Values For A Good Life

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Values for a good life

A good life is characterized by a sense of self-awareness, giving meaning to life and an undying passion of service to others. Self-awareness is a central part around which the whole game of life revolves. When a person consciously absorbs the reality of life by understanding his own reality, he starts living differently as compared to the other people. It may seem a big ask in a pre-dominant materialistic society where the rat-race for money has shunned the human’s ability to comprehend the reality of his own life. When this level of understanding is achieved, a person’s world view is changed and a passion for service to others is developed. This purposeful life experience is a concept of a good life.

Self-awareness covers many aspects of human thinking. One is the complete understanding of his status in the world including what is his origin, where is he now and where is he going? Further, a sense of mental presence in dealing with everyday affairs enables a man to live in the present most of the time. Helping others believe in service to others is such a powerful core value of life, which has a special attribute of giving oneself satisfaction and strength. Furthermore, increased happiness as a result of acquiring empathy from the one who he helps.

We will now compare these above-mentioned core values of life with the popular theories of ethics in order to determine that are these core values supported by ethical theories and how they are aligned with them. And if they are not aligned, how do they oppose the ethical theories.

The first theory under investigation is deontology which shows a kind of a universal approach. The theory states as “the idea that people should be treated with dignity and respect CITATION Lar \l 1033 (Larry Chonko)”. Irrespective of color, caste, and backgrounds, everybody has an intrinsic demand of respect. This theory not only gives a right of self-respect and dignity to everyone without any discrimination but also identify one’s responsibilities accordingly. The core ideas for a good life given above were self-awareness and a passion to help others without any discrimination. This theory of ethics seems to perfectly align with the core values of life. This ethical model has been considered as one of the strongest models for public relations ethics.

The second theory of ethics that we are going to discuss is the theory of “Virtue ethics”. Virtue ethics is a character-based theory of ethics. It deals with the person rather than circumstances and situations. The theory states that “A right act is an action of a virtuous person who would do that in the same circumstances ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"KCEbRJEH","properties":{"formattedCitation":"({\\i{}Ethical Theories})","plainCitation":"(Ethical Theories)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":133,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/5OlhLovK/items/DYBHIPMM"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/5OlhLovK/items/DYBHIPMM"],"itemData":{"id":133,"type":"webpage","title":"Ethical Theories","URL":"https://pagecentertraining.psu.edu/public-relations-ethics/introduction-to-public-relations-ethics/lesson-1/ethical-theories/","accessed":{"date-parts":[["2019",11,4]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Ethical Theories)”. Virtual ethics is more concerned with a person’s life rather than events which means that a person’s intention is more important than the action. The reason is that intentions shape a person’s deeds and actions. The theory also discusses the decisions which are to be adopted in the case when the assigned duties have conflicts. As an example, if the virtue of justice is essential for the public’s interest, then all the decisions will be made by undertaking this attribute as the core values mentioned above which determine the quality of a good life are in accordance with the philosophy of this ethical theory. The sincerity of a person with his cause comes from the clarity of thoughts. To obtain clarity in thoughts, self-awareness is very necessary. Not only the information about self but also being deeply conscious of present and performing actions while in a mindful state. So, this theory of ethics supports the core moral value of life which is stated above.

The last theory of ethics in the discussion is the theory of utilitarianism which is based on utility. Its statement is “ the greatest amount of pleasure for the greatest number of people ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"ywtjfpG4","properties":{"formattedCitation":"({\\i{}BBC - Ethics - Introduction to Ethics})","plainCitation":"(BBC - Ethics - Introduction to Ethics)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":135,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/5OlhLovK/items/UV3IQS6E"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/5OlhLovK/items/UV3IQS6E"],"itemData":{"id":135,"type":"webpage","title":"BBC - Ethics - Introduction to ethics: Virtue ethics","abstract":"Virtue ethics is person rather than action based. It looks at the moral character of the person carrying out an action.","URL":"http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/introduction/virtue.shtml","title-short":"BBC - Ethics - Introduction to ethics","language":"en-GB","accessed":{"date-parts":[["2019",11,4]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (BBC - Ethics - Introduction to Ethics)”. This theory supports the majority and according to this theory, if a minority is to be inflicted with harm at the expense of saving the majority, it is acceptable. The theory may be found attractive because of the fact that it supports a greater good for the greater number of people, however by reading and analyzing closely, one gets to know that the theory does not fulfill the basic requirements of the judgement. The rights of the minority are not entertained at all. The modern world is greatly influenced by the idea of utilitarianism. There are a lot of examples of utilitarian approach which are present in the word and justified. This approach is also called consequentialism because the theory is based on consequences. If the result of a certain action is good and brings some kind of profit, it must be adopted. Irrespective of the fact that as a result of this implementation, the rights of a section are violated. The theory can also be objected by the fact that consequences cannot always be predicted. The core value for a good life which are discussed in the topic is not in accordance with this theory of ethics. Self-awareness installs a sense of feeling for others. This attribute is opposite to that of the consequentialist’s approach of dealing with matters of life. The theory of utilitarianism is based on a materialistic approach with all the focus on physical outcomes. On the other hand, helping people inspired by an understanding of the self is a trait that is selfless and finds happiness and satisfaction without associating any kind of material benefits.

Works Cited:

ADDIN ZOTERO_BIBL {"uncited":[],"omitted":[],"custom":[]} CSL_BIBLIOGRAPHY BBC - Ethics - Introduction to Ethics: Virtue Ethics. http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/introduction/virtue.shtml. Accessed 4 Nov. 2019.

Ethical Theories. https://pagecentertraining.psu.edu/public-relations-ethics/introduction-to-public-relations-ethics/lesson-1/ethical-theories/. Accessed 4 Nov. 2019.

Kaptein, Muel, and Johan Wempe. “Three General Theories of Ethics and the Integrative Role of Integrity Theory.” SSRN Electronic Journal, July 2002. ResearchGate, doi:10.2139/ssrn.1940393.