Ethical theories- Morality of Actions

Ethical theories- Morality of Actions

Daily, people face many situations that test their morals and ethics. People’s actions affect other people in various ways, and therefore, individuals must strive to take the most ethical and appropriate actions. Accordingly, several ethical theories are developed to oversee ethical actions and behaviors. Some of these ethical theories include Virtue Ethics, Aristotle’s Golden Mean, Kantian Theory, Utilitarianism, Ethics of care, Ethical Egoism, Social contract theory, and Natural Law ethics. Subsequently, an action can be assessed using these ethical theories to classify it as ethical or unethical. However, these ethical theories differ from each other, and thus, a satisfactory theory must be considered in some cases. Therefore, a satisfactory theory would consider human nature and reasons for human actions. It would also insist on how humans should treat each other, consider people’s motives, apply multiple strategies of utilitarianism, consider the community to be affected by actions, and the action should be fair and just.

The moral theory from week eight stipulates that an ethical action should be for the greater good in communities based on the veil of ignorance. The veil of ignorance stipulates that people’s circumstances in a community influence their actions (The University of Texas, 2021). In this case, John Doe downloads textbooks for free because he cannot afford the books at the prices set by the authors and publisher. His actions enabled him to acquire information and knowledge that is necessary for learning while overlooking his financial strain since he does not spend money buying the textbooks he downloads. This results in saving money he would otherwise spend on buying books. The ethical theories applying, in this case, would be Social Contract theory and Natural Law ethics. These two ethical theories apply to John Doe’s case due to his actions. Accordingly, Social Contract Ethics dictates that people’s actions in a community are governed by the society’s moral standards (Rachels & Rachels, 2019).

Additionally, the veil of ignorance mandates a society to ignore certain actions of people in certain situations. Subsequently, in John Doe’s case, his interest is to acquire knowledge from books that he cannot afford but can download from various sites for free. Accordingly, Social Contract Ethics, in collaboration with the veil of ignorance, apply in this case because John Doe’s circumstances do not provide him with the luxury of affording the book. The second theory is the Natural Law Theory, which governs people’s actions within a society set up. Consequently, without the veil of ignorance, John Doe’s actions would be deemed immoral, but with the veil of ignorance, society must overlook John Doe’s actions due to his financial strain.

Consistently, the veil of ignorance can be applied in Jane Doe’s case. The veil of ignorance is applied under two considerations: the principle of liberty and the maximin principle. These aspects give people the opportunity to implement their liberty to the extent that it does not intrude on the freedom of others and to succeed by providing equal opportunities to everyone by helping those in unsuitable circumstances (The University of Texas, 2021). In Jane Doe’s case, her financial status requires her to spend most of her time working, limiting her study time and resulting in her opting for unethical actions. Based on the veil of ignorance, her actions would be moral as long as they align with the freedom of others, and they should give her an equal chance at succeeding. Subsequently, Jane Doe’s actions constitute cheating; thus, considering the principle of liberty, her religion forbids cheating, and some of her actions are also forbidden by her school. Therefore, her actions violate the principle of liberty of the veil of ignorance. Furthermore, based on the maximin principle, she should obtain resources that would provide her with an equal chance of success. In this case, Jane requires time since she spends money on paying people to do some of her assignments. Creating time would require her to quit one of her jobs and spend that time studying. The financial strain might make Jane Doe feel the actions are justified, but since she violates the principle of liberty, she also maximizes on the principle of maximin since she is financially disadvantaged. However, the advantages should apply to everyone involved, but in this case, only Jane Doe enjoys the advantages.

The violation of the principle of liberty is seen in various weeks. Firstly, cheating is forbidden in Jane Doe’s religion, and thus, every action of each week violates the principle of liberty. Secondly, in week six, she violates the principle of liberty by committing self-plagiarism, which is forbidden at University X. Also, she uses other people’s work in weeks one, four, and seven; additionally, she pays people to do her assignments and hands them in as her own. Finally, she violates the maximin principle by finding moral excuses for cheating weekly throughout the unit without the professor realizing it.

Jane Doe’s action is unethical, and various ethical theories can be used to illustrate this. Using the ethics of egoism, which dictates that morality is based on satisfying individual interests, Jane Doe’s actions are moral in this context. Utilitarianism focuses on an action’s effects by determining the level of happiness caused and how appropriate the action is. Jane Doe’s actions only bring her happiness and aren’t appropriate; hence, they are unethical. Deontological principles dictate that moral actions are determined by a set of rules of principles despite its effects (Tanner et al., 2008). Jane Doe did not follow the rules set by her religion or institution regarding cheating; thus, her actions were unethical. Therefore, Jane Doe’s actions were unethical based on the standards set by her religion and by the institution, going against social values. Thus, she should inform her professor of her situation and explain herself so that the professor can come up with the most appropriate solution to her problem.

In conclusion, ethical theories can be used to determine the morality of an action. Different theories have different stipulations, and therefore in some cases, unethical actions might be overlooked. However, this is not the case in Jane Doe’s case, who repeatedly committed unethical actions.

References

Rachels, S., & Rachels, J. (2019). The elements of moral philosophy (9th ed.). Mcgraw-Hill Education.

Tanner, C., Medin, D., & Iliev, R. (2008). Influence of deontological versus consequentialist orientations on act choices and framing effects: when principles are more important than consequences. European Journal Of Social Psychology, 38(5), 757-769. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.493

The University of Texas. (2021, January 25). Veil of ignorance. Ethics Unwrapped. https://ethicsunwrapped.utexas.edu/glossary/veil-of-ignorance

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1) The definition of a minority does not necessarily mean a person who belongs to a small group within a population. What are the five characteristics of a “minority,” according to sociologist Louis Wirth in 1945?

Ethical theories- Morality of Actions

2) Based on your readings and experience, pick a minority group and discuss them using the five characteristics of a “minority,” according to Wirth. Do all five characteristics fit for that group? Why or why not?

3)Find a current newspaper or magazine article regarding the group you chose (within the last five years). How does what you studied in this section relate to the current situation of the American minority group that you studied?
Note: Please include a link for the article you chose in APA format on a reference list at the end of your essay.