Ethical Reasoning

February 11, 2013

There is a long-standing tradition in western culture of regarding reason as the key to ethical matters, but what exactly does “ethical reasoning” refer to, and how are ethics and rationality related? Developing a sense of right and wrong in the context of community values is an important part of the normally recognized process of becoming a mature, well-adjusted person and functioning in the social world of life and work. But we often take the complexity of the ethical dimensions of our lives for granted. For example, what if one’s sense of right and wrong contradicts the values of one’s society, or one’s ethnic or religious community, or one’s bosses, or family, or friends? Do such conflicts mean that there are no ethical truths, or that there are many? If there are no ethical truths, then what can it mean to be rational about ethics? Or is ethical truth perhaps a more complex and subtle type of truth, and, if so, how do we approach it rationally? In this workshop, we’ll discuss and explore the various shades of meaning related to the idea that ethics is or can be rational, and the way this is expressed in the Drexel Student Learning Priority associated with “Ethical Reasoning.” Some questions for discussion during our session:

• What are the main aspects or elements of ethics?
• How do people acquire and learn ethics?
• In what sense is ethics a normative endeavor or study?

You will leave the session with a more focused understanding of the meaning of “ethics,” how it is related to “reason” and “rationality,” what its main functions or purposes are, and how developing the aptitudes and attitudes associated with ethical reasoning enhances your life both in your career and as a human being.