Classical Ethical Philosophies: Presented By: Group 5

Classical Ethical
Philosophies
Presented by: Group 5

Ethics and Philosophy
The term ethics has several meanings. One of the

meanings given to it by the dictionary is “the principles of
conduct governing an individual or a group.” We
sometimes use the term personal ethics, for example, when
referring to the rules by which an individual lives his or her
personal life. We use the term accounting ethics when
referring to the code that guides the professional conduct of
accountants. A second—and for us more important—
meaning of ethics according to the dictionary is this: “the
study of morality.”
Just as chemists use the term chemistry to refer to the

study of the properties of chemical substances, ethicists use
the term ethics to refer primarily to the study of morality.
Although ethics deals with morality, it is not quite the same
as morality. Ethics is a kind of investigation, which includes
both the activity of investigating as well as the results of
that investigation, whereas morality is the subject matter
that ethics investigates.
Philosophy comes etymologically from two Greek

words philia which means love, and sophia, which means
wisdom. It is the study of the fundamental nature of
knowledge, reality and existence. It helps us better
understand who we are, why are we here, and where we
are going.
Three Branches
of Philosophy
1. Metaphysics – which answers the question, “what is the

nature of reality?”
1. Ontology
2. Cosmology
2. Epistemology – which answers the question, “what is the
nature of knowledge?”
1. Deductive logic
2. Inductive logic
Three Branches
of Philosophy
3. Axiology – which answers the question, “what is the nature
of values?”
1. Ethics – studies human conduct and examines moral

values. It involves a discipline that examines good or bad
practices within the context of moral duty. Personal
ethics start when you take the moral standards you
have absorbed from family, church, and friends.
2. Aesthetics – values beauty, nature and aesthetic
experience (often associated with music, art, literature,
dance, theater and other fine arts.)
Strands of
Philosophy
1. IDEALISM. This is considered the oldest philosophy of Western
Culture. It refers to the world of mind and ideas, where reason
is primary. Leading proponents of idealism are:
1. Socrates (Greek Philosopher)

Notable quote: “The unexamined life is not worth living”
2. Plato (Greek Philosopher, Father of Idealism)
3. Augustine (Theologian of the 4th and 5th centuries)
4. Rene Descartes
5. Immanuel Kant
6. Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel
2. REALISM. This can be considered the antithesis of idealism,

where by “the universe exists whether mind perceives it or not.”
Leading proponents of Realism are:
a. Aristotle (Greek Philosopher, Father or Realism)
Notable quote: “He who has never learned to obey cannot
be a good commander”
b. Francis Bacon
c. John Locke
d. Comenius, Rousseau, and Pestalozzi
3. NEO-THEISM. This would date to the time of Thomas Aquinas
(1225-1274), and is also known as theistic realism, whereby
“God exists and can be known through faith and reason.”
4. Contemporary Philosophies
a. Pragmatism – also known as experimentalism (experience of
things that work). Leading proponents were Auguste Comte,
Charles Darwin, and the Americans: Charles Pierce, William
James, and John Dewey.
b. Existentialism – appeared as a revolt against the
mathematical, scientific philosophies that preceded
it. Leading proponents were Soren Kierkegaard,
Martin Buber, Edmund Husserl, Martin Heidegger
and Jean-Paul Satre.
c. Analytic Philosophy – it sought out to clarify and

define philosophies. This began in post world war 1
era (the Vienna Circle) and studied the alienation
between philosophy and science. It established the
concept of logical positivism, that is, there are
logical and empirical types of scientific expression.
Analytic philosophy has recently focused on
political philosophy, ethics and philosophy of the
human sciences.

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Classical Ethical

Presented by: Group 5

The term ethics has several meanings. One of the

Just as chemists use the term chemistry to refer to the

Philosophy comes etymologically from two Greek

1. Metaphysics – which answers the question, “what is the

1. Ethics – studies human conduct and examines moral

1. Socrates (Greek Philosopher)

2. REALISM. This can be considered the antithesis of idealism,

c. Analytic Philosophy – it sought out to clarify and

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