THE MORAL
COMPASS
"The unexamined life is not worth living." — Socrates
How do we decide what is Right and what is Wrong?
Thought Experiments
The Trolley Problem
A runaway trolley is heading down a track where it will kill 5 workers. You can pull a lever to switch it to another track where it will kill 1 worker.
Pull the Lever?
The Big Three Frameworks
Utilitarianism
Consequentialism. The morality of an action is determined solely by its outcome. If the result maximizes happiness and minimizes suffering, the action is right.
"It is the greatest happiness of the greatest number that is the measure of right and wrong."
Deontology
Rules-based ethics. Certain actions are inherently right or wrong, regardless of their consequences. You must act according to rules that you would want to become universal laws.
"Act only according to that maxim by which you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law."
Virtue Ethics
Character-based ethics. It asks not 'What should I do?' but 'What kind of person should I be?' It focuses on cultivating virtues like courage, temperance, and wisdom.
"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."