Absolutism Vs Utilitarianism

Words: 1206
Pages: 5
Open Document
Philosophy in relation to morals is by definition “the branch of philosophy dealing with both argument about the content of morality and meta-ethical discussion of the nature of moral judgment, language, argument, and value”. In short, we call this ethics. Throughout the years many Philosophers have taken it upon themselves to answer the perpetual question; what is morality? Their extensive endeavors have successfully unmasked a multitude of theories as to distinctly what morality is and how we can achieve it. Philosopher David Hume is known for his specialization in both Utilitarianism and the Moral Sense Theory, but how? These two ideas vary drastically, in some ways one could go as far as to say they oppose each other. With that being said, …show more content…
Illustrated by Francis Hutcheson in 1725, his book “Treatise II of An Inquiry Into the Original of Our Ideas of Beauty and Virtue” introduces these new concepts. Moral sense imposes the idea of how our emotions and emotional responses relate to our morals. It focuses on the motive behind the action rather than the outcome of the action itself. Hutcheson writes; “The moral sense, though not moral ideas, is innate, as can be seen from the sentiments of small children” (An Inquiry Into the Original of Our Ideas of Beauty and Virtue pages 145–146) giving the example that sentimentalism is something we naturally obtain, but strengthens with age and maturity. Another distinct characteristic of this theory is that it makes a clear contrast between moral and immoral. In David Hume’s book “A Treatise of Human nature”, he forms many new notions about both morality itself and what it consists of. He specifically expands upon reason and its relation to passion/action. According to Hume, reason is discovering the truth and/or falsehood of a situation. Passion to him is what we commonly refer to today as emotions, feelings, or desires. Action is simply how we act something out. Now that we understand this, we can begin to dissect the manner in which he uses these …show more content…
However, though we can judge action, it is nearly impossible to prove that an action is incorrectly due to the fact that we cannot determine the motive, unless it is a self judgement. They are not based on conformity to reason, but are based on an internal longing for what is, in the individuals mind, morally righteous. With Hume, we focus on the character of the agent preforming the action rather than the action itself, prompting it to line up in accordance with the Moral Sense
Show More

Related Documents: Absolutism Vs Utilitarianism

Philosophy Final Review Essay

a situation as variables to be controlled. The dominant modeof thinking in the industrial world, instrumental rationality lacks any notion of limits and has led to the creation of the modern technological infrastructure. • hypothetical imperatives vs. categorical imperative Kant describes reason as issuing demands or commanders to us. Kant calls these commands or demands imperatives Kant also describes rational imperatives as necessities "go to class, do this do that." Hypothetical imperatives…

Words 4122 - Pages 17

Cultural Relativism: A Theory Of Ethical Action

Ever since we were kids and became aware of our surroundings, our parents and elders have instilled in us a fundamental awareness of what is right and wrong. It is actually an inherent trait of all humans and grows from our desire to get along well with each other in order to live a peaceful life. To achieve this way of life we understand that we must do to other people what we expect them to do to us in return. We try very hard to do what we feel and see as the right things to do in certain situations…

Words 1879 - Pages 8

Essay on katie s midterm for philosophy

Katie’s STUDY GUIDE for Midterm Opens Thursday @ Noon- Closes 8 PM Friday People Plato- Ring of Gyges, Psychological egoism Jeremy Bentham- Utilitarianism/ Greatest Happiness/Hedonistic Calculus John Stuart Mill- Utilitarianism/ Greatest Happiness Aristotle- Intellectual Virtue, Principle of the Mean, Moral Virtue, Teleology Immanuel Kant- Categorical Imparative/ Goodwill Epicurus- Ataraxia, Happiness, Epistemology John Rawls -The Two Principles of Justice Concepts Moral Philosophy (Also known…

Words 2696 - Pages 11

Philosphy and Life is What you make of it Essay

Research Paper “PHILOSOPHY AND LIFE IS WHAT YOU MAKE OF IT” PHILOSOPHY 1381 UIW December 9, 2007 Abstract Wow, we’re finally at the end of our exploration into the world of philosophy. It been quite a long road for me but I made it through it all. Exploring this world that I had little knowledge of has broadened my horizon in the subject of philosophy. As we began we asked our selves “What is Philosophy? Philosophy is knowledge which is desirable in itself of those truths which can…

Words 2097 - Pages 9