BSB111 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Ethical Egoism, Psychological Egoism, Moral Rights
Document Summary
An action is right if it maximises our own good (all about ourselves) Identify and predict the consequences then choose the alternative that maximises our own good. Problems: selfish? (eg: misses an essential aspect of ethics) consequences are difficult to predict; partial, biased, could mean that discrimination and harm to others is justified, morality appears to be subjective. But: ethical egoism can result in selfish behaviour, if it is in our own long-term interest, can include being honest, trustworthy, cooperative, making sacrifices, considering others- of these result in our own benefit overall. Also: it reflects the view that we are important in our own decisions and that we ourselves know what is best for us. Psychological egoism (not telling what is right or wrong but is a. Descriptive theory- unlike normative theory) An action is right if it maximises overall net good.
