Running Head: ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR 1 ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR. Name: Institutional Affiliation: Date:

Transcription

1 Running Head: ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR 1 ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR Name: Institutional Affiliation: Date:

2 ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR 2 Emmanuel Kant is a voice to reckon with in the modern philosophy. Kant s ethical theory revolves around duty (van Ackeren & Sticker, 2014). Kant believed that nothing could come out of this world and qualify to be categorized to be called good except good will (van Ackeren & Sticker, 2014). He defines goodwill by saying that it is doing what is dutiful and everybody should do things because it is devoted worth doing so. Goodwill is the moral value which the others stem from (Van Ackeren & Sticker, 2014). Moreover, an action is considered to be ethical no just because of the aftermath of anybody s actions, what we feel whether pain or happiness and even the natural way of doing things but just to do according to moral laws (van Ackeren & Sticker, 2014). Consequently, an ethical action does not depend on what it does or the effects it brings about and not what it achieves at the very end. Goodwill is just geared toward doing what duty demands (van Ackeren & Sticker, 2014). The moral law of Kant emphasized mostly the law of categorical imperative which had different dimensions. The principle of universalizability stemmed from this law and required that for an action to be accepted in the society, it must apply to all people. Additionally, he formulated the principle of humanity where he argued that a person should not be treated as the means to end, but themselves should be the ends (van Ackeren & Sticker, 2014). Kant further argues that what determines whether an action is right or wrong is the type of belief that one choose to follow. As per Kant, the crucial rational standard of moral argument is the categorical imperative. That is; a person ought to act, irrespective of his or her aims or purposes, in regards to general ways of acting that he/she could want another person to likewise embraces. Albert Camus on his Novel, The Stranger the principle of absurdity has been explored. According to Camus, human existence has neither meaning nor order (Curzon-Hobson, 2013). However, people have failed to come to terms with this principle, and always strive to find

3 ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR 3 purpose in the essence of living (Curzon-Hobson, 2013). In the novel, the concept absurdity means that people are trying to find purpose and meaning in their lives with no avail where none seems to exist. Consequently, Albert Camus does not clearly mention the concept of absurdity in the novel, but some aspects of it are evident (Curzon-Hobson, 2013). The macro environment that Meursault exist does not possess any trace of logical order (Curzon-Hobson, 2013). Moreover, the internal environment which is his thoughts and ideations does not have any element of rational order. Somebody finds himself confused as to why Meursault decided to marry Marie as well as to kill the Arab (Curzon-Hobson, 2013). However, the society tries to come up with explanations as to why the character does what he does. The community cannot bear the notion that happens without reason, and most events have no absolute meaning (Curzon-Hobson, 2013). The second part of the novel, where the prosecutor and Meursault battle, represents the society s attempts to come up with a rational order. Both try to justify the action of the suspect based on logic and reason and the principle of cause and effect (Curzon-Hobson, 2013). Existentialism has taken center stage in both works of Sartre, Respectable Prostitute and The Flies.' It provides one with a sense of identity and the struggle to come up with this character although some people view as just academia and no contemporary life application (Pojman & Vaughn, 2007). In the play, the Respectable Prostitute Sartre expresses the idea of facticity through various characters (Pojman & Vaughn, 2007). The main character in the play Lizzie wakes up in the morning after making love with a man asking him why his attitude does not reflect the actions of the previous night (Pojman & Vaughn, 2007). The man then answers that what happened the last night belongs to that night. In this case, Fred is developing an existentialist argument by saying the present cannot be defined by the past (Pojman & Vaughn,

4 ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR ). However, it is ironical for Fred to have made such arguments and goes further to defend his cousin Thomas for killing a man of color (Pojman & Vaughn, 2007). In the play The Flies, people judge themselves according to the past which should be the case if they want to be free. The Argives are not able to shape their present lives since their past sins keep haunting them (Pojman & Vaughn, 2007). Orestes who happens to be the only free character in the play acts to shape his future and does not rely on the past to shape his present life (Pojman & Vaughn, 2007). The concept of autonomy which means that people should do things according to what they believe is best for them. Authenticity means living to the expectation of which you are and therefore require an account of anybody s existence. Everybody is just a normal human being, and everybody s identity is identified by what they do and speak. Lizzie in the Respectable play Prostitute is expected to give false witness in the murder of the man with the color. Fred who tries to force her to do so tells her that she is a cheat by calling the man she slept with honey baby. She expected to live to her expectations of being a cheat and testify falsely in court. The concept of authenticity does not apply to life situations. For example, if somebody is the killer he is expected to kill up their kids. The idea of humanity and love cannot allow them to do so. It is not easy to be authentic due to changing human beliefs which give us a sense of direction on the course of action of certain issues. Desires block the way for authenticity which is determined by our intellectual abilities. Thought and action are part and parcel of the obligations that people find themselves having. However, when somebody acts according to their ideas and beliefs than authenticity is set to exist. Contrary to that then we have no such a concept.

5 ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR 5 REFERENCES Curzon-Hobson, A. (2013). Confronting the Absurd: An educational reading of Camus The stranger. Educational Philosophy And Theory, 45(4), Misselbrook, D. (2014). An A-Z of medical philosophy: X is for Existentialism: Kierkegaard, Heidegger and Sartre. British Journal Of General Practice, 64(629), Van Ackeren, M. & Sticker, M. (2014). Kant and Moral Demandingness. Ethical Theory And Moral Practice, 18(1),