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How can we know, if at all, that our behaviour is ethical?
Member rating: No Rating | Words: | Submitted: Tue Oct 14 2003
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How can we know, if at all, that our behaviour is ethical? Why do people act wrongly, when they know full well what right conduct demands? According to Newsweek magazine, million dollar Wall-Street scandals have affected our economy by individuals not being aware of correct ethical standards.1 At any rate, can the teaching of ethics really help cleanse the business world of its shady deals? In summarizing Newsweek's comments, the problem is not that people lack ethical standards or are incapable of distinguishing between right and wrong; rather educators are not challenging students to act on these standards. Even in today's complex world, knowing what is right is fairly straightforward, but doing what is right is difficult. Like Newsweek, the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle has been known to investigate ethical standards in Book Seven, Nicomachean Ethics.2 In this book, Aristotle used the word akrasia, which presented a challenge for moral teaching....
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