- Main ethical perspectives
- Ethical perspective of obligation (or deontological ethics)
- The ethical perspective of character or ethics of virtue
- The ethical perspective of results or utilitarianism
- Importance of the ethical perspective
- References
The ethical perspective is the way in which people look at life, situations or their positions on it, it is what they believe is correct. A person is said to have an "ethical perspective" when he considers that his actions do good.
With the ethical perspective, the own concepts of good and bad are identified and differentiated, it helps to define problems by thinking systematically, it allows to see realities from different points of view, in order to make decisions.
The object of study of ethics is how to live correctly, it deals with how the decisions that are made affect the environment, how it impacts everything that surrounds us.
The ethical perspective is acquired throughout life and is related to habit, with the definition of what is good (virtue) or what is bad (vice).
Main ethical perspectives
The main ethical perspectives can be classified according to the answers to life questions and the ethical position believed to be correct.
Ethical perspective of obligation (or deontological ethics)
The ethical perspective of obligation is about should be, based on a predetermined set of rules of what is right and wrong.
It is duty to be the one that defines a moral course of action and establishes a line between good and evil. Its main exponent was Jeremy Bentham in his work entitled Deontology or the Science of Morality in 1889.
Under this perspective, individuals must be faithful to the norms of what they believe to be correct, it is imposed from the need to be consistent with personal values.
The ethical perspective of character or ethics of virtue
It is that perspective of ethics that accentuates the character of each person as the dominant element of thought and the decisions that he makes, always tending to those ideals that he considers appropriate for the progress and development of humanity.
In the ethical perspective of character, the person, their virtues, their character and their morals stand out more when making a decision.
The ethical perspective of virtue is present in ancient Greek philosophy in the works of Plato and Aristotle.
The ethical perspective of results or utilitarianism
It is that perspective of ethics in which what is morally correct is based on its usefulness for society, it recommends always acting in a way that produces the greatest amount of well-being possible to the world. The creator of utilitarianism was Jeremy Bentham.
It is established that human well-being must be maximized, the ethically correct choice is the one that produces the most happiness and least unhappiness for the greatest number of people.
Importance of the ethical perspective
Ethical perspectives are very important, since they come to be classified as a discipline of life, you should always try to apply them in all areas of life because they are related to the principles of morality, truth, usefulness and justice.
References
- Mill, JS (1984) Utilitarianism. Madrid, ES: Alianza Editorial.
- Polo, L., (1993) Ethics: towards a modern version of classical themes. Mexico City, Mx: Publicaciones Cruz O., SA
- Messerly John G (1994) An Introduction to Ethical Theories. Maryland, EU: University Press Of America.
- Jones Gerald (2006) Moral Philosophy: A Guide to Ethical Theory. Pennsylvania, EU: Trans-Atlantic Publications, Inc.
- Virtue Ethics (2003) California, EU retrieved from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy project.