Normative ethics The debate over consequentialism. Normative ethics seeks to set norms or standards for conduct. The term is commonly used in reference to the discussion of general theories about what one ought to do, a central part of Western ethics since ancient times.
Normative ethics is one of three main component areas of inquiry of philosophical ethics, the two others being meta-ethics and applied ethics. Normative ethics, also known as normative theory, or moral theory, intends to find out which actions are right and wrong, or which character traits are good and bad.
1. Introduction ‘Normative ethics’ is an enormous field. It is concerned with the articulation and the justification of the fundamental principles that govern the issues of how we should live and what we morally ought to do.
Ethics is concerned with whether and how those ethical opinions can be reasonably justified. Normative ethics in particular is concerned with articulating and developing the general ethical theories in terms of which ethical opinions at the applied level might be justified.
Dec 10, 2020 · Normative Ethics Andrew B. Gustafson3 Living reference work entry First Online: 10 December 2020 109 Accesses Downloadreference work entry PDF Synonyms Moral philosophy; Moral principles; Rules of conduct Introduction Ethics are the principles guiding one’s moral behavior.
Applied ethics is often referred to as a component study of the wider sub-discipline of ethics within the discipline of philosophy. This does not mean that only philosophers are applied ethicists, or that fruitful applied ethics is only done within academic philosophy departments.
Jul 18, 2003 · Virtue ethics is currently one of three major approaches in normative ethics. It may, initially, be identified as the one that emphasizes the virtues, or moral character, in contrast to the approach that emphasizes duties or rules (deontology) or that emphasizes the consequences of actions (consequentialism).