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Applied Ethics: What Kind of Ethics and What Kind of Ethicist?
Author(s) -
Lantz Göran
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
journal of applied philosophy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.339
H-Index - 30
eISSN - 1468-5930
pISSN - 0264-3758
DOI - 10.1111/1468-5930.00137
Subject(s) - reductionism , epistemology , normative ethics , sociology , meta ethics , information ethics , applied ethics , engineering ethics , environmental ethics , philosophy , engineering
Types of ethics are classified as more or less holistic in three respects. Current forms of applied ethics (among them reflective equilibrium) are criticized for being reductionist rather than holistic. It is claimed that applied ethics ought to be of a holistic kind. Two examples (tracing of hereditary cancer and active euthanasia) are used for maintaining that a reductionist ethic is of limited use for solving practical moral problems. Some possible roles of the ethicist are discussed. It is maintained that the ethicist ought to be a life philosopher mapping the moral landscape or a personal mentor rather than being a policeman or an ethics engineer.