2. 1 Freedom and responsibility: a brief historical approach 2 ( Ethical) reflection and (moral) action 2.1 Ethics and morality 2.2 When is an action moral? 2.3 Basis of morality 3 Freedom as a condition of moral action 3.1 Two views on freedom 3.2 Principle uses of the term freedom 3.3 Should the moral act be free? 3.4 Ethical indeterminism 3.5 Determinism 4 The responsibility as the foundation of morality 4.1 The concept of responsibility 4.2 Ethics of convictions and ethics of responsibility 4.3 A contemporary idea of responsibility 4.4 Hans Jonas: responsibility as a principle 4.5 Ethics of responsibility facing the future INDEX FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY

3. 1 Freedom and responsibility: a brief historical approach IN ANCIENT GREECE CONCEPTION OF FREEDOM IN MEDIEVAL AGES Christianity replaced the concept of freedom with the idea of divine law Christianity needed to face the problem between freedom and salvation The idea of freedom and responsibility are recovered Two different concepts of freedom It is the ability to act, despite the constraints that nature imposes Men, armed with reason and will, develop the moral norms that govern their behavior IN MODERNITY Responsibility is conceived as a consequence of freedom FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY God gives us our moral norms and conduct should be necessarily determined by them How can I obtain salvation or condemn myself if I am not free? Individualism Autonomy foundation of liberalism foundation of moral reflexions

4. ETHICS AND MORALITY ETHICS Both of them refer to human action and are related to customs and social rules 2 ( Ethical) reflection and (moral) action 2.1 Ethics and morality MORALITY Morality is related to the action and ethics is related to reflection It is a set of rules of behavior and customs accepted in an concrete society FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY SIMILARITIES DIFFERENCES It is a critical judgment about moral, its rules and the consequences of human behavior

5. MORALITY MORAL ACTION Moral actions are oriented by rules Moral codes guide our behaviour FEATURES OF MORAL CODES Moral codes are products of a reflection Moral norms try to achieve universality Teleological Ethics Deontological Ethics 2.2 When is an action moral? A moral action is a social action Morality appear in our relationships with others FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY MAIN KINDS OF ETHICAL THEORIES Every moral action involves a previous critical reflection about its reach and consequences A moral norm, if correct, should be valid for everyone It is a theory that holds that the ends of an act determines whether an act is good or evil It is a theory that holds that if we have a duty to perform an action, this duty derives from the nature of the act itself, rather than from the consequences produced by the action

6. 2.3 Basis of morality CRITERIA BASIS OF MORALITY EXTERNAL FOUNDATION INTERNAL FOUNDATION Natural laws Traditions Divine law The value of the norm lies in something external to the moral subject Teleological ethics It relies on dialogue and public use of reason Throughout history, people have proposed various criteria for establishing a basis for morality The value of the norm lies in the very moral subject FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY INTERSUBJECTIVE FOUNDATION Examples of criteria Examples of moral theories Examples of moral theories Deontological ethics The moral subject is considered a free being endowed with reason and will Examples of moral theories Discourse ethics The rules are established by consensus and seeks to achieve a fair society

7. 3 Freedom as a condition of moral action 3.1 Two views on freedom MEANING OF FREEDOM NEGATIVE FREEDOM Meanings POSITIVE FREEDOM Freedom understood as absence of constraints Freedom understood as the ability to act ETYMOLOGY Latin word “ Liber ” Non slave It happens when someone is not prohibited from doing something This kind of freedom is involved in all moral actions It refers to being able to choose among different possibilities This kind of freedom involves autonomy and responsibility Adul t FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY Person who takes part in community life as a citizen Person who is owner of their actions and is responsible for them

8. 3.2 Principle uses of the term freedom TYPES OF FREEDOM LEGALFREEDOM LEEWAY It is the right that a man has to act in a specific way and nobody must force him to act differently It is related to law INDIVIDUAL FREEDOM The limits to action are given by laws It is the acceptance that the human being endowed with reason and will, is able to decide for itself This is the moral sense of freedom It is the ability to do what the subject wants It doesn't matter if the individual is radically free or not FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY

9. 3.3 Should the moral act be free? FREEDOM AND MORALITY MORAL CODES AND MORAL BEHAVIOR THE ROLE OF FREEDOM IN OUR MORAL BEHAVIOR Every single norm has exceptions A conflict between two different rules can happen Every moral act involves norms which are parts of moral codes We use our moral codes to guide us toward a ethical goal It claims that human beings are free Our moral codes do not solve every moral problem that we have Ethical indeterminism Ethical determinism It denies the possibility of human beings being free FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY Every moral code reduces freedom to negative freedom It argues that freedom is a necessary condition for moral actions It argues that every event, including human actions are part of a chain of causes and effects

10. FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY 3.4 Ethical indeterminism RACIONAL INDETERMINISM Our will acts freely when we choose among several possibilities The human being is absolutely free Descartes and Kant supported this philosophical theory Our true freedom belongs only to the rational level. We are not free from a physical point of view RADICAL INDETERMINISM MAIN THESIS TYPES ORIGINS INDETERMINISM J. P. Sartre supported this philosophical theory In Ancient Greece The ethical relativism proposed by sophists and the moral intellectualism proposed by Plato can be considered antecedents of indeterminism

11. FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY 3.4 Ethical indeterminism KANT REASON AND CONSCIENCE THE GOODWILL One reason, two uses AUTONOMY AND HETERONOMY Conscience governs our behavior When we talk about the foundation of moral imperatives, we can distinguish between moral autonomy and moral heteronomy In human actions, our reason gives an imperative to our will Pure reason Practical reason It concerns knowing how things are and tries to establish laws It concerns knowing what we should do and what are the principles of our behavior The principles that help our conscience to guide our behavior are important it terms of our morality, not the goal we want to achieve In moral actions, it does not matter what we do, but what we want to do There are two different kinds of imperative Hypothetical imperative Categorical imperative If we act according to this imperative, our action will be legal If we act according to this imperative, our action will be moral Moral heteronomy Moral autonomy Our will gives norms to itself Our will receives norms from outside A goodwill is a will which is autonomous and obeys the categorical imperative

12. FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY 3.4 Ethical indeterminism SARTRE EXISTENTIALISM What is it? WE ARE CONDEMNED TO BE FREE Who are its main representatives? Assumptions Philosophical current that developed between the First and Second World War Kierkegaard, Jaspers, Heidegger, Sartre and Marcel Each individual human existence is free and uses his freedom to build his essence by himself Radical atheism Responsibility With every actions we are creating ourselves and we can not escape this responsibility Denial of the existence of God What claims? Consequences Action Authenticity Our actions affect all humans We are our actions The authentic life consists of free will Anguish Nausea and shame We feel these things when other consider us as an object and use us for their benefit

13. FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY 3.5 Determinism MORAL DETERMINISM FACTORS THAT DETERMINE OUR BEHAVIOR Psychological factors Our emotions and feelings determine our actions and moral judgments DETERMINISM OF MORAL JUDGMENTS Our reason can not be the foundation of our moral judgments Our feelings are the foundation of our moral judgments Humans are not free Positive an negative reinforcement Biological factors Our genetic inheritance determines our capacities and our possible development DETERMINISM OF MORAL BEHAVIOR We use our reason to relate ideas not to guide our behavior We approve or disapprove somewhat depending on our feelings All our actions are determined and we can keep them under control if we use the right tools Behaviors rewarded tend to stay and behaviors punished tend to disappear Social factors The processes of socialization and education determine our judgments and actions HUME SKINNER Human nature is the foundation of our feelings Our nature determines our moral judgments

14. FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY 4 The responsibility as the foundation of morality 4.1 The concept of responsibility RESPONSIBILITY MORALITY, FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY SENSES OF RESPONSIBILITY An act is moral only if it is free As respect for norms We can only consider an act as good or evil if whoever did it is free Allocation of responsibility for an act The performance of duty and obligations The obligation to compensate for the damage caused As imputation As compensation for damage In response to someone As care or occupation A free action involves responsibility we usually reward somebody who does something good and punish those who do something bad Refers to who is accountable to someone for something Refers to taking care of person or thing These senses are related to the law These senses are related to morality

15. FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY 4.2 Ethics of convictions and ethics of responsibility WHAT GUIDE HUMAN ACTION? CONVICTIONS RESPONSIBILITY Moral action is guided by universal moral principles How do we make an agreement about which are the correct principles? We are held accountable if we respect the moral norms What happen with relation between responsibility and consequences of our actions? ETHICS OF CONVICTIONS ETHICS OF RESPONSIBILITY In moral actions, more important than principles are the assessment we make of the different options In moral actions, we must take into account the most significant consequences of different options

16. FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY 4.3 A contemporary idea of responsibility DISCOURSE ETHICS WHAT IS THE DISCOURSE ETHICS? Similarities and differences with ethics of Kant They agree about importance of reason to establish moral principles and about the autonomy of our will PROBLEMS WITH THE FOUNDATION OF MORALITY External foundation Foundation morality on dialogue The issue about consequences of technological development Representatives Jürgen Habermas and Karl Otto Apel PROPOSAL OF DISCOURSE ETHICS It is impossible to find an universal principle useful for everyone The categorical imperative can lead us to relativism, therefore It would be impossible to achieve an agreement in a controversial Only are valid those moral norms which would be accepted by everybody concerned as participants in a practical discourse Ethics of responsibility must give a response to problems like ecological crisis or the increasing of nuclear weapons They disagree about the neediness of reflection about justice, happiness and responsibility Not only get good people, but also a good life for all Internal foundation Main aim Discourse ethics is unable to obtain universal principles that guide our action

17. FUNDAMENTS OF MORAL ACTION: FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY 4.4 Hans Jonas: responsibility as a principle RESPONSIBILITY ETHICS Problems related to technological development Technological development has created uncertainty about security in the future The ancient moral principles are useful only for daily issues To keep old moral categories for our daily relations Place responsibility as fundamental principle in every moral action We have a free will Hans Jonas assume that our will is free Imperative proposed as principle of morality: The abuse of resources is extremely dangerous for the environment, and this is a risk for the whole world now and in the future In the present circumstances, the moral responsibility is a necessary requirement Traditional moral systems deal only with human relationships marginalizing nature Now, responsibility means responding to their own actions before all humanity and concern for others SITUATION REFLEXIONS SOLUTION At one time, technique had no moral implications, but now moral implications of technology are enormous and can become irreversible Act in a way that the effects of your action are compatible with the permanence of genuine human life on Earth