The Ethics Of Care: Applying Aristotle's Virtue Theory

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On a more conservative note, a set of principles you can supervene yourself with would be using Aristotle’s virtue theory, the belief that actions should be done as a compromise between two extreme virtues, to make a logical choice that would best fit the situation at hand. Aristotle deems that all moral decisions must be found somewhere in the middle of the excess of cowardice and deficit of rashness, being too much on the edge in one of these could lead to serious detrimental outcomes. On one hand, you could have an excess of cowardice that restricts you from acting as you please due to the fear of the inevitable consequences that some your decisions lead to. If you were to live in a deficit of rashness then you would be living life the complete …show more content…

She reckons that the act of caring can overcome any negative actions one may be tempted to pursue. Held argues that the value of care is crucial by laying a foundation of three components that she believes others would agree on. These three components are attending to the needs of others that one would deem responsible for, the importance of emotions of caring, and the rejection of popular believed moral theories. The first component is vital to everyday circumstances that you may encounter, the odds that you will run into a dilemma that will affect not only yourself but also those of loved are excessively high. If you choose to not put their feelings or well beings over yours then you could potentially be causing yourself more harm than good. One may overlook the importance of caring for others when it comes to moral dilemmas, but when you really think about it you must care a little to even try to solve an issue. Many would agree that this theory is most similar to utilitarianism in that caring and being happy may be closely related, but they do differ in vast categories such as when to measure the consequences of your actions. This theory puts itself aside from the rest in the rejection of dominant moral theories because in a way it is a means to exploit egotistical and societal dilemmas that many have claimed. It brings about a new approach in which, if we care for those few individuals, then we will do all that we can to make sure that they are being treated fairly. The reason this system would not be ideal for the introductory dilemma is that by choosing someone it would be going against all principles set by Held due to

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