PP110 Lecture Notes - Christian Ethics, Virginia Held, Deontological Ethics
Document Summary
Feminists believe other moral theories have a distorted way of thinking. There are two aspects of disordered thinking: traditional ethics attempts to be context-independent. Feminisms disagree with this, and say that we should use our emotions. While deontology and utilitarianism are impartial, feminism is partial: denigration of emotions vis- -vis reason: less control of emotions, more control of cognitive states. Feminism says that emotions are similar to moral guides and that we should focus on emotion, as emotional states shine a light on your duties. (if you feel pity, there is a reason). Two aspects of the denigration of emotion: the moral life demands the cultivation of the moral emotions. People should feel empathy, grief, etc. when working with others. Also, parents teach their children appropriate times to feel different emotions: this should be reflected in the respect shown to the moral emotions in moral theory.
