Virtue ethics is concerned with being a good person and exhibiting good virtues. Using animals for cosmetic testing purposes often times is a clear example of when one lacks virtue and exhibits vices. Being a caring, compassionate and loving person is what one would hope we all strive to be in our everyday life. Virtuous traits must move beyond the inconsistency towards animals and instead should shift these virtues into their consistency, thus including animals in moral value. For the treatment of animals to be improved upon with lasting change and equality, the argument for what is considered virtuous must expand to animals aside from humans. Compassion is one of the easiest virtues to incorporate into your daily habits. It does not take …show more content…
Without cosmetic testing, millions of animals lives will not have to be compromised and spared for the testing of cosmetic products. Animal testing is costly as one has to incorporate the spending on the animal’s food, caging, maintenance etc. That money can be used elsewhere, possibly to invest in other alternatives. Without animals to be the subject of cosmetic testing, the industries will have to turn towards alternative methods of testing which have been shown to be more effective in terms of the success in results and more cost effective as well. Finally there will be an overall increase in public morality and virtue as a result of ending cosmetic testing on animals. Happiness will be maximized for both humans and animals and humans will continue to fulfill their duty to respect the life of all beings, including animals. Society will be better off without such acts of cruelty and the lives of animals won’t be used as a means only. Allowing cosmetic testing on animals ensures the safety of products for human use, however the results are not always successful. Some also argue that animals do not share the same rights as humans do by law, therefore it is acceptable to continue testing on animals. Based on the probable consequences of acting on the presumption, it is evident that there is more good than harm brought about by acting on this presumption and confirms that it is morally wrong to continue cosmetic testing on animals due to lack of virtue and the wrong in using animals as mere means to our superficial
An employee of ABC Company, Luke is in charge with a project of developing new purchased land. The company is planning to build an adult entertainment retail store which confidently lay near where his brother, Owen, lives. If the plans are announced to the public, the property of the surrounding neighborhood will drop significantly. What concerned Luke is that Owen just told him about the offer to sell his house at a decent price compared to the current real estate market. However, Owen is considering if he should wait for a couple year and sell his house later at a higher price as the estate value may increase.
When we discuss morality we know that it is a code of values that seem to guide our choices and actions. Choices and actions play a significant role in determining the purpose and course of a person’s life. In the case of “Jim and the Indians”, Jim faces a terrible dilemma to which any solution is morbid. On one hand, Jim can choose to ignore the captain’s suggestion and let the whole group of Indians be executed. Alternatively, he may decide upon sacrificing one Indian for the sake of saving the rest. Both options involve taking of person’s life. Regarding what should Jim do in this circumstance, there are two approaches according for Jim’s dilemma that should be examined. By looking into the Deontological moral theory and the moral theory of Consequentialism we can see what determines an action that is morally required.
Animal testing has long played a part in the science of testing, and it still plays a very important role in the medical world. Testing on animals in order to create a cure for AIDS is one thing, but testing on animals for human vanity is another. Animal testing is used to test the safety of a product. It has kept some very unsafe substances out of the cosmetic world. However, in this day in age, animal testing is not the only way to test the safety of a product. Animal testing in cosmetics has decreased over the years. However, it is still used by many companies in America. Animal testing is not only cruel, but it is also unnecessary in today’s advanced scientific world.
Virtue theory is the best ethical theory because it emphasizes the morality of an individual in which their act is upon pure goodness and presents as a model to motivate others. Aristotle was a classical proponent of virtue theory who illustrates the development habitual acts out of moral goodness. Plato renders a brief list of cardinal virtues consisting of wisdom, temperance, courage, and justice. This ethical theory prominently contradicts and links to other theories that personifies the ideal being. However, virtue theorists differ from their own expression of these qualities yet it sets a tone that reflects on the desire to express kindness toward others.
The ethics behind using animals for experiments and tests has been questioned and debated for years. Many people believe that animal experimentations can be crucial towards medical breakthroughs such as the cure for cancer, HIV/AIDS or asthma. Meanwhile others argue that animals that are used to test cosmetics such as make-up and perfumes are inhuman because is not going to help improve the human race. Animals suffer through multiple types of torture such as being forced to ingest poisonous chemicals, blinded, burned, stapled, and infected with disease viruses. Even though animal experimentation may be considered inhumane to many, animal experimentation is crucial to advancements in medical research and can lead to a better quality of life; on the other hand, animal experimentation should not be used to develop cosmetics because such experimentation is cruel and unnecessary.
Throughout history, beginning as early as 500 BC, animals have been used to test products that will later be utilized by humans (“Animal Testing” 4), what isn’t publicly discussed is the way it will leave the animals after the process is done. Many innocent rabbits, monkeys, mice, and even popular pets such as dogs are harmed during the testing application of cosmetics, medicine, perfumes, and many other consumer products (Donaldson 2). Nevertheless, there are many people whom support the scandal because "it is a legal requirement to carry out animal testing to ensure they are safe and effective” for human benefit (Drayson). The overall question here is should it even be an authorized form of experimentation in the United States, or anywhere else? The fact of the matter is that there are alternatives to remove animals out of the equation for good (“Alternatives” 1). They are cheaper, and less invasive than the maltreatment of the 26 million innocent animals that are subjected to the heartlessness of testing each year (“Animal Testing” 4). All in all, due to the harsh effects of animal testing, it should be treated as animal cruelty in today’s society.
The Cruelty of Cosmetic Testing on Animals Each year, thousands of animals are brutally tortured in laboratories, in the name of cosmetic research. A movement to ban animal testing for cosmetic purposes has been gaining popularity, with many companies hopping on the bandwagon against this research. New alternatives have been developed to eliminate the need to test on animals. This is only a small beginning of what is necessary to end these immoral acts. Animal testing in cosmetics is useless and cruel, and can be accomplished by other methods of research to end the suffering of animals.
No decision procedure – moral decision making is too complicated to have a single criterion for decision
In this paper, I argue about the applicability of virtue ethics which is one of three major branches of normative ethics. The subject of virtue ethics is normally defined as one that puts emphasis on virtues which are also known as moral character. The branch is in contrast to the majority of the approaches which places a lot of emphasizes on responsibilities and rules. The practice is also known as deontology or the practice which emphasizes on the results of actions. It is also known as consequentialism (Swanton,11).The way virtue ethics is applied in modern philosophy should be clearly evaluated.
tasks of using a formula to figure out what we ought to do, by instead
Virtue ethics is a school of thought we use every day and may not even know it. The term virtue ethics is a term for the theories that value character in a moral philosophy. Its means is to bring out the good in consequences. Virtue activists gain much of their ‘inspiration’ from Aristotle; striving to live by some of his advice such as, “Act as a virtuous person would act in your situation”. Similar to what most people consider the golden rule; “Do onto others as you would like done onto you”.
Cosmetic animal testing has been a controversial topic for decades but has recently gained more attention from the media due to oppositional organizations such as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). Those in favor of animal experimentation make the argument that they are taking animals’ lives to save humans’, but is it really necessary to subject animals to torturous conditions or painful experiments in the name of science? Animal experimentation needs to be abolished because it is unethical and selfish to destroy an animal 's life.
Virtue Ethics Virtue ethics is a theory used to make moral decisions. It does not rely on religion, society or culture; it only depends on the individuals themselves. The main philosopher of Virtue Ethics is Aristotle. The. His theory was originally introduced in ancient Greek.
It still comes as a surprise to me that with all the technology in today’s society, we are still relying on animals for cosmetic research. Some people think that it is acceptable and even justified to test on mere animals rather than risk hurting people. So, for these kinds of people, animal testing makes perfect sense. However, in my opinion, animals are living creatures and have the right to live out their lives as nature intended rather than simply surviving in cages while being poked and prodded with whatever scientists fancy. I think it is depressing and sort of grotesque that I am using products that have been tested on animals that are even commonly bred as our pets. So, I began my research to find out what companies still test on animals, why they do so, and what other alternatives they could use in place of animal testing.
For centuries, animals have been known as man’s companions, a form of therapeutic relief, and a source for human joy and entertainment. However, animals are being tortured and treated cruelly for the sake of human prosperity all over the country. Animal testing as a means of researching medical advancements and product quality for consumers is a large problem in today’s society. The research experiments executed with animals in the name of scientific discovery call into question the compassion and integrity of the human spirit. If we do not put an end to animal testing in the United States, many animals will suffer in anguish through the torment inflicted upon them in a product testing lab. Product testing on animals should be illegal, because animals are killed or kept in captivity their entire life, substances that are tested on animals may never be released for human use, and there are alternatives available to testing on animals.