thing for the purpose for which it is made". - Aquinas.

  - Aquinas thought it was wrong to be cruel to animals because of the impact on human relationships. Cruelty to animals might encourage people to be cruel to one another, adapted from the old testament.

  - Aquinas makes clear in his Summa Theologica that animals are to be viewed as our property.

  - However, it could be seen to break a number of primary precepts;

  -> Worship God - Catholics are against genetic modification which is used in intensive farming to get more produce from the animals. We are 'playing God' as God is the creator.

  -> Preservation of life - contributes to world hunger and starvation. It also gives us diseases carried in the animals.

  -> Living in an ordered society - we can get diseases from the animals.

  -> Pope Francis rejects anthropocentrism as we need to be stewards and we owe animals kindness.
• Intensive farming: Situation Ethics

  - Agape doesn't really include animals.

  -> One of the four working principles is personalism. This is person-focused and suggests that even if the animals should be taken into moral consideration, human needs and interests take priority.

  - However, intensive farming has caused problems for the population of the world.

  -> Caused our population to be 8 billion - our resources aren't enough and it requires more food to be made and an increase in animal cruelty due to this.

  -> Nearly 800 million people are undernourished.

  -> The most loving thing could be to cut down Western animal consumption and use the grain to feed animals to feed the starving human population.
• Intensive farming: Virtue ethics

  - Aristotle = hierarchy of living things. Animals are below humans, their final end is to serve human needs. Animals were seen to have no rights by him.

  - Animals cannot use phronesis to hit the golden mean to reach eudaimonia.

  -> Modern virtue ethicists may view intensive farming as incompatible with being a virtuous person.

  -> The ethos of making large profits in the easiest way might encourage the vice of greed.

  -> The appalling conditions in which animals are kept can't be described as compassionate.

  -> The impacts of intensive farming on the world can't be described as compassionate.
• Animal cloning/testing

  - There are mass breeding programmes in government-licensed research to produce animals for testing the safety and efficacy of drugs and vaccines and for research into certain diseases.

  - Cloning applications = preserving endangered species, making animals disease-resistant, increase their meat and milk yield.

  - Ethical issues:

  -> Slippery slope argument - human-animal hybrids.

  -> Animals can't consent.

  -> Many scientists do not use anaesthetics even though animals can experience pain.
• Animal cloning/testing: NML

  - Status of animals = no greater than being human property.

  - If an animal dies as a result of any scientific procedures, it would not be an issue to Aquinas.

  - Use of animal testing to cure terminal diseases in humans would fulfil the primary precept of preserving life.

  - If you are excessively cruel to animals, you could do it to humans.

  - Modern Catholic Church: we should be kind to God's creation and be stewards. This includes kindness to animals.
• Animal cloning/testing: Situation Ethics

  - Fletcher himself was involved with cloning research.

  - He advocated the use of animals in scientific procedures as it is a pragmatic way to save human lives.

  - The working principle that the end justifies the means could be used in support of animal testing for medical reasons and acquiring greater understanding of diseases such as cancer.

  - However, some would argue that it can never be loving to subject an animal to the kinds of conditions and tests that experimentation requires. Again, situation ethics is anthropocentric and personalism is a working principle, so this argument is weak.
• Animal cloning/testing: Virtue Ethics


  - Aristotle used animals in his scientific research.

  - He claims our highest thing is our intellect.

  - Using our intellect to do scientific research is one of the best things we can do.

  - The benefits of curing diseases can be seen as virtuous, compassionate and intelligent.

  - Animal pain is not always controlled, however, and repeatedly torturing animals can be viceful and cruel.
• Blood sports

  - Sports that include bloodshed for animals and often death.

  - The sole intention is to provide entertainment for humans.

  - The animals used undergo terrible physical and emotional suffering.
• Blood sports: NML

  - Aquinas says we can use animals in any way we wish.

  - However, the excessive cruelty to animals can have impacts on human violence towards each other. Aquinas may therefore not be favourable of blood sports.

  - Cases where animals harm humans is not preserving life.

  - Could cause disorder.

  - Catholic Church = we should be kind to animals. Some have asked Pope Francis to ban it as it is not being a good steward.
• Blood sports: Situation Ethics

  - Opposed to the use of animals in blood sports.

  -> Agape demands compassion, not cruelty.

  -> The potentially desensitising effect on humans leads to agape being disregarded.
• Blood sports: Virtue Ethics

  - You can't develop virtues from excessively bringing pain to animals. You'll only develop vices such as greed, arrogance, callousness.

  - Traditional virtue ethics = can give you the virtue of courage. Hunting = common in Ancient Greece.

  - Aristotle = bull fighting could be courageous, but true courage is dealing with something unforeseen. Planned blood sports is not courageous as you need intent to be virtuous.
• Xenotransplantation

  - A transplantation of an organ, tissue, or cells between two different species.

  - Pigs are being produced with the aim of transplanting their hearts into humans, which will address the shortage of human hearts for donation.

  - Concerns about the transmission of animal diseases into humans and their mutation into something more deadly.
• Xenotransplantation: NML

  - Can't know what Aquinas would say as the technology was not around. We know that he thinks animals are to be used by humans to fulfil our needs.

  - However, many modern Catholics refuse to modify the DNA of animals or humans.

  - God is the creator of life and has control over the creation and ending of life.
• Xenotransplantation: Situation Ethics

  - The principle of personalism puts the needs of people first. Fletcher may support using animals as a source of organs due to this.

  - However, issues can come about with this and can hurt people more than do good.

  - Agapeic calculus = can save many lives which can produce the most love.

  - NHS shortage of organs = we need alternatives. We can be practical and find alternatives that could work.
• Xenotransplantation: Virtue Ethics

  - Aristotle approved of scientific research and dissected animals himself, however, he may or may not approve of using animals for organs.

  - Its purposes of understanding more about diseases such as cancer and saving lives through xenotransplantation could be seen as compassionate.

  - Some modern virtue ethicists may say the virtue of concern for humans is outweighed by the callousness and exploitation of the animals lives that are being destroyed.
• Dualism

  - The idea that reality has two fundamental aspects.