Human Act vs Act of Man Quiz

Human Act vs Act of Man

• Human Act is a conscious, deliberate, and voluntary action controlled by the will. Examples include: observing a prescribed diet, tutoring slow learners, and preparing for the board exam.
• Act of Man is an involuntary action, not controlled by the will, often happening in the body without awareness of the mind. Examples include: breathing, blinking, perspiring, and dilatation of the pupils.

Determinants of Morality

• An act is morally good when the object, the end (purpose), and the circumstances are all morally justifiable.
• The object of the act is the act itself. Examples include: praying, honoring parents, going to mass, telling the truth.
• The end or purpose of the act is the intention of the actor. Example: Rendering free service to a neighbor inspired by love for God.
• The circumstance surrounds the act, including time, place, person, and conditions. Example: Giving a drink to a thirsty person may be detrimental if the person is morally weak and the drink is intoxicating.

Aristotle's Virtue Ethics

• Virtue is the midpoint between two extremes (vices) - excess and deficiency. This is known as the Golden Mean.
• Courage is an example of a virtue. The deficiency of courage is cowardice, while the excess is recklessness.
• A virtuous person is one who has developed good character and practices virtue habitually.
• The goal of virtue ethics is to achieve eudaimonia - human flourishing, living a life well-lived.

Virtue Ethics in Other Traditions

• Confucius emphasizes "Jen" (humaneness), "Li" (propriety), and compassion.
• Hinduism focuses on virtues like non-violence, truthfulness, honesty, chastity, and freedom from greed.
• Buddhism promotes intellectual virtues (right understanding, mindfulness) and moral virtues (right speech, action, livelihood).
• Jesus Christ emphasizes love, mercy, kindness, compassion, patience, self-control, and gentleness.
• Thomas Aquinas highlights faith, hope, and love.
• Christian Tradition values virtues like prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude.

The Moral Agent

• Moral Agent is a person who performs an act in accordance with moral standards.
• Only a moral agent is capable of human acts, as they have the capacity to knowingly, freely, and voluntarily act according to moral standards.

Bases of Moral Accountability

• Moral accountability is based on three factors: knowledge, freedom, and voluntariness.
• A human act must be done knowingly, freely, and voluntarily to be morally accountable.
• Voluntary Act is an act done with intention and purpose, aiming to achieve a specific result. This can be either intentional or negligent. A negligent act is done voluntarily without due care or precaution to prevent a foreseeable event.

Modifiers of Human Acts

• Ignorance is the absence of knowledge, which can be invincible (impossible to know) or vincible (ought to know).
• Invincible ignorance is beyond the ability to overcome and removes moral responsibility because the person acts in good conscience, believing they are doing the right thing.
• Vincible ignorance does not remove moral responsibility. This includes affected (deliberately avoiding enlightenment) and supine/gross/crass (scarcely making an effort to remove ignorance).
• Passion refers to intense emotions, both positive (love, desire, etc.) and negative (hatred, fear, etc.).
• Antecedent passion precedes an act and diminishes accountability.
• Consequent passion is intentionally aroused and kept, increasing accountability.
• Fear disturbs the mind due to impending danger. Acts done with fear are voluntary, but acts done with intense or uncontrollable fear are involuntary.
• Violence is physical force exerted to compel a person to act against their will. Actions performed under violence are involuntary and not accountable.

St. Thomas' Natural Law Theory

• Natural Law is God's plan for humans, discoverable through reason, guiding our conscience to do good and avoid evil.
• There are seven basic goods: life, reproduction, educating offspring, seeking God, living in society, avoiding offense, and shunning ignorance.
• Different types of law:
  • Eternal Law: The laws governing the universe known only to God.
  • Divine Law: Laws revealed through the Bible, like the Ten Commandments.
  • Natural Law: Do good and avoid evil.
  • Human/Positive Law: Rules made by people governing society

Utilitarianism

• Utilitarianism is a moral theory that focuses on the consequences of actions, aiming to maximize happiness and pleasure for the greatest number of people.
• Act Utilitarianism focuses on the consequences of each individual act.
• Rule Utilitarianism emphasizes following general rules that will lead to the greatest good for the greatest number.

Personhood

• Person is a moral term reflecting membership in a moral community, not necessarily synonymous with the biological term "human".
• Human is a biological term.
• Criteria of Personhood:
  • Genetic: Possession of human DNA.
  • Cognitive: Consciousness, reasoning, self-motivation, communication, and self-awareness.
  • Social: Recognition of personhood by society.
  • Sentience: Ability to feel pain and pleasure.
  • Gradient Theory: Personhood exists in degrees, varying in amount.

Kant's Deontological Ethics

• Deontological Ethics emphasizes duty and moral obligations stemming from reason.
• Categorical Imperative is a command applicable to all rational beings, regardless of desires:
  • Universal Law: Act according to a maxim you can will to be a universal law without contradiction.
  • Humanity as an End: Treat humanity always as an end, never just as a means.
• Love and Justice Framework: Ethical actions are both just and loving, giving what is due (justice) and exceeding expectations (love).

Love and Justice Framework

• Love: Three types: Agape (charity), Erotic (passion), Philia (friendship).
• Social Justice: Promotes the common good, ensuring equal access to wealth, opportunities, and privileges.
• Distributive Justice focuses on distributing goods, duties, and privileges justly according to merits and societal well-being.