3. It takes less time T O D O
T H I N G S R I G H T than to
explain why you did it
wrong.
Henry Longfellow
4. H O W W O U L D Y O U
D I S T I N G U I S H G O O D
T H I N G S F R O M B A D
T H I N G S ?
5. M O R A L I T Y
Morality refers to the set of standards an
individual person or society uses to judge
whether an act is good or bad, whether
someone is virtuous or not, or whether we
ought to do this or that.
E T H I C S
The word “Ethics” is sometimes used to
refer to one’s set of moral beliefs and
practices. Strictly speaking, however, it
refers to the discipline that examines the
moral standards of an individual or
society.
6. T H R E E G E N E R A L I D E A S O F
E T H I C S
APPL IED
E T H I C S
N O R M AT IV E
E T H I C S
M E TA E T H I C S
7. M E T A E T H IC S
It looks into the nature, meaning, scope, and
foundations of moral values, beliefs, and
judgments. Examples of metaethical
questions are: Is morality objective or
relative? Is morality based on reason,
emotions, intuition, or facts? What are
moral persons? What does it mean to be
morally accountable?
8. N O R M A T IV E
E T H I C S
It is concerned with the formulation of
moral standards, rules, or principles to
determine right from wrong conduct or
ways of life worth pursuing.
9. A PPL IE D
E T H I C S
It examines the particular moral issues
occurring in both the personal and social
spheres. It determines the moral
permissibility of actions and practices in
specific areas of human concern like
business, medicine, nature, law, sports, and
others.
10. Moral standards are often confused with other normative
standards also concerned with “good” or “proper” behavior,
such as:
1.Standards of Etiquette: based on culture or conventional
practices
2.Legal Standards: based on governmental laws
3.Religious Standards: based on religious laws
M O R A L
ST A N D A R D S
11. Four Characteristics of Moral Standards
1.Moral standards deal with matters that can seriously harm
or benefit human beings (and other moral persons).
2.Moral standards have universal validity.
•If it is morally wrong for Person A to do act X , then it is wrong to
do X for anyone under circumstances relevantly similar to Person
A’s.
3.Moral standards have a particularly overriding importance.
•Moral standards are used to evaluate even the correctness of
other normative standards such as legal and cultural ones.
4.Moral standards are not established by the decisions of
authoritarian bodies, nor are they determined by appealing to
consensus or tradition.
12. The difference between ethics and
morality is that while Morals define our
own character, Ethics dictates the inner
working of a social system.
SU M M A R Y
