Jack comments on Virtue Ethics for Consequentialists - Less Wrong

33 Post author: Will_Newsome 04 June 2010 04:08PM

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Comment author: Jack 06 June 2010 02:57:19PM 1 point [-]

As one might expect this issue of the distinction between ethics and morality routinely comes up in undergraduate philosophy courses. I have yet to hear a professor of philosophy endorse any distinction between morality and ethics and they often are perplexed that the general public seems to think there is one. Professional usage, not common usage, is what matters when we're thinking about issues in an academic field.

Comment author: PeterS 06 June 2010 07:09:56PM *  1 point [-]

Regardless of the terms' usages in academia, there is often a distinction in common speech. I disagree that this distinction is irrelevant. Also, having gotten to know several professional philosophers before leaving the field for mathematics, I know that they are not as confused by this distinction (or the public's employment of it) as you suggest, even if they choose not to draw it themselves.

But it's all moot, as

Professional usage, not common usage, is what matters when we're thinking about issues in an academic field.

implies that any usage of ethics in opposition to the study of Aristotle's eudaimonia was at one time as irrelevant/improper as the common usage is now. I think, while that statement might be correct for a technical field's vocabulary, it is not alright to restrict a layman's usage of certain philosophical terms, like ethics, in the same manner.

Comment author: tut 06 June 2010 04:05:54PM 0 points [-]

I thought that the standard answer was "one is latin and the other is greek".