PHILO-120 Lecture Notes - Lecture 24: Divine Command Theory, Social Philosophy, Political Philosophy
25 Aug 2020
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Document Summary
The story of the ring of gyges. Suppose a just person put on such a ring no man can be imagined to be of such an iron nature that he would stand fast in justice. Socrates disagrees- the person who would act in such a manner become slave to his appetites and therefore forfeits his happiness. Motivations for doing the right thing in different theories. Acting immorally puts us at odds with god who will bring about perfect justice (divine command theory) Acting to promote the overall good is in our best interests (utilitarianism) Acting immorally makes true happiness impossible (aristotle) Acting immorally goes against our very nature (natural law theory) Acting morally is something we will want to do when we love and care for others (care ethics) Each theory continues to have its proponents working to shore up the weaknesses in the theories.
