Not what is taught in college. In college ethics is attributed to both the Jews and ancient Greeks.
Don't laugh too hard:
"Who is known as the father of ethics?
Socrates, as recorded in Plato's dialogues, is customarily regarded as the father of Western ethics.
google.com
Jewish ethics[ edit]
Further information: Jewish ethics and Jewish philosophy
Since the origin of Ethical Monotheism in (Hebrew) Judaism, something Greek-sounding like "ethics" may be said to have been originated in Judaism's up to four thousand years old passed down traditions and instructions of the Torahs (Hebrew: /'t??r??t/, toroth; plural of Torah), Oral, Written, [5] and Mystical.
Ancient Greek ethics[ edit] Socrates, as portrayed in Plato's Republic, articulates the greatest good as the transcendent "form of good itself". [6] The good, Socrates says, is like the sun. The sun gives light and life to the earth, the good gives knowledge and virtue to the intelligible world. It is the cause of goodness in people and actions, and it also is the cause of existence and knowledge. The pursuit of and love of the good itself (rather than any particular good thing) Socrates thought was the chief aim of education and (especially) of philosophy.
In his personal life, Socrates lived extremely morally. He was chaste, disciplined, pious, responsible, and cared for his friends [7] In Gorgias he defends the notion that it is better to suffer injustice than to do it. The Greeks found this paradoxical, but Socrates both argued and lived this philosophy consistently. That is because the doing of evil damages the soul, which is the highest part of humans. [8] In the Republic, Socrates is challenged to defend the view that we have reasons to be moral that do not come from rational self-interest, in response to Glaucon's arguments in Book 2. The Republic develops the view that being a good person in an ethical sense involves achieving internal harmony of the parts of the soul. However, Plato's ethical ideal, as expressed in the Republic, still has much in common with the Homeric conception of the leader of a tribe or city: the successful running of the city and the internal harmony of the citizen who runs it is the main ethical aim, and there is little mention in Plato of any strictly moral obligations the ruler may be under.
Aristotle's ethics builds upon Plato's with important variations. Aristotle's highest good was not the good itself but goodness embodied in a flourishing human life. His ethics are based on eudaimonia, variously translated as "happiness," "prosperity," "flourishing," or "success." A "great-souled" citizen who lives a life of virtue can expect to achieve eudaimonia, which Aristotle argues is the highest good for man. Following Plato, Aristotle gives a significant role in moral life the virtues, fixed habits of behavior that lead to good outcomes; the main virtues are courage, justice, prudence and temperance. The highest form of life is, however, purely intellectual activity. [9]
Later Greek schools of philosophy, such as the Epicureans and Stoics, debated the conditions of the good life. Epicurus taught that the greatest good was pleasure and freedom from pain. The Epicureans emphasized the quiet enjoyment of pleasures, especially mental pleasure, free of fear and anxiety. The Stoics thought the greatest good not pleasure but reason and everything in accord with reason, even if painful. Hence they praised the life of reason lived in accordance with nature. [10]
A theme of Ancient Greek ethics then is the role of the virtuous life in achieving eudaimonia, or the good life; and Aristotle, Epicurus and the Stoics all argued that virtue was necessary for happiness, albeit in different ways and with different conceptions of those terms. [11]
en.wikipedia.org
<,
|
