In the short story, The German Refugee, the narrator and a German refugee, Oscar, develop a unique friendship. The narrator, a poor senior in college, tutors immigrants in the English language to make some extra money due to the poor economy after the Great Depression. His student Oscar is much like his other students, an educated refugee, however Oscar is quite a challenge for the tutor. Oscar came to America as a lecturer. However, "the thought of giving the lecture in English just about paralyzed him (Malamud 440)." Oscar had left his wife and was troubled with depression from his life changes. As they performed the English lessons, step by step a friendship emerged, and even though Oscar had given up on the lessons, the narrator still visited Oscar trying to help him right his lecture.
Eventually, Oscar began to confide in the young American, and told him he had once tried to commit suicide during his first week in America. The narrator shows kindness and compassion, still trying to help Oscar write and translate his lecture. However, they never get past the first page. Instead of writing the lecture on every visit, the two both sit in silence in the heat of his apartment. "It was sticky, hot July and the heat didn't help at all (Malamud 442)." The narrator then decides to buy a second hand fan for Oscar. An action that however minute is the right action to perform. Although the fan only last a week, the narrator's action of kindness is good, by three normative ethicist, David Hume, Immanuel Kant, and John Stewart Mills, this small action performed can be shown to be the right action.
The moral normative theory, Subjectivism, from Hume's philosophy examines the moral pleasure the narrator receives by doing this action. Subjectivism states that an action is the right action for an agent if and only if the agent when performing this action gains moral pleasure from it, or as Hume would say, "An action, or sentiment or character, is virtuous or vicious; why? because its view causes a pleasure or uneasiness of a particular kind.
Contrary to other theories in normative ethics, which tend to ask "what actions are right?... A key theme in virtue ethics is the recognition of moral complexity. ... Another key theme in virtue ethics is moral understanding. ... The last key theme in virtue ethics is moral education. ... This outlines the theme of moral complexity in virtue ethics. ...
Statements can be divided into two parts descriptive and normative. ... Normative statements make value judgments. ... Ethics is prescriptive and is concerned with normative values. Since ethics is normative it deals with more of what ought to be than what is. Normative ethics constructs ethical theories based upon valid moral principles. ...
Statements can be divided into two parts descriptive and normative. ... Normative statements make value judgments. ... Ethics is prescriptive and is concerned with normative values. Since ethics is normative it deals with more of what ought to be than what is. Normative ethics constructs ethical theories based upon valid moral principles. ...
As Wartick & Wood assert, "Business ethics is based upon some normative concepts about they way business should operate" (Wartick & Wood, 1998, p. 124). ... The informal codes of ethics are the unspoken rules; how people relate interpersonally, and if there is any punishment when the formal code of ethics is violated. ... "If the formal and informal organizational ethics are consistent, one is left merely to decide whether the organizational ethical climate is compatible with his/her individual ethics. ... It is these experiences that form ethics." ... Wartick and Wood claim that "When c...
Studying cultural realism is "difficult [in] that whereas anthropology and sociology are empirical sciences, fields of study based on observations and facts, ethics is a normative discipline, based on judgments and moral values [but] a scientist can only predict a certain outcome, and not pass judgment on whether that outcome is morally right or wrong." This is one of the driving differences between empirical sciences and normative discipline. Ethics is open to all opinions, without have a specific correct answer. ... That being said, this allows no basis for universal morals because no...
Ayer rejected traditional normative explanations of ethics, including both teleological and deontological theories. ... For MacIntyre this made emotivism a misconceived theory of ethics; he found social emotivism - in which moral judgements are seen as mere expressions of personal preference nothing more - disturbing. ...
Abstract This paper explains issues that shape the role of ethics in policing. Police ethics involves hard choices as well as avoiding violations of basic moral standards. ... Police ethics involves making hard choices as well as avoiding violations of basic moral standards. ... Then there are unwritten rules that determine acceptable and normative behavior with any particular police department. ... There are two types of problems that are encountered in police ethics. ...
Having said that, Hegel does have a very Kantian like way of going about ethics. In order to introduce Hegels ethics to us, Walsh compares the doctrines of Kant to Hegels. ... Walsh points out this description of the compass that Kant refers to is most definitely a normative view, instead of the descriptive. ... Walsh describes Kant as giving the term ethics a restricted meaning. Kant saw ethics as concerning the motives and intentions of individual moral agents. ...
It does not adopt a normative stance. ... However when disagreements arise whereby different stakeholders' contributions cannot be objectively assessed, virtue ethics is applied. ... These options are created, keeping in mind the framework of society, utilitarianism, justice and virtue ethics within SST. ... The normative core of SST, i.e. society as the ultimate stakeholder, helps management progress through the various sequences of decision-making and moral analysis. ...
