StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

Morals and Ethics - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
The paper "Morals and Ethics" tells us about a sense of right or wrong. Ethics, on the other hand, refer more to principles of "good" versus "evil" that are generally agreed upon by a community. What are examples of morals and ethics?…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER97.8% of users find it useful
Morals and Ethics
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Morals and Ethics"

Discussions on morals and ethics abound. All around us we hear talk of professional ethics, universal morals and, increasingly, the decline in both. We, ourselves, are constantly engaged in the making ethical decisions and the passing of moral judgments. The passing of moral judgments, however, often tends towards the controversial. This is because even though there are clear-cut ethical principles to which all should adhere, irrespective of religion, nationality and culture, ethics are relative. Consequently, even though moral principles identify the doctor, as opposed to the colonial police officer's actions as the more ethical of the two, this argument only holds true if one were to ignore the relevant professional ethical guidelines. Understanding the ways in which ethics and morals may conflict and converge and, how actions may be judged as moral but not ethical, and vice-versa, it is important to define these two concepts. According to the Webster dictionary, the term ethics refers to a set of moral principles whose application allow for the differentiation between right and wrong. On the basis of this definition, it would seem that ethics and morals are inseparable, whereby that which is ethical is, by definition, also moral. This is not true. Once again referring to the Webster dictionary, one finds that moral systems tend to be universal while ethical principles tend to be specific. That is, while morals refer to universal understandings of right and wrong, good and bad, ethics refer to particular understandings, which derive from professional or cultural codes of conduct, among others. Therefore, even though the concepts of ethics and morals are interrelated, they are ultimately distinct. On the basis of the definitions resented, it is evident that the colonial officer's actions were ethical but they were not moral. Within the bounds of his professional duties and his responsibility to protect the Burmese, his shooting of the elephant was an ethical act. The elephant, who suffered an "attack of must" (Orwell, para. 6), had wreaked havoc upon the market and the hut dwellers, not to mention the fact that it had stomped upon an old man and killed him by partially burying him, head down, in the mud. The elephant had proved himself dangerous and his owner, the only person who could control him, was not in the vicinity. Given the officer's profession and its associate responsibilities and duties, shooting and killing the elephant was ethical insofar as it meant terminating the danger which this beast represented to the defenseless. While it may have been an ethical act, the shooting of the elephant was not a moral one. There are several reasons why his action was immoral. In the first place, the officer did not shoot the beast because he represented a danger at that time but, because the crowd expected him to. In the second place, the shooting was not inspired by a sense of professional responsibility towards the safety and the welfare of the villagers but by the desire not to be laughed at. In the third place, the officer shot the elephant even though his moral instincts told him that this was wrong. Consequently, in acting as he did, Orwell's colonial officer did not just disregard his own moral judgment but his actions were not motivated by any sense of professional ethics or notion of responsibility towards the villagers. Indeed, he even expressed happiness/satisfaction that the elephant had killed a coolie so that his shooting of the elephant may be morally and ethically justifiable. It is on this basis that his actions must ultimately be judged as immoral even though they are seemingly consistent with his professional ethics. The doctor, or medical resident's actions are a complete reversal of those of Orwell's officer as they comply with morality but not with professional ethics. The doctor was, to all intents and purposes, trapped in a situation wherein morals and ethics collided. On the one hand, he was confronted with an injured man who, if he did not try to save, could very well die. As he was obviously the only one in the immediate area who had any medical knowledge and stood a reasonable chance of saving the truck driver, not doing anything would have been an act of blatant immorality. Indeed, insofar as inaction could very well have led to the man's death, especially given that he was evidently suffocating and unable to breath, it could be compared to participation in the killing of the truck driver. In other words, to the extent that waiting for the ambulance effectively translated into standing by as the man died, morality imposed action upon the doctor. The fact is, however, that the doctor's actions were, within the bunds of is profession, unethical. They were unethical because he knew that his action could have resulted in the complete paralysis of the truck driver, on the one hand and because he did not have the necessary equipment with him, on the other. Added to that, he was still in his final year of residency with the implication being that he was not licensed to act as he did. As a matter of fact, the only thing that saved him from being prohibited from practicing the profession ever again was that he did save the man's life. The implication here is, and as the doctor was later informed by his supervisor, that his actions directly contradicted his professional ethical guidelines. This, however makes his actions all the more moral as they indicate that even though he was aware of the risk to himself, he acted to save another man's life regardless. On the basis of the argument presented in the above, it is evident that despite some areas of overlap, ethics and morals are ultimately distinct whereby that which is ethical may not be moral and vice versa. It is, thus, that the actions of the doctor emerge as moral but unethical and those of the police officers as ethical but immoral. The mentioned judgments, as indicated in the essay, are based on the ethical codes of conduct particular to each of the professions referred to. It is through the lens of these codes of conduct that the actions of the one emerge as unethical but moral, while those of the other as ethical but immoral. Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Morals and Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words”, n.d.)
Morals and Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1531003-morals-and-ethics
(Morals and Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 Words)
Morals and Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 Words. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1531003-morals-and-ethics.
“Morals and Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1531003-morals-and-ethics.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Morals and Ethics

Morals and Ethics in Organisations

Transparency: The Practical Road to Ethical Management One of the opinions reported on in chapter 15 of the book, “ethics at Work” is that for some people, including Friedman (1970), the only moral rule for business is to produce profit.... So, the system actually discourages proper ethics in business.... Even if organizations continue to view ethics as being based upon what is good for the corporation, it is shown now that the corporate good is much more closely tied to the good of the whole range of stakeholders (Donaldson & Freeman 1994; Calton & Lad 1995)....
3 Pages (750 words) Essay

Are we free or determined

According to some people, determinism is usually negated with Morals and Ethics.... As we known that there are no hard-set rules and regulations for Morals and Ethics and they are different in different cultures, and this makes them different from the physical rules, which are pre-defined and hardly change under any circumstances.... This is due to a comprehensive time period of social development, which is witnessed today, and also a convergence of events, which are created to generate the very idea of Morals and Ethics in the minds of people....
3 Pages (750 words) Essay

Morals vs Ethics

However the argument stems from the fact that Morals and Ethics are distinguished against one another, which in essence means that there are ambiguities for all and sundry, in the long run.... The contrasting mannerisms related with Morals and Ethics in the discussion of the environmental decision making processes brings to light the notion of ‘doing it right' and that too on a proactive and consistent basis.... The environmental decision making thus becomes a non-issue in the fight of survival for morality and ethics....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

Media and Culture in the Arab Society

As such, culture comprises numerous communal aspects such as; language, tools, customs, Morals and Ethics, standards, rules, machineries, products, governments, and institutions.... For instance, Morals and Ethics are highly regarded in all Arab cultures.... Religion has been attributed to be the driving force of Morals and Ethics.... Unlike in the American cultures where morals and the institutions are very diluted and less valued, hence being vulnerable to the media influences....
2 Pages (500 words) Assignment

Morals and Ethics as Guiding Principles in Persons Conduct

"Morals and Ethics" paper states that the issues of collective judgment, ignorance are among those that contribute to a breach of ethical values.... nbsp;  Morals and Ethics are guiding principles that assist in giving directions to a person's conduct.... On the other hand, ethics is about the decisions which we make.... From a moral and ethical perspective, it is basically pointing out what is right or wrong and is totally acceptable since it conforms to codes of ethics....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay

The Differences between Morals and Ethics

This essay "The Differences between Morals and Ethics" tells us how the differences cover areas such as the fact that morals, entail the definition of personal character, but ethics emphasizes the wider social framework, within which the morals of personal character are used and applied.... In exploring the distinctions between Morals and Ethics, the case of a criminal defense attorney can evidence the differences.... hellip; In simpler terms, ethics points out the codes of behavior or the standards expected from an individual, by the group or the community that they belong to....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay

Morals and Ethics in Research

The paper "Morals and Ethics in Research" underlines that implementing ethics in the whole research procedure from identifying research problems to conducting research goals, interpreting, and finally reporting research results is important in ensuring the research process is controlled by ethical principles.... The research process must embrace ethics as a vital element in its substructure from the inception stage to the interpretation stage and finally the publishing of the final research findings....
10 Pages (2500 words) Essay

Science Fiction as a Form of Brainwashing

… The paper “Science Fiction as a Form of Brainwashing by Individuals Who Have Lacked Respect of the Society's Morals and Ethics” is an impressive example of term paper on literature.... The paper “Science Fiction as a Form of Brainwashing by Individuals Who Have Lacked Respect of the Society's Morals and Ethics” is an impressive example of term paper on literature....
6 Pages (1500 words) Term Paper
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us