Ethics of Actions

In considering the context of action, it was considered that any "act" involves an actor, who takes an action, which has consequences. And after consideration, it was determined that the actor cannot be considered the source of ethics, any more than an inanimate object. This leaves action and consequence as the possible sources. The present post will consider the action.

The notion of separating action from consequence is not novel, but was considered by Immanuel Kant who, in The Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysic of Morals (1785), sought to define a "categorical proposition" - which, in plainer terms, is an action that is right in and of itself, and should thus be performed regardless of the consequences. He arrived at the conclusion that such a thing does not exist, and I do not presently intend to rehash or summarize his argument, merely to concede that this idea is not my own invention.

To return to the context of use, action is performed by an individual, but it is not performed merely to act, but to achieve an outcome from undertaking an action - which therefore leads to the sense that the action is incidental, and the consequences are to be considered, as they are the motivation that led to the action having been undertaken. Said another way, were it not for the consequences, the action would not have been undertaken.

It is also worth noting that an identical action may lead to different consequences under different circumstances. To slice with a knife is not considered unethical if the object beneath the blade is a loaf of bread, but it may be considered unethical if the object beneath the blade is a human being, and yet it may not be considered unethical if the person holding the knife is a surgeon performing a procedure on a patient, and again becomes unethical if the surgical procedure is unnecessary to aid the patient but is instead done as a justification to get money from his insurer. In each of these instances, there is no difference in the action, but in the consequences.

While it may seem that, by process of elimination, we have arrived at the conclusion that "consequences" are the basis of ethics, this notion bears further consideration.