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“Role of Ethics in Organisation”
AHSAN BAM11332 6A
SOCRATES
Wealth & Goodness
Ethics of Socrates (469-399 BC)
Several features of Socrates' life give some insight into his ethics.
– (A) As a young man in battle, he distinguished himself for bravery several times.
– (B) Socrates exhibited a "daimon" (his genuis or demon)--a sign or inner voice which issued prohibitory messages in periods of dazes (suggestive of epilepsy).
– (C)The Delphic Oracle: "There is no person living wiser than Socrates." Socrates interpreted this response as indicating his purported wisdom was simply that he knew he was not wise.
(D)His persistent questioning of authorities and public figures was probably aimed not to
humiliate but to discover truth with a view to the good life.
1. Socrates considered himself a gadfly annoying the state.
2. The "Socratic irony"--the profession of ignorance was probably sincere but exaggerated because of his presumptions..
3. Socrates irreverent cross-examination of prominent persons aimed not to humiliate but to discover truth with a view to finding the good life.
(E)The great example of the trial and death of Socrates demonstrated, as well, the agreement between his
character and his philosophy.
• Socrates was found guilty of impiety (not worshipping the gods the state worships), corruption of the youth (infusing into the young persons the spirit of criticism of Athenian society), among other accusations.
• Socrates refused to leave Athens, although he could have escaped: (1) escape would have been contrary to his moral principles and (2) escape would have been an injustice to the state which was his parent, education, and origin of law.
Socrates was predominantly interested in Ethics
• Self-knowledge is the sufficient condition to the good life. He identified knowledge with virtue. If knowledge can be learned, so can virtue. Thus, virtue can be taught.
• The unexamined life is not worth living. One must seek knowledge and wisdom before private interests. Knowledge is sought as a means to ethical action.
• What one truly knows is the dictates of one's conscience or soul: the philosophy of the Socratic Paradox.
Socrates' ethical intellectualism has an Eudaemological character.
• Socrates presupposed reason was the way to the good life.
– Our true happiness is promoted by doing what is right.
– When your true utility is served (tending your soul), you are achieving happiness. Happiness is evident from the long-term effect on the soul.
– The Socratic ethics has a teleological character -- mechanistic explanation of human behavior is mistaken. Human action aims toward the good, and there is purpose in nature.
• Wellbeing: a contented state of being happy and healthy and prosperous, human flourishing, good spirit
• The Socratic Paradox: People act immorally, but they do not do so deliberately.
Everyone seeks what is most serviceable to oneself or what is in one's own self-interest.
• If one [practically] knows what is good, one will always act in such manner as to achieve it. (Otherwise, one does not know or only knows in a theoretical fashion.)
• If one acts in a manner not conducive to ones good, then that person must have been mistaken (i.e., that person lacks the knowledge of how to obtain what was serviceable in that instance).
• If one acts with knowledge then one will obtain that which is serviceable to oneself or that which is in ones self-interest.
• Thus, for Socrates…– knowledge = [def.] virtue, good, arete– ignorance = [def.] bad, evil, not useful
• Since no one knowingly harms himself, if harm comes to that person, then that person must have acted in ignorance.
• Consequently, it would seem to follow we are responsible for what we know or for that matter what we do not know. So, then, one is responsible for ones own happiness.
• The essential aspect of understanding the Paradox is to realize that Socrates is referring to the good of the soul in terms of knowledge and doing what's right—not to wealth or freedom from physical pain. The latter play no role in the soul being centered.
• No one chooses evil or chooses to act in ignorance.
We seek the good, but fail to achieve it by ignorance or lack of knowledge as to how to obtain it.
• No one would harm themselves. When harm comes to us, we thought we were seeking the good, but we lacked knowledge.
• Aristotle's criticism: an individual might know what is best, yet still do what's wrong.
Socrates' influence extended to almost all areas of the history of ethics in the West
Objections to the Socratic Ethics• If evil is never done deliberately or voluntarily, then evil is an involuntary
act and no one can properly be held responsible for the evil that is done.
• Since the good is that which furthers a person's real interests, it will follow that if the good is known, people will seek it. But they don't.
• If moral laws are objective and independent of feelings, and if knowledge is identified with virtue, then it would seem to follow that moral problems are always capable of rational resolution. But they are not.
• Psychiatric evidence is that people behave in an entirely self-damning manner. St Paul said, "The good that I would do, I do not; but the evil which I would not, that I do."
• Freud's disclosure of the unconscious indicates that reasoning is rationalization.
INDENTITY
IN AVIATION...
• BIRD STRIKES• AIRCRAFT NOISE• PASSENGER LUGGUAGE LOSS
COMPENSATION• INSURANCE IN CRASH• ENVIRONMENTAL EMISSIONS • ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR IN COCKPIT
Give Way!
BIRD STRIKES
What seems wrong with lethal-conventional methods?
A Cry of an African Bird…
“Hi! I am a bird in Africa, which has the highest bird strike rate in the world. This is not surprising considering the number of unmanned strips humans have erected in our natural habitat.
Even the major airports are located in rural areas. We have been flying a lot longer than you have, and yet we have two simple rules: We always take off into wind, and the fastest that we travel is straight down.
If you see us on the ground and circumstances allow, then fly downwind of us. If you see us in the air, do not dodge and weave, since we do the same to avoid our natural predators.
In the air, if you pull up and away from us, we will dive straight down and away from you. If you stick to these simple rules, we will stop damaging your aircraft and live to look after our families.”
A Cry of an African Bird…
BEING DUMB IN AN ORGANISATION
ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS
ETHICS IN A BUSINESS ORGANISATION
ETHICAL QUESTIONS!!!
Chapter 7, Al Araf Part 9
“And surely, we have created many of the Jinns and mankinds for hell. They have hearts wherewith they understand not, and they have eyes wherewith they see not, and they have ears wherewith they hear not (the truth).
They are like cattle, nay even more astray; those! They are the heedless ones...”
MAHATMA GANDHI
Possible Conclusion
• We all possess an underlying value system and varying degrees of self-awareness which provide the basic building blocks on which to develop a resilient nature.
• The starting proposition is that when encountering difficulties and advertises some individuals crash, while others bounce back stronger and hardier.
