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1 Ethical Perspectives Introduction In all moral decision making, there are two necessary components: a value theory and a normative theory. The value theory tells us what things, including objects and properties, such as being pleased or being a living thing, have a worth that should be taken into account in some way when making a decision. Basically, values serve as the data in ethics. Normative theories, on the other hand, say how to use the data. Normative principles classify actions as morally right or wrong, or morally required, forbidden, or permissible. They also classify people, actions, and objects as good or bad. But the principles could not fulfill this function without values. As will be seen in what follows, some ethicists believe that an action is morally right because in performing the action, no moral agent was treated in an inappropriate way. In other words, everyone affected was respected for their intrinsic worth. So here value is found in being a person, and the normative principle states that we have to respect that value in order to do the right thing. Below, we will develop normative principles we or others find useful in making moral decisions about death. We shall also develop a value theory that allows the normative theories from this chapter to be applied in theoretical and, more importantly, real-world situations. Steffen The question at the heart of ethics is this: “Why do you do what you do?” This question may look simple, but consider all the other questions that it opens: What are our motives, our intentions, and our purposes? Why do we act one way rather than another? What goes into making a decision? Do we have to deliberate in a conscious reflective mode when we act or do our actions flow from something more basic and unreflective, as if the way we act is 7 somehow a part of our personality, our habits and character? If what we do—our actions—reveals our character and character is built up over years of experience and interaction with others, what does it mean to say that what we do flows from decisions we make? Do we really deliberate over actions or do we act out of habit, almost out of moral instincts, and are we forced to hunker down and think things through only occasionally, when confronted for the first time with a really serious issue out of the ordinary? And the questions continue. Can we change character—and why would we want to if we are feeling comfortable with our own sense of identity? Do we really aim at goodness in what we do? What role do emotions play in choosing how to act? What role does reason play in decision making, and what role does it play in decisions that seem to be grounded in emotion? Are reason and emotion really so different if both involve perceptions that entail judgments, evaluations, and interpretations of those things we perceive to be objects of fear, resentment, anger, or love? What authority do we try to serve when we act one way rather than another? Do we always try to choose the good thing to do, the best thing—and what is that, and how can we possibly know? Is the good action the one that promotes my interest, or is it the one that promotes the interests of my community, or of everyone taken altogether? Can we deceive ourselves about what is good so that sometimes we do something wrong, hurtful, or injurious to others or even ourselves while thinking that action is a good thing? Is being selfish or self-interested a good reason to act one way rather than another? Can I calculate goodness and make a decision by running the numbers? If I want no one else to enjoy the benefits I receive from some action, can the action be said to be good? Why do bad things happen to good people and why do good people sometimes do bad things? We can stop now with the questions. We have just started, but the questions go on and on. The variety and breadth of the questions that arise in thinking about how we are to live well are what make ethics an intellectually demanding and even exciting arena of inquiry. It is worth noting at the outset, however, that ethics does not claim to be doing new things. New problems demanding ethical attention arise all the time, many of them created by...

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