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College aantekeningen Sociale Filosofie (431012-B-6)
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Dit is een samenvatting van de hoorcolleges van het vak sociale filosofie
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Sociale filosofieHoorcollege 1: Ethics and justice 101
Whatis ethics?
What is ethics?
o The systematic and critical reflection on (conventional ideas about) what is good and
bad, right and wrong.
What is the purpose of an ethics ‘class’ at university?
o Not: to tell you what (I think) is right and wrong. But: to help you develop skills and
attitudes relevant to ‘character building’ (critical thinking, argumentation, intellectual
independence, intellectual humility, awareness of consequences of your decisions,
…).
All of us have different (moral) beliefs and intuitions about what is good and bad. Ethical
theories systematize these different beliefs.
Each of these theories provides helpful tools to ethically evaluate your own actions and lives,
but also societies, organizations and companies.
Instead of preaching how you should lead your lives or which policies our societies,
organizations, companies should adopt, this course will provide different perspectives to
inform your critical thinking, reasoning and (perhaps also) acting.
Consequentialism 101
Consequentialism is teleological: the moral quality (of an action, policy, institution, …)
depends on the outcomes or consequences
One should ‘promote’ (instead of ‘honor’) what is good
Sacrificing something of value is justified if more of that value is realized (the end justifies the
means)
E.g. taking planes to raise global awareness about climate change
Utilitarianism 101
Utilitarianism is more specific about what ‘good’ consequences are
One should maximize ‘utility’, which is often understood hedonistically (utility as the sum of
pleasure minus unpleasurable experiences)
Underlying view of people as bundles of utility is dominant in economics, both for
explanatory purpose (of homo economicus) and for normative purpose
, Utility can refer to sense of satisfaction (hedonistic) but most economist understand it as
satisfaction of preferences, regardless whether that leads to pleasurable sensations
Jeremy Bentham’s ‘principle of utility’: one should do whatever brings the greatest happiness
of the greatest number
We can measure utility and should calculate the expected utility of different options and
select the one that maximizes overall utility
This is demanding: you should calculate the expected utility of different options and select
the one that maximizes overall utility
This is demanding: you should maximize utility, even if that means lowering your utility
John Stuart Mill (1859) stresses freedom much more than Bentham does
If people have rights and liberties, they can experiment and choose the lifestyle that suits
them best. In the long run, freedom is the best way to achieve greatest happiness
Mill (1869) was a radical democrat and social reformer who defended the right for women to
vote long before it was implemented
Singer
Importance of equality an impartiality: ‘everybody to count for one and nobody for more
than one’ (Bentham)
Equal consideration: everybody’s pain/pleasure (or preferences or interests) should be given
equal moral weight
Pain is pain, regardless who experiences it. There is no good reason why your pain (or
interests) should matter more than another’s
An interest is an interest, whoever’s interest it may be, Singer (1991)
Deontology 101: criticism of utilitarianism
Utilitarianism thinks of people as ‘bundles of utility’ and has no room for personal integrity or
inviolable rights and liberties
E.g. ‘fat man on the bridge’ or ‘organ transplant case’ (Thomson 1976)
According to deontology, we should respect rights and do our corresponding duties
Institutions should provide a framework in which people have rights and ensure that these
are not violated for the sake of ‘the greater good’
Each person should be treated not as mere means but as n end in themselves (Immanuel
Kant)
John Rawls: theory of justice
John Rawls build on Kant and develops ‘A Theory of Justice’ (1971) that is deontological,
liberal and egalitarian
Each person is due equal respect and thus have the freedom to form and pursue their own
conception of the good life (pluralism)
e.g. freedom of religion, of association, of speech, …
John Rawls: original position
Rawls asks you to imagine yourself in an original position in which you and others are behind
a ‘veil of ignorance’ (you don’t know who you are, what position you’re in)
,
You are then asked to agree on ‘principles of justice’ that stipulate how society should
distribute benefits and burdens, rights and duties
John Rawls: first principle of justice
Because you do not know which place you will take up in society, this hypothetical thought
experiment forces you to take an impartial stance
Impartiality rather than self-interest: there is no good reason why you want to adopt
principles that discriminate groups in society (gender, skin colour, …)
This leads Rawls to formulate his first principle of justice
John Rawls: second principle of justice
Rawls’ second principle stipulates that socio-economic should be distributed equally unless
inequalities:
a. Are to the greatest benefits of the least advantaged members of society, (difference
principle, maximin);
b. Are attached to positions open to all under fair equality of opportunity
E.g. is just that physicians get a higher income that philosophy professors (or any other job)?
D
John Rawls: conclusions
We do not go into how Rawls thinks this should be implemented while criticizing ‘laissez-
faire’ capitalism, he does not call for communism
The welfare state should ensure opportunity and thus provide equal access to key public
goods and services (like health care, education
While utilitarians only care about the sum, Rawls starts from equality and argues that
everybody (including the least well-off) should benefit from whatever inequality arises
, Hoorcollege 2
Arguments pro markets
Introduction
Ethics is about systematically and critically reflecting about (which actions, policies, societies
are) good and bad, just and unjust
In this module, we focus on markets and ask whether (or better: when an which) markets are
morally desirable and whether (or better: when and which) injustices they can create
To understand why markets are desirable or not (morally speaking) – or to ethically evaluate
markets as social institutions – we need ethical theories
Not: personal or professional ethics but institutional ethics: how should we organize society,
which social institutions are desirable, what are the relevant values here (freedom, justice,
equality, health, wealth, happiness, …)?
What are markets?
What are markets? What characterizes markets?
What makes markets different from other social institutions (such as states, churches, NGO’s,
…)
A market is a decentralized order where people freely exchange products and services, the
production, distribution and consumption of which happens on basis of willingness to pay an
willingness accept and the prices that result from this
What are (alternatives to) markets?
Markets are only one institutional way to distribute scarce goods and service. In what way
can we distribute e.g. food, cars, education, organs, medals, money, …?
Why are markets arguably better than states?
Arguments pro markets typically compare markets with other institutions
In what respect can markets be said to outperform these alternatives?
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