“I would rather be a good man than a great king” said the character Thor in Thor: The Dark World. In these words we find a frightening tension. Almost everyone agrees that it is good to be ethical; this is an easy affirmation. It is much more difficult, though, when ethics is in direct opposition to success. This dichotomy- between ethics and success- will no doubt confront an engineer during a professional career of any substantial length. Can you say that you would rather be a good man than rich? Or popular? Or a successful engineer? What should happen when an engineer faces this question? One real world example that can shed some light on this problem is what is known as bid shopping. This essay will provide a thorough definition of the problem of bid shopping and the ethical dilemma surrounding it. It will then apply the ethical theories of Duty Ethics and Virtue Ethics to the question. And seek to show that bid shopping is unethical according to both ethical theories. First, the ethical dilemma itself will be outlined. In the construction industry, it is often necessary for an owner or a construction company to enlist the help of other smaller or more specialized companies in the completion of a project. This practice is known as contracting. When an owner or company, referred to as the contractor, wants to contract out for a job, they will list the job and interested companies will bid for the contract. When arriving at a bid amount, interested companies will estimate
Luke is in charge of ABC Company’s land development project in building an adult entertainment store on the land they recently purchased. Unfortunately, his brother, Owen, happens to live in the same area. Luke remembers Owen once told him he is thinking about selling his house, since he recently received a decent offer from a real estate firm. However, he is debating whether he should sell it or waits for the real estate to rise. Luke realizes with the appearance of adult entertainment in the near future, the values of Owen’s house and other houses in neighborhood are likely to drop significantly.
Luke can utilize the Golden Rule, which states that “One should treat others as one would like others to treat them”. Hence, if Luke somehow happened to help his sibling by unveiling data of the development of the retail stores in the neighborhood, he would want Owen to act in the same way towards him as he is with Owen. It would just be reasonable to feel that Luke reasons his activities with the Golden Rule, as he would not want such a store to be built close to his home. Then again, Luke would basically be selling out ABC by uncovering the data. According to the logic dictated by Golden Rule, it would just be reasonable for ABC to sell out Luke (by eventually terminating him). ABC
The FIFA scandal is to be analyzed utilizing the Utilitarian and Virtue ethics framework, in order to view why FIFA senior management violated both ethical frameworks. Under the Utilitarian theory FIFA management violated the this ethical theory by treating personal as means to the end praying on the necessities of the country bidding for an opportunity to host such a prestige event in their country. Utilitarian Theory Utilitarian theories hold that the moral worth of actions or practices is determined by their consequences.
This theory is one that focuses on self-interest. Holmes suggests that actions taken under this theory are usually defended by the need to operate in the best interest of the general public or the society at large. The basic understanding of this theory is that torture in order to garner necessary and pertinent information is acceptable as long as the end justifies the means (Holmes 2007)
Virtue ethics is concerned with the traits of character that make one a good person. Virtue ethics seems to be more personal because it is not about choosing which side of an issue one would prefer to take part in, but the kind of person one wants to be. A virtuous person is considered to be a morally good person, and virtues are good traits. For virtue ethics, the moral life is about developing good character.
As various ethical theories continue to be debated, it can be difficult to determine which model provides the best criteria. However, two theories in particular—virtue ethics and care ethics, have continued to catch much attention since the mid-twentieth century. Although each of these theories are often associated with one another, they both contain their own distinct philosophies. As a result, it is important to clearly understand what each theory entails before concluding that one is derived from the other.
With winter break 2016 winding down, in anticipation of the upcoming spring semester of classes, I found myself compelled to login to my Creighton accounts and explore what the class material that had already been placed onto Blueline. Glancing briefly at the course layout, I was initially shocked by the large amount of information that had been posted under my Theology 270 class. Examining the rubric, I can honestly say I was less than excited to discover a total of six papers and two tests would be required to pass the class. It would be a lie to not confess that the thought of attempting to possibly switch classes, or even drop the class entirely certainly crossed my mind during my initial judgment of the class. However, now with just a
The ethical theory in the reading that appeals to me the most is virtue ethics. This theory appealed to me the most because it is something that I agree with and live by. Virtue ethics supports what it means to be human. It includes the person as a whole. I use this ethical theory in everyday life. Virtue ethics is not used in a single situation; it is spread out overtime. I practice virtue ethics by showing wisdom, having courage and temperance, and avoiding vices. I feel as if virtue ethics is the ethical theory that appeals to me the most because it is something that I follow by in everyday life.
Moral character is what dictates an individual 's decision making and affects their experiences throughout their life. A person 's morals can be based off one 's upbringing and environmental factors. Virtue ethics is a philosophical view that greatly supports this claim that the choices a person makes and their actions follow those choices, and display their moral character. This is more likely to be true than Kantianism because this type of ethical view is based off Immanuel Kant, a philosophical thinker whose emphasizes that his writings and beliefs influence the choices people make. However, people do what is morally acceptable in
After reading your discussion, I would have to agree with you on all of the points you made throughout your discussion. I am also an animal lover and I do not think animals should be held in captivity for our own pleasure. I am also against unsafe fishing practices that result in harming and killing animals. I noticed that you applied your argument to theory of virtue ethics. I do believe that being a good role model for future generations could have an impact on how we view animals in the world. Utilitarianism can also be applied to captive animals and unsafe fishing practices. The happiness of humans does not outweigh the suffering of captive animals or animals that are injured or killed in fishing nets. In regards to whether certain animals should be given special considerations, I noticed that you think that all animals should be considered equal.
Due to the vagueness of the specific acts the friend may engage in, it is difficult to establish whether the behavior is truly ethical or unethical. However, utilizing the ethical framework of ethics of virtue will deem the friend as behaving immorally. Similarly, ethical formalism may also argue that the friend’s behavior is also unethical because there is motive. The motive is to not offend others; her actions are not solely based on being good but to please others. Although ethics of care may find the friend’s behavior to be ethical, the application of the other two ethical frameworks argues otherwise. Therefore, the friend is not engaging in ethical behavior as ethical formalism and ethics of virtues indicates.
Answer: I think that virtue ethics is the best theory for several reasons. First of all, the main component behind virtue ethics is self fulfilment and achieving inner happiness through actions that you believed to follow your morals, it simply felt true and pure from within. Another factor that comes into play is living a life of no regret, virtue ethics allows you to do this because the choices made are those of pure and true intentions and selflessness, self-interest, and greed do not come into play. Allowing you to reflect back on your life and being able to say that you lived a life of truth and honesty. That is what someone who follows virtue ethics really wants to achieve, mostly for peace at the end of their human lives. When compared to Utilitarianism, it differs dramatically in terms of the “end game” and how one choses to live their life. “The three common ways of evaluating actions are: 1) according to their consequences, 2) according to their internal features, and 3) according to the character traits they exhibit or reflect.” (Moral Philosophy, 156). These three types of evaluations show us
Virtue ethics contends that to live ethically is to live virtuously, and conversely, to live virtuously is to live ethically. This roots in Nichomachean Ethics and Aristotelian philosophy that to cultivate a happy life over time, one must make a habit of excellence as it does not come from singular acts. Vaughn presents this as, “what should I be?” A virtue ethicist is not concerned, or defined by acts alone, but the virtues that motivate them such as compassion, honesty, and loyalty. This also relates to a whole being, again harkening back to Aristotle, rather than just a rule or principle being followed as a matter of rightness. To reference on the website http://www.pursuit-of-happiness.org/, Aristotle said that, “for the same reason we cannot say that children are happy, any more than we can say an
AVirtue ethics or the virtue theory, is an ethical theory that examines the character of a human for morality (Dreisbach, 2013). When discussing the ethical and moral reasoning behind the racial divide of incarceration rates, virtue ethics requires us to evaluate the morality of the person doing a given act, rather than the act itself (Dreisbach, 2013). Using virtue ethics, you can look at the racial disparity from two perspectives that of the offender and that of the people enforcing the laws. From the offender’s perspective you have to look at the values of each individual offender who breaks the law, you have to dissect their upbringing to determine their moral compass. As far as the government officials whether local, state, or federal each individual person’s morals have to be looked at, whether they are the person who drafts a law or bill to help or further harm the issue of racial disparity in incarceration rates.
I would begin by saying my discussions will be centered on two intriguing theories I have learnt through this course deontology ethical theory and Virtue ethical theory. To my understanding, deontology theory takes on the face of a normative ethical position that judges the morality of an action based totally on regulations, rules and laws. The theory is far on occasion described as "responsibility-" or "duty-" or "rule-" based totally ethics, due to the fact that it emphasizes on guidelines "binding people to their responsibility". For instance deontology states that an act that is not appropriate morally can cause something top, such as capturing the intruder but killing is inaccurate even if it’s in defense of your own family for