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An “ideal beauty” is an entity which is admired and includes the inner beauty”-illustrate & explain.
Introduction
Beauty is a characteristic of a person, animal, place, object, or idea that provides a perceptual experience of pleasure or satisfaction<href=”#_ftn1″ name=”_ftnref1″ title=””>[1]. Beauty is studied as part of aesthetics, sociology, social psychology, and culture. An “ideal beauty” is an entity which is admired, or possesses features widely attributed to beauty in a particular culture, for perfection.
The experience of “beauty” often involves the interpretation of some entity as being in balance and harmony with nature, which may lead to feelings of attraction and emotional well-being. Because this is a subjective experience, it is often said that “beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”<href=”#_ftn2″ name=”_ftnref2″ title=””>[2]
There is evidence that perceptions of beauty are evolutionarily determined, that things, aspects of people and landscapes considered beautiful are typically found in situations likely to give enhanced survival of the perceiving human’s genes.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Simply put, Beauty can be different things to different people. There are probably as many ways to judge Beauty as there are people in the world.
However, if we were to categorize beauty, we would eventually come to the conclusion that there are basically two kinds of Beauty: Outer Beauty and Inner Beauty. But ethically, real beauty lies in inside.
“Beauty is not in the face;
beauty is a light in the heart.”
– Kahlil Gibran
Hypothesis
From my research, I expect to find what beauty is and justify with ethical theories. Since everybody believes that beauty is outside. But actually real beauty is inside the body. I applying different theories to justify that beauty is skin deep.
Methodology
For my primary research, I conduct a survey of a representative sampling of students of North South University and interview them face to face and find out what they think about the statement. To that end I design a questionnaire with different types of questions so as to get a range of useful data which will help me to answer my research questions.
For my secondary research, I use our textbook “Business Ethics: A European Perspective Crane” some magazines, newspaper cutting and written of columnist. I will also browse the internet and use standard research engine like Google.
The Role of Ethical Theories
Ethical theories are the rules and principles that determine right and wrong for any given situation
The role of ethical theories suggest by Richard De George (1999:33-54)<href=”#_ftn3″ name=”_ftnref3″ title=””>[3]. He suggests that two extreme positions can be imagined:
Ethical absolutism: Ethical absolutism is an ethical view that certain actions are absolutely right or wrong, regardless of other circumstances such as their consequences or the intentions behind them. Thus stealing, for instance, might be considered to be always immoral, even if done to promote some other good (e.g., stealing food to feed a starving family), and even if it does in the end promote such a good. Moral absolutism stands in contrast to other categories of normative ethical theories such as consequentialism, which holds that the morality (in the wide sense) of an act depends on the consequences or the context of the act.
Ethical absolutism is not the same as moral universalism (also called moral objectivism). Universalism holds merely that what is right or wrong is independent of custom or opinion (as opposed to moral relativism), but not necessarily that what is right or wrong is independent of context or consequences (as in absolutism). Moral universalism is compatible with moral absolutism, but also positions such as consequentialism. Louis Pojman gives the following definitions to distinguish the two positions of Ethical absolutism and universalism<href=”#_ftn4″ name=”_ftnref4″ title=””>[4]:
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Ethical theories which place strong emphasis on rights and duty, such as the deontological ethics of Immanuel Kant, are often forms of Ethical absolutism, as are many religious moral codes.
Ethical relativism: Ethical relativism may be any of several philosophical positions concerned with the differences in moral judgments across different people and cultures. Descriptive Ethical relativism holds only that some people do in fact disagree about what is moral; meta-ethical moral relativism holds that in such disagreements, nobody is objectively right or wrong; and normative moral relativism holds that because nobody is right or wrong, we ought to tolerate the behavior of others even when we disagree about the morality of it.
Not all descriptive relativists adopt meta-ethical relativism, and moreover, not all meta-ethical relativists adopt normative relativism. Richard Rorty, for example, argued that relativist philosophers believe “that the grounds for choosing between such opinions is less algorithmic than had been thought,” but not that any belief is equally as valid as any other<href=”#_ftn5″ name=”_ftnref5″ title=””>[5].
Ethical relativism has been espoused, criticized, and debated for thousands of years, from ancient Greece and India down to the present day, in diverse fields including philosophy, science, and religion.
The Ethical Theories
Normative Ethical Theories
Normative ethics is the study of ethical action. It is the branch of philosophical ethics that investigates the set of questions that arise when considering how one ought to act, morally speaking. Normative ethics is distinct from meta-ethics because it examines standards for the rightness and wrongness of actions, while meta-ethics studies the meaning of moral language and the metaphysics of moral facts. Normative ethics is also distinct from descriptive ethics, as the latter is an empirical investigation of people’s moral beliefs. To put it another way, descriptive ethics would be concerned with determining what proportion of people believe that killing is always wrong, while normative ethics is concerned with whether it is correct to hold such a belief. Hence, normative ethics is sometimes said to be prescriptive, rather than descriptive. However, on certain versions of the meta-ethical view called moral realism, moral facts are both descriptive and prescriptive at the same time.
Broadly speaking, normative ethics can be divided into the sub-disciplines of moral theory and applied ethics. In recent years the boundaries between these sub-disciplines have increasingly been dissolving as moral theorists become more interested in applied problems and applied ethics is becoming more profoundly philosophically informed.
There are disagreements about what precisely gives an action, rule, or disposition its ethical force. Broadly speaking, there are three competing views on how moral questions should be answered, along with hybrid positions that combine some elements of each. Virtue ethics focuses on the character of those who are acting, while both deontological ethics and consequentialism focus on the status of the action, rule, or disposition itself. The latter two conceptions of ethics themselves come in multiple forms.
- Virtue ethics, advocated by Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas, focuses on the inherent character of a person rather than on specific actions. There has been a significant revival of virtue ethics in the past half-century, through the work of such philosophers as G. E. M. Anscombe, Philippa Foot, Alasdair Macintyre, and Rosalind Hursthouse.
- Deontology argues that decisions should be made considering the factors of one’s duties and other’s rights. Some deontological theories include:
- Immanuel Kant‘s Categorical Imperative, which roots morality in humanity’s rational capacity and asserts certain inviolable moral laws.
- The Contractarianism of John Rawls, which holds that the moral acts are those that we would all agree to if we were unbiased.
- Natural rights theories, such that of John Locke or Robert Nozick, which hold that human beings have absolute, natural rights.
- Ethics of care or relational ethics, founded by feminist theorists, notably Carol Gilligan, argues that morality arises out of the experiences of empathy and compassion. It emphasizes the importance of interdependence and relationships in achieving ethical goals.
- Pragmatic ethics is difficult to classify fully within any of the four preceding conceptions. This view argues that moral correctness evolves similarly to scientific knowledge: socially over the course of many lifetimes. Thus, we should prioritize social reform over concern with consequences, individual virtue or duty (although these may be worthwhile concerns, provided social reform is also addressed). Charles Sanders Peirce, William James, and John Dewey, are known as the founders of pragmatism.
Traditional ethical theories:
Traditional ethical theories generally offer a certain rule or principle which one cal applies in a given situation. These theories are normative because they start with an assumption about the nature of the world and more specific assumptions about the nature of the human beings.
Traditional theories can divide in to two groups:
· Consequentialist theories
· Non-Consequentialist theories
Consequential theories: This theory moral judgment is depends on the outcome of a certain action. If the outcome of the action is desirable then the action is morally right and if the outcome of the action is not desirable than the action is morally wrong.
There are two Consequentialist theories
· Egoism
· Utilitarianism
Egoism: Egoism is one of the oldest philosophical ideas discusses by ancient Greek philosophers such as Plato.Following the theory of egoism an action is morally right if the decision maker freely decides in order to pursue either their short-term desire or long term interests.
Utilitarianism: The philosophy of utilitarianism is one of the most commonly accepted ethical theories in Anglo Saxon world. It is linked to the name of the British philosopher and economists Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) and John Stuart Mill (1806-73).
According to utilitarianism, an action is morally right if it result in the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people affected by the action.
Non-consequentialist theories: There are two type of non-consequentialist theories
· Ethics of duty
· Ethics of right and justice
Ethics of duty: Its main contributor was German philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) thought that morality and the decision about right and wrong action was not dependent on a particular situation it depends on the consequences of action.
Ethics of right and justice: This initially linked to the British philosopher John Locke (1632-1714) it defines right alone the following lines:
Natural rights are certain basic, inalienable that should be respected and protected in every single action.
Primary Data Analysis
1.Alcohol is being legal :-
27% respondents say yes. They think that alcohol is being legal in Bangladesh. 53% says no. They think that alcohol is not being legal because it may create negative effect in our country.
Justify with Ethical theories:
Ethical absolutism: As alcohol is not permitted by Bangladesh and it is not permitted by religion, so the reasonable person in the society will go with the religion no matter what the law says. So as the reasonable person says it unethical so it’s unethical.
Ethical relativism: It depends on which society you belongs to their culture, value. It differs from society to society. So in our Bangladeshi society alcohol is prohibited. So it is unethical and illegal.
Utilitarianism: In utilitarianism anything morally right if it result in the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people affected by the action. So it’s unethical.
2. A drug Addicted Friend:-
67% respondents say that they try to stop their friends to take drug. 13% says theydo not talk with him and they break their relationship when they know that their friend is a drug addicted. 20% say they do not do anything.
Justify with Ethical theories:
Ethics of Duties: As ethics of duties morality and right or wrong decision was not depend on a particular situation, its consequences of the action. Think if you are not trying to stop him take drug than your friend damage his life. So the consequences are very bad for your friend and his family if you are not trying to stop him take drug.
3.Giving money or not:
83% people say that they give money to their friend. 10% people say they do not give him money. Others say they tell him that they have no money.
Justify with Ethical theories:
Ethics of Duties: As ethics of duties morality and right or wrong decision was not depend on a particular situation, its consequences of the action. Think if you are not giving him the money than you are not his real friend. So the consequences are very bad for your friendship and when you are in danger your friend will not in there.
4. Giving bribe for grade:
When they fail a course and someone tell them to give money to pass the course then 43% people agree to pay the bribe. But other said that they do not pay the money.
Justify with Ethical Theories:
Ethical absolutism: As giving bribe is an unethical practice in the religion and society, so the reasonable person in the society will not accept it as a moral behavior and as long as it is a crime in law. So as the reasonable person and law say it unethical practice so it’s unethical.
Ethical relativism: It depends on which society you belongs to their culture, value. It differs from society to society. So in our country it is a common practice in the every sector. So as it is a crime in law but nobody will convict you and there is no surety that your money will rightly utilize.
5. Giving gift for a good grade:
43% think that you should give gift to your teacher for a good grade. Other thinks that it is unethical.
Justify with Ethical Theories:
Ethical absolutism: As giving gift for maintaining relation which is not crime in law but here in this situation you are doing this for getting some future opportunity which may deprived someone who actually deserve it. As you deprived someone from something which he deserve. So reasonable person in the society does not agree with that so it’s a unethical practice.
Ethical relativism: It depends on which society you belongs to their culture, value. It differs from society to society. So in our Bangladeshi society it’s a common and effective practice so it ethical.
6. Helping friend:
In this question 90% people say they give their friends the lecture note. 3% people say they tell their friend to buy it and other say that they do not give their friend the lecture note.
Justify with Ethical theories:
Ethics of Duties: As ethics of duties morality and right or wrong decision was not depend on a particular situation, its consequences of the action. Think if you are not giving him the lecture note than you are not his real friend and when you need help then your friend will not help you and your friendship will destroy. So the consequences are very bad for your friendship and when you are in danger your friend will not in there.
Ethical absolutism: To help your friend that’s good. So it is ethical
Ethical relativism: It depends on which society you belongs to their culture, value. It differs from society to society. So in Bangladeshi society it is a common practice and it not unethical
7. Help to beat someone:
In this 45% answered that they will help their friend to beat someone. 39% say they try to convince him to do nothing and other say they avoid their friend.
Justify with Ethical theories:
Ethics of right and justice: As your friend want to beat someone but the law do not support you to do. Everyone have right and justice and law is protecting it. So if your friend want to take revenge then he should go to law.
8. Your smoker younger brother:
67% answered that they convince him to quit smoking. Other said that they threat him verbally or physically or notifying that thing to the guardian.
Justify with Ethical theories:
Ethics of Duties: As ethics of duties morality and right or wrong decision was not depend on a particular situation, its consequences of the action. Think if you are not trying him to quit smoking than your younger brother’s health may damage. So the consequences are very bad for your younger brother if you are not convincing him to quit smoking.
9. Help the victim:
In this situation 33% people say that they help the victim to being hijacked. 50% say that they avoid the situation and others say that they call police.
Justify with Ethical theories:
Utilitarianism: In utilitarianism anything morally right if it result in the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people affected by the action. If someone is being hijacked and you avoid the situation then the hijacker will hijack you. So, according to utilitarianism concept it is ethical to protect the victim from the criminal.
Ethics of Duties: As ethics of duties morality and right or wrong decision was not depend on a particular situation, its consequences of the action. Think if you are not trying to help the victim than when you will be hijack no one will help you. So the consequences are very bad for you and the society.
10. Crossfire is ethical:
Justify with Ethical theories:
Utilitarianism: In utilitarianism anything morally right if it result in the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people affected by the action. If a criminal who killed many people and if he alive than may be he kill more people and if he arrested then he may come out from jail by bail. So, according to utilitarianism concept it is ethical to kill the criminal.
Conclusion
The ember of Inner Beauty is lighted and stoked by a genuine interest in Self-Instruction and Self-Improvement. These are the same disciplines which were embraced by the Ancient Initiate. Self-Instruction enables us to become well-read, well-informed, and aware. Self-Improvement is the cultivation, development, and harvesting of our Inner Spiritual Self.
In closing, it is important to remember that we have been sent into our Current life to experience this realm both physically and spiritually. Therefore, although it is important to cultivate our Inner Beauty, thereby expanding our Inner Temple, it is also important to respect, appreciate, and maintain, the Outer Beauty of our Outer Temple. In doing so, we enable ourselves to enjoy our Current life to its fullest material and Spiritual measure.
Bibliography
· Beauty, n. OED Online. December 2011. Oxford University Press. Retrieved February 11, 2012
· Gary Martin (2007). “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. The Phrase Finder. Archived from the original on November 30, 2007. Retrieved December 4, 2007.
· Crane, A. & Matten D. (2004). Business Ethics: A European Perspective. Oxford University Press
· Pojman, L. P.: A Defense of Ethical Objectivism (p. 50). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethical_absolutism
· Rorty, Richard (1982). Consequences of Pragmatism. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_relativism
· http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beauty
· http://sethughes.hubpages.com/hub/The-Meaning-of-Beauty
· http://www.aseekersthoughts.com/2011/01/beauty-inner-beauty-vs-outer-beauty.html
· http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normative_ethics
· http://www.tolerance.org/activity/beauty-skin-deep
<href=”#_ftnref1″ name=”_ftn1″ title=””>[1] Beauty, n. OED Online. December 2011. Oxford University Press. Retrieved February 11, 2012
<href=”#_ftnref2″ name=”_ftn2″ title=””>[2] Gary Martin (2007). “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. The Phrase Finder. Archived from the original on November 30, 2007. Retrieved December 4, 2007.
<href=”#_ftnref3″ name=”_ftn3″ title=””>[3] Crane, A. & Matten D. (2004). Business Ethics: A European Perspective. Oxford University Press.
<href=”#_ftnref4″ name=”_ftn4″ title=””>[4] Pojman, L. P.: A Defense of Ethical Objectivism (p. 50). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethical_absolutism
<href=”#_ftnref5″ name=”_ftn5″ title=””>[5] Rorty, Richard (1982). Consequences of Pragmatism. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_relativism