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Seven Ethical Theories

by Robert Wellert

If you are looking for a simple, general overview of ethical theories, this is a candidate. Robert Wellert neatly summarizes main ideas from existential, pragmatic, virtue, contract, deontological, consequentialist and natural law ethics. Wellert claims that we should consider ultimate goals, short-term and long-term consequences, standards, moral stature, and the categorical imperative when making moral decisions. He writes that we should act with courage and decisiveness.

Wellert explains that in virtue ethics habit and virtuous actions reinforce each other, though no mention of when habits go bad is made. The virtues are often conclusions masquerading as premises.

Existentialists believe there are no perfect maps for life, no method of avoiding choices short of severe brain damage, and no way of preventing consequences from arising from our choices.

Deontological ethics emphasizes moral rules that we give ourselves. Strengths of deontological ethics include universalism and anti-conformism. Three weaknesses of deontological ethics are a lack of specific strategies, a tendency to invoke arbitrary or absolute rules and a lack of concern for consequences.

Consequentialism emphasizes the enormously important matter of long-term results. It is amazing how often people label concern for slightly longer than short-term consequences concern for long-term consequences. Many people seem to think that long-term consequences means the day after tomorrow. Wellert writes about how various moral theories dovetail, arguing that adherence to many deontological rules leads to better long term consequences, how virtues can lead to better consequences, how giving high weight to consequences can lead to the formation of better rules and so on.

Contract ethics focuses on real world political justice, which is a strength. But contract ethics has weakknesses. Among the weaknesses of many versions of contract ethics are:

· Lack of concern for overall consequences.

· Disinterest in consequences on out-group individuals.

· Anti-meritarianism.

· Omission of intergenerational and interfamily justice.

· Absence of concern for the rights of those who are being harmed for no good reasons.

· Failure to include non-income factors in determining how well-off individuals are.

Pragmatists believe the best people often have the most failures. They keep experimenting. Those who have failed least often are failures in the big picture.

Much of this work, however, is blather and baloney. Wellert’s uses of the words reason, objective, and subjective are mistaken. The layout of Seven Ethical Theories looks as if it were done on a typewriter, but I don’t care about that. It's nice to escape fancy fonts and layouts. It gives the book a certaing down to earth quality. Worth skimming.

172p (H) 1995

— book review article by J.T. Fournier

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