Applied Ethics

Beginner

Nothing here assumes you have read philosophy before. Every term is defined where it first appears, and the motivating example comes before the formalism.

From Theory to Cases
How consequentialist, deontological, and virtue-based reasoning each turn a moral question into a verdict
9 min
Moral Status
The question of which beings count, and the difference between owing duties to something and having duties about it
8 min
Needs firstFrom Theory to Cases
Harm, Benefit, and Consent
What makes a person worse off, when agreement changes what may be done to them, and where paternalism starts
10 min
Needs firstMoral Status
Doing, Allowing, and Double Effect
Whether killing is worse than letting die, and whether a harm you foresee differs from one you intend
11 min
Needs firstHarm, Benefit, and Consent
Rights, Duties, and Going Beyond Duty
Claims that others must respect, duties that specify no particular recipient, and acts that are good without being required
10 min
Needs firstDoing, Allowing, and Double Effect