what does it take to have ethics?
2007-12-11 12:23:20 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
Hello:
For Example: if a dog poops on the rug it cannot understand how it makes you feel...it can understand only as far as it concerns itself...you yell so it gets scared...and so on.
Ethics takes consciousness or the ability to imagine the situation being a different way.
I hope this helps
Rev Phil
2007-12-11 12:32:44 · answer #1 · answered by Rev Phil 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I think, first, you have to define ethics...
According to Websters, ethics are: A set of principles of right conduct.
According to this, very narrow, definition, non-human groups do have ethics....though not what humanity would define as ethics.
When the members of a species support others of their own kind, they are acting ethically.. The ethical code of each species is not identical but differs according to the particular way their society is organized.
We anthropomorphise animals, imbuing them with human characteristics...yet, when it comes to the problems of ethics or morals in animals, we reverse our position and say, no..these are human attributes. It cannot be both ways...I believe, unpopularly for the most part..yes, animals do have ethics and morals.
2007-12-11 13:11:11 · answer #2 · answered by aidan402 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I think we make a lot of false assumptions about animals. Mostly they operate without deception, or their tricks seem like small lies designed to get food or mates. I suppose you could justify and some human deception as ethical under special circumstances. You would have to examine everything on a case by case basis to determine whether we are acting ethically. Animals have different priorities than we have, and we might not even be able to understand them. Many animal societies do punish cheaters, so they could be considered ethical.
2007-12-11 12:37:04 · answer #3 · answered by Zelda Hunter 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Animals don't know right and wrong, they're like children. They can be very intelligent. I would say that they run on what comes natural to them.
When I get home Bonnie, a corgi I live with, wiggles like crazy and jumps all over me because she's happy to see me. I really don't see any bad in her and I doubt she ever judges me.
We can learn a lot from animals as far as ethics go.
2007-12-11 12:54:27 · answer #4 · answered by Reflected Life 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
A man once was sitting on the steps in the market eating bread. A cat came up to him, begging. The man gave it some bread and the cat ran away for a short time only to come back again and again. The man wondered about this and followed the cat. The cat took the bread to blind cat and set it before him. The man was so touched by the compassion that the cat had for it's blind companion that he forsook all worldly goods and devoted his life to God. A story? Perhaps.
2007-12-12 01:07:35 · answer #5 · answered by fractalarmor 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They do not have the id{super ego}, they do not have the power of self determination, they do not choose to commit heinous acts against their fellows just for the thrill. they cannot commit a heinous act and\or lie about it afterward. Non-human animals have only basic instinct for survival, they kill for food or defense, we kill because someone is wearing a blue bandanna in the wrong part of town or not willing to be car jacked peacefully...they have sex to procreate, we use sex to sell things, cheapen a woman's value, make money, we rape, lie and break promises because of sex. Ethical behavior is respect, understanding, honesty and the ability to do the right thing for yourself and family when faced with choices to do otherwise.
2007-12-11 13:19:00 · answer #6 · answered by inkgddss 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
You would have to be a human to be able to think and reason ethically. That's one of the things that sets us apart from animals.
God created humans to think and reason. He created us in His own image, not animals.
2007-12-11 16:05:56 · answer #7 · answered by chrstnwrtr 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Technically, they ARE ethical, simply because they have constructed no ethical guidelines to broach...WE do that.
Secondly, they're ethical because they are never unethical...that is...their motivations and intents are pure...no matter how we as humans choose to perceive them.
2007-12-11 15:51:25 · answer #8 · answered by LolaCorolla 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Ethics are a higher brain function and as far as the proof of the scientific community there has not been any other species to have this higher function
2007-12-11 13:01:37 · answer #9 · answered by Patti_Ja 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
an ability to recognize redundancy, for one. Non-human animals? What would a human animal be? A cat?
2007-12-15 09:51:52 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋