Readings Guide and Key Points Week 3:

Hinman: Character is the core, unique, self chosen, and integral moral identity of the person.

Why Character is important:

Only persons can be good or bad

Only persons can be moral agents

Only persons can construct moral or just communities

To be Good is

To be loving

To be Virtuous

Virtues are the good moral habits, affections, attitudes and beliefs which lead to genuine human fulfillment

To be fully human

Human Persons are:

Free

Intelligent

Responsible

Unfolding

Social

Spiritual

:

Dynamics of Moral Action

Expressive

They express who we are

Formative

They form the person we are becoming

Effective

They effect changes in the world around us

Actions found in two dimensions:

Subjective

Individual deeds

Habits

Fundemental Option

Objective

Personal acts

Interpersonal acts

Social acts

Subjective moral meaning of acts flows from:

Intent

Means

Circumstances

Consequences

Viable alternatives

Objective moral reasoning looks at the action in and of itself

Hinman Virtue Theory Power Point:

Two moral questions:

How ought I to act?

What kind of person do I want to be?

Virtue:

Strength of character (habit)

Involving both feeling and action

Seeks the mean between excess and deficiency relative to us

Promotes human flourishing

If virtue is a habit which can be practiced and learned, then it is reasonable to assume that it can be taught.

Virtues are those strengths of character that enable us to flourish

The virtuous person has practical wisdom, the ability to know when and how best to apply these various moral perspectives