Ethical Egoism & Abortion
Ethical egoism, as a philosophical position, holds that it is an ethical obligation for people to act in their own self-interest. How does this philosophical position deal with the debate over the morality of abortion? It is necessary, before beginning a closer analysis, to define our terms. Abortion is a hotly contested issue, but our sense of ethics here needs to be understood first as distinct from religion or law, both of which often bring with them a sense of ethical obligation. It is true that abortion can violate a religious prohibition -- although this view is most often associated in the United States with Christian religious groups, it is not limited to them. We might note, for example, that the traditional Hippocratic Oath administered to physicians contains a solemn promise never to perform no abortion, sworn to a whole pantheon of non-Christian polytheistic pagan gods. It…...

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References

Denis, L. (2007) Abortion and Kant's formula of Universal Law. Canadian Journal of Philosophy, 37:4, 547-580. Retrieved from: -- Denis.pdfhttp://www.canadianjournalofphilosophy.com/PDFs/cjp37-4--547-580

Gordon, L. (1982) Why nineteenth-century feminists did not support "birth control" and twentieth-century feminists do: feminism, reproduction, and the family. In Thorne, B. And Yalom, M. (eds.) Rethinking the Family: Some Feminist Questions. New York: Longman.

Kalin, J. (1981) In defense of egoism. In Reid, CL (ed.) Choice and Action: An Introduction to Ethics. New York: Macmillan.

Saletan, W. (2009) Tiller's killer: is it wrong to murder an abortionist? Slate.com. Retrieved from:  http://www.templeton-cambridge.org/fellows/showarticle.php?article=371

Most philosophers, however, reject egoism or ethical egoism as it violates the foundations of an ethical system. Two persons to both maximize their respective self-interests will lead to conflict. Moreover, egoism inclines towards the exploitation of the weak. When a person is caught performing an illegal act or an act violating a professional code of ethics, it is almost always because of egoistic behavior that he committed it (Cengage).
Gun Control and Ethical Egoism

Law enforcers are allowed to carry weapons to use in the performance of their duty to arrest suspects and to protect themselves from criminal elements. Other individuals are also permitted to bear arms for justifiable reasons, mainly for protection, such as treasurers, bodyguards and prosecution witnesses in criminal cases. ut the possession of weapons has not been totally strictly controlled. In many cases, they fall into the hands of criminals themselves or accidentally hurt or destroy persons…...

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Cengage (2013). Determining moral behavior. Chapter 2 FPO. Cengage Brain: Cengage

Sites. Retrieved on April 19, 2013 from http://www.cengagesites.com/academic/assets/sites/5054/Chapter2.pdf

Fieser, J. (2009). Ethics. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: University of Tennessee at Martin. Retrieved on April 19, 2013 from  http://www.iep.utm.edu/ethics/#SSH2c.ii 

Goodman, P. (2013). Pros and cons of gun control laws in the U.S. HubPages: HubPages,

Others argue against Ethical Egoism. The work of Pecorino states as an argument against Ethical Egoism the facts as follows: Ethical Egoism "provides no moral basis for solving conflicts between people; (2) Ethical Egoism "obligates each person to prevent others from doing the right thing; (3) Has the same logical basis as racism"; (4) "The egoist cannot advise others to be egoists because it works against the first egoists interest"; and (5) "No one person can expect the entire world's population to act in such a way as to produce the most benefit (pleasure) for that one person." (2000)
IV. Contrast of Doctrines of Motivation

Ethical Egoism is driven from a different motivation that is Psychological Egoism in that Ethical Egoism holds a view that one should do what is ethical and what is in his own best interest simultaneously if possible while Psychological Egoism holds that self-interest is above all…...

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Bibliography

Hobbes, T. (1968) Leviathan, edited with an introduction by C.P. Macpherson, (Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1968) Chapter 6, "Good," p.120.

Baier, Kurt. 1991 "Egoism" in a Companion to Ethics. (ed. P. Singer) Oxford: Blackwell, 197-204.

Pecorino, Phillip a. (2000) Chapter 8: Ethics Teleological Theories Sunysuffolk Edu. Accessed 3 Mar 2007. Online available at http://www2.sunysuffolk.edu/pecorip/SCCCWEB/ETEXTS/INTRO_TEXT/hapter%208%20Ethics/Teleological_Theories.htm.

Ethical Egoism & Psychological Egoism

83).
Let us go through these arguments. The first argument does not suggest that a person involved in business should disregard any ethical obligations. One can economically survive in business without violating the norms of morality. Moreover, as Beverluis argues, "we are in a real sense 'doing' business ethics. For what is a 'right'? If one puts forward the claim to have certain moral rights (as opposed to legal rights), one is willy-nilly engaged in the activity of business ethics . . . (ibid).

The second and the third arguments again are hypothetical and do not necessarily prove that one needs to disregard moral considerations. As Beverluis states, "[o]ne can (normally) survive economically without selling one's soul. One may not become rich but the argument turns on survival, not riches" (ibid). As for the fourth argument, it is again a hypothetical assumption. One can in the same way say that a…...

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References

Beverluis, E.H., 1987. Is There "No Such Thing as Business Ethics"? Journal of Business Ethics, (6), pp. 81-88.

Chong, C.K., 1992. Ethical Egoism and the Moral Point-of-View. Journal of Value Inquiry, (26), pp. 23-36.

Emmons, D., 1969. Refuting the Egoist. Personalist (50), pp. 309-319.

Frankena, W., 1963. Ethics. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Ethical egoism unsatisfactory moral theory; important corrective ethics -sacrifice. Briefly relate ethical egoism, defended Ayn Rand, ethics -sacrifice, presented Carol Gilligan's stage moral development.
Philosophy commentary

1st thread

Conventional morality tends to prioritize self-sacrifice as the ideal, particularly for females. However, the valorization of self-sacrifice can be taken too far -- Gilligan's theory of gender-based moral development seems to suggest that it is 'natural' for girls to prioritize harmony over objective ethical systems, even over their own welfare or personal sense of morality. For women to feel as though they have the right to pursue an education, to be competitive, and to have equal rights in the workplace and at home they must believe they have a certain intrinsic moral right to realize their personal goals. Too much self-sacrifice can result in codependency or supporting other people to the point that others take advantage of the person who is giving everything in…...

Ethics and Morality
In basic terms, ethical egoism can be regarded as an ethical position (normative) in which case an agent ought to undertake a course of action that maximizes his or her own self-interest. Thus in this case, the primary duty of the agent is to promote his or her own interests. In this text, I concern myself with ethical egoism. In so doing, I develop several arguments in favor of the theory. Further, I highlight several objections that could possibly be used to counter my arguments.

Ethical Egoism: Supporting Arguments

In the opinion of Arrington (1998), "ethical egoism is the claim that every person ought to act so as to promote her own self-interest." Several arguments can be used in support of ethical egoism. To begin with, it is important to note that each individual is more often than not perfectly aware of his or her needs and wants. It is…...

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References

Arrington, R.L. (1998). Western Ethics: An Historical Introduction. Malden Massachusetts: Wiley-Blackwell.

Shafer-Landau, R. (2007). Ethical Theory: An Anthology. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell.

Ethics and Nursing
One of the nurses you work with is an ethical egoist, should you report him to your nurses' supervisor? Why or why not?

This person should not be reported because the definition of what is meant by good has not been given. For example, Socrates could be considered an ethical egoist because he held the position that persons of intelligence always act in their own self-interest, i.e., for their own personal good, but what he meant by that was that they do good to others and to the spiritual being above them and in this manner do good for themselves. However, another person might define the good as something that gives any passing benefit whatsoever, such as pleasure or monetary gain -- and this concept of the good would not meet Socrates' approval, i.e., he would not call it good. Yet this same person might also identify as an…...

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References

Bennett, Christopher. "Utilitarianism." What is this thing called ethics?. London:

Routledge, 2010. 55-73

Ethical Egoism. (n.d.). PLE. Retrieved from  http://philosophy.lander.edu/ethics/ethical_ego.html

NietzschesOntheGenealogyofMoralityIntroductionNietzschesfocusontheopposingmeaningsofgoodservesasthebasisofhisOntheGenealogyofMorality,whereintheFirstTreatisecontraststheRomangood/badparadigmwiththeJudaic/Christiangood/evilparadigm.Theformer,accordingtoNietzsche,isassertive,nobleandstrongtakingprideinitsstrength;thelatterisweak,bitter,andenviousseekingrefugeinthesouloutofashamefulsenseofoppressionandresentment.Thegood/badparadigmisassociatedwithanancientaristocracystemmingfromtheAryanraceofwarriors,theoriginalCelts,inNietzschesview.TheslavemoralityoftheJewsandChristianswasbornoutofthefactthattheoppressed,weakerpeopleresentedthearistocracyandtheirprideandstrengthandpervertedthenotionofthegoodtoreflecttheirowninferiority.ThisiswhyNietzschereferstoChristianandJewishmoralityasslavemoralityforinhisviewitdoesnotreflectanythingnoble,self-asserting,orself-determining;instead,itreflectsonlythehumiliationoftheweakandconquered,teachingasitdoesself-renunciationratherthanself-love.Nietzschebelievesthatthemasterraceisanoble,self-loving,self-assertingracebecauseitrefusestobeweak;itmakesenemiesandrelishesinthefact.ForNietzsche,thereisnogood/evilparadigm,forherejectsthevaluesoftheJewsandChristians;forhim,thereisonlythegood/badparadigm.Forthisreason,NietzscheisanEthicalEgoist.ThispaperwillexplainNietzschesEthicalEgoismbycriticallyanalyzingtheFirstTreatiseofOntheGenealogyofMoralityandidentifyingitsrejectionofvirtueethicsanddeontologyinfavorofegoism.WhoAreWe?WhenNietzscheopensinhisIntroductiontohisFirstTreatisewiththestatement,WeareunknowntoourselveshedoessoinordertoattackthetraditionalethicalnormsthatWesternsocietyhadcultivatedoverthecourseofthousandsofyearsfromtheancientGreeksthroughtheChristianizationoftheWestandintothemodernera(3).Hisargumentisthatbyembracingafalseparadigmofmoralityagood/evilparadigmengenderedprimarilybyJews(anoutcastandoftensubjugatedpeople)andChristians(persecutedforhundredsofyearspriortotheirascentunderConstantine)weknowershavelostknowledgeofourtrueselvesandthetruenaturallaw(3).Thelawisnotoneofgoodandevil,butratherofgoodandbad,hestates.Whatisgoodistheself;whatisbadisdestructionoftheselfinNietzschesethicalview.Nietzschelaysoutthisviewbyfirstidentifyingtheproblemasonethatrelatestomoralityandtoallthathithertoonearthhasbeencelebratedasmorality(4).Hequestionsthelegitimacyofthismoralitybyaskingabouttheoriginofthetermsgoodandevilandlookingnotintheologyandethicsfortheanswersbutrathertohistory.Hefindsinhistoryadeviationfromtheoriginalparadigmofgoodandbad,adeviationthatresultedintheparadigmofgoodandeviltakingholdinsociety.Theoriginalparadigm,heasserts,isthetrue,naturalparadigm:Thepathosofnobilityanddistancethecontinuingandpredominantfeelingofcompleteandfundamentalsuperiorityofahigherrulingkindinrelationtoalowerkind,tothosebelowthatistheoriginoftheantithesisgoodandbad(Nietzsche12).ItisthisnaturalorderofthingsofarulingpeopleholdingpoweroveraweakerpeoplethatNietzscheviewsasthecorrectperspectiveonhistory.ItisusedtosupporthisviewofEthicalEgoism,becauseitisrootedintheideaoftherulingclasscomingtopowersimplybyhavingthewilltotakepowerandretainit.Nietzscheadmiresthistoughnessofthewillandseesitastheepitomeofgoodness.Inthemodernera,hedespisestheweak,thesoft,thecompassionate,asheseestheseasattributesofapersonconstrainedbytheslavemoralityofthegood/evilparadigm.Wearedrivenbyegoismtotakeforourselveswhatwewantandtoruleoverothersasbestwecanandthis,Nietzscheclaims,isgood.NietzschesEgoismThepresuppositionofNietzscheisthatthegood/evilparadigmofslavemoralityisahistorical.Heviewsitasoutsidethetrueoriginsofhumanendeavorsasaperversionofhistoricalthought.Thegood/evilparadigm,however,hasitsownhistoryandcosmology,anditpositsthatthehumanraceisfallen,duetosinagainstGod,andthatgoodandevildoinfactexistinrealitybecausethesearethetwoforcesinoppositiontooneanother.ItisexplainedbyChristiansandJewsaccordingtotheirownreligiouscontexts,butotherpeoplesthroughouthistoryhaveexplainedthesetermsinaccordancewiththeirowncosmologies.Nietzschespresupposition,lurkingbehindhisview,isthatgoodandevilarenotrealbutare,rather,fabricationsofweakmindsthatrefusetoharnesstheirownwilltopowerandassertthemselves.Nietzschebelievestheiruseofthetermgoodtobeunoriginalandhisuseofthetermgoodtobeconsistentwithitstrueoriginaldefinition.Andforthatreason,heasserts,Itisbecauseofthisoriginthatfromtheoutset,thewordgoodisabsolutelynotnecessarilyattachedtounegoisticactions:asthesuperstitionofthesemoralgenealogistswouldhaveit(12).Thus,hearguesthatgoodshouldnotbedivorcedfromegoismbutitisbecausemoralslavesareafraidoftheego.Theegowasrepresentedbythearistocracy,inNietzschesmind,becausethearistocracywasstrong,powerfulandontop.Thearistocracypossessedenoughegoismtoknowthatithad…...

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Works CitedNietzsche, Friedrich. “On the Genealogy of Morality.” Cambridge University. 

https://philosophy.ucsc.edu/news-events/colloquia-conferences/GeneologyofMorals.pdf 

Right or rong? EuthanasiaIntroductionIn 2000 veteran actor Richard Farnsworth at the age of 80 took his own life rather than allow cancer to consume his final days and force him to become a burden to his family (AP). The news was shocking to some fans of the beloved series Anne of Green Gables, in which Farnsworth had starred as the beloved surrogate father to the eponymous heroine. But others, like comedian Norm Macdonald lauded the star, saying it was noble of him to make that decision for himself and for his family, regardless of what critics thought (Smith). Opponents of euthanasia, which is (in most states) the illegal doctor-assisted suicide of a person, claim that it is immoral and unjustified from an ethical perspectiveleading people like Farnsworth to take drastic measures to end their lives. Opponents note that suicide is never justified, and arguments from various ethical perspectivesfrom virtue ethics…...

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Works CitedAP. “Actor Richard Farnsworth Kills Himself.” Los Angeles Times, 2000.   A. Ethics: Approaching moral decisions. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2007.Neuman, Scott. “Judge Overturns Assisted Suicide Law in California.” NPR, 2018.  https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/05/16/611527757/judge-overturns-assisted-suicide-law-in-california Smith, Kyle. “Why Norm Macdonald Didn’t Discuss His Terminal Cancer.” National Review, 2021.  https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/why-norm-macdonald-didnt-discuss-his-terminal-cancer/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-oct-07-mn-32851-story.html Holmes,

Case Study epliesJosephI think the skepticism described by Herring (1936) for ones own government is normalbut nearly a century later I feel a lot of peoples skepticism is probably justified. Maybe it is a result of growing up in the shadow of Orwells books Animal Farm and 1984. Or maybe its the fact that weve seen through the decades what governments are capable of doing, how special interests control them, and how propaganda and lies are used to twist narratives and get the public believing in something false to justify some action that the government wants to takelike the invasion of Iraq after 9/11. There are literally no ethical frameworks guiding the various intelligence agencies, from the CIA to the FBI, and so on (Fabre, 2022). That presents a problemas the rest of society at least tries to apply the ethics of deontology or consequentialism or even virtue ethics at…...

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ReferencesPlant, J. F. (2018). Responsibility in Public Administration Ethics. Public Integrity, 20(sup1), S33-S45. I. (2020). Treasure Hunt: Ethical Egoism vs Individual Anarchism. K@ ta Kita, 8(1), 116-123.https://doi.org/10.1080/10999922.2017.1413927Wijaya,

Executive Interview with a TeacherFor this interview, a high school teacher was interviewed. He described his ethical beliefs to me in person. The interview was conducted in his classroom and was recorded using video for future reference. The interview was semi-structured, which allowed for a more reflective and immersive but also guided interview process to take place (Dearnley, 2005). The analysis for this paper is taken from that interview recording.Description of the Subjects Ethical BeliefsThe ethical beliefs and practices of a teacher are an important foundation for providing quality education. The subjects self-described ethical beliefs were based on the system of virtue ethics. Virtue ethics is centered around acting in accordance with ideals that if pursued will improve ones moral character; ultimately the development of ones character contributes to the development of society as a whole, as ones good and right (i.e., virtuous) conduct will positively impact others and perhaps…...

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ReferencesDearnley, C. (2005). A reflection on the use of semi-structured interviews. Nurse researcher, 13(1).Froming, W. J. (1978). The relationship of moral judgment, self-awareness, and sex to complicance behavior. Journal of Research in Personality, 12(4), 396-409.Morrell, K., & Dahlmann, F. (2022). Aristotle in the Anthropocene: The comparative benefits of Aristotelian virtue ethics over Utilitarianism and deontology. The Anthropocene Review, 20530196221105093.Trianosky, G. (1990). What is virtue ethics all about?. American Philosophical Quarterly, 27(4), 335-344.Van Staveren, I. (2007). Beyond utilitarianism and deontology: Ethics in economics. Review of Political Economy, 19(1), 21-35.

The main concern in virtue ethics becomes about a person's moral character. When people choose to develop their moral character, better virtues will be created, and thus there will be more people acting in virtuous ways in all aspects of their lives -- and this includes how they treat all animals.
One example to be considered when thinking about how a person with a strong sense of virtue might behave is to counter it with how a person with a strong sense of duty might behave. From a duty sense, if one were a livestock farmer, he or she might believe that his or her duty lies in what is best for the people because, after all, the job is about raising livestock for slaughter, which will then become food for people. Therefore, the first duty would be to humans and the second duty to animals (Panaman 20008) (which may…...

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Bibliography

Garner, R. (2005). Animal ethics. Cambridge: Polity.

Gruen, L. (2011). Ethics and animals: An introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press;

1st edition.

Hursthouse, R. (2000). Ethics, humans and other animals: An introduction with readings. New York: Routledge.

Ethical Reasoning," Donaldson and Werhane outline the three fundamental theories of ethics: consequentialism, deontology, and human nature ethics. Consequentialism, also known as teological ethics, can be further divided into ethical egoism and utilitarianism. Ethical egoism is based on the theory that to act out of self-interest will ultimately be the most ethical decision. Ethical egoism is rarely supported by philosophers, especially in relation to other ethical reasoning theories such as utilitarianism. Philosophers like Bentham and John Stuart Mill argued that the ethical decisions should be based on the principle of the greatest good for the greatest number. Although Mill framed the concept of "good" in terms of happiness, the "greater good" does not necessarily entail happiness and may refer to other abstract concepts like aesthetics. Utilitarianism can itself be subdivided into pluralistic utilitarianism and preference utilitarianism: the former embraces all abstract concepts that can be classified as "good" whereas the…...

These are ethics that know no cultural bounds. hat is perceived as ethical in one society as well as any other is an example of a natural law. These are typically based on the human desire for equality as well as the desire to do good ("hat is Natural Law?"). Furthermore, natural rights evolve legally from natural laws often. They also often see an intertwining of religious beliefs, although they can also be expressed as more an intertwining of moral beliefs that are then supported by religion. The primary weakness of natural law theory is that it is sometimes difficult to determine if a belief is truly universal, or simply cultural.
Virtue Ethics:

Virtue ethics determines whether an action is right or wrong by the virtue of the action.

Virtue ethics is currently one of three major approaches in normative ethics. It may, initially, be identified as the one that emphasizes the…...

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Works Cited

"Kant's Moral Philosophy." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. N.p., 23 Feb. 2004. Web. 9 Feb. 2011. .

MacKinnon, Barbara. Ethics: theory and contemporary issues. Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth Pub. Co., 1995. Print.

"Virtue Ethics." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. N.p., 18 July 2007. Web. 9 Feb. 2011. .

"What is Ethical Relativism?" Philosophy - AllAboutPhilosophy.org. N.p., 2011. Web. 9 Feb. 2011. .

Booker Prize-winning novel Amsterdam by Ian Mcewan is not really about euthanasia per se; it is about the twisted relationships between the two main characters, Clive Linley, composer, and Vernon Halliday, newspaper editor. Deeply affected by the death of their mutual friend and lover Molly Lane, Clive and Vernon agree that if they should ever exhibit the symptoms of some deadly illness, that they agree to assist the other in euthanasia. Thus, the two friends initially start out by presenting a view of euthanasia that is strongly ethical; euthanasia is a meaningful and sometimes even necessary means to alleviate unnecessary suffering. After all, life is already filled with enough suffering. Extension of life by a matter of days, weeks, or even years does not necessarily equate with promoting the values inherent to a good quality of life.
As the events of the novel progress, however, Vernon and Clive demonstrate that their…...

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Works Cited

McEwan, Ian. Amsterdam. New York: Anchor, 1999.