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“Do not do unto others what you would not want others to do unto you.” Confucianism focuses on the importance of good moral character. Chinese philosopher Confucius, believed that education is crucial in order to develop morality. Furthermore, according to him people are essentially good yet may have strayed from the appropriate forms of conduct. It is said that Confucianism brings respectful attitude and creates a sense of community within a group.
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“The unexamined life is not worth living.” Socrates, a Greek philosopher, linked knowledge with virtue. This means that if knowledge can be learned, so can virtue. Furthermore, Socrates states that virtue can be taught. He believes that one must seek knowledge and wisdom before any personal interest. In this manner, knowledge is sought as a means to ethical action. -
“Virtue is the desire of things honourable and the power of attaining them.” Greek philosopher Plato maintains a virtue-based eudaemonistic ethics. This suggests that human well-being (eudaimonia) is the highest aim of moral thought and conduct; the virtues (excellence) are the requisite skills and character-traits. -
“Virtue lies in our power, and similarly so does vice; because where it is in our power to act, it is also in our power not to act...” According to the ethical theory of Greek philosopher Aristotle, a virtuous person demonstrates the simultaneous quality of reason and character. The moral person is not only aware of the right thing to do, but also emotionally involved in it. -
“Don’t lie. Don’t steal. Don’t cheat.” The foundation of Kant's deontological theory was his conviction that people are rational beings capable of comprehending and applying general moral principles. Deontology does not emphasize the results of an individual's acts, in contrast to many other ethical theories.
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“Ethics at large may be defined, the art of directing men’s actions to the production of the greatest possible quantity of happiness.” Father of utilitarianism, Jeremy Bentham which is a moral theory that suggests that actions should be judged right or wrong to the extent they increase or decrease human well-being or ‘utility. According to him, if the consequences of an action are good, then this act is moral and immoral if the consequences are bad.
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"Actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness." According to his theory, happiness is defined as pleasure and the absence of suffering. He contends that enjoyment can vary in both quality and quantity, and that higher-order pleasures should be given greater weight than lower-order pleasures. Additionally, he contends that happiness should include people's accomplishment of their aims and ends.
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“Each person is to have an equal right to the most extensive basic liberty compatible with a similar liberty for others.” In his theory known as Justice Theory, John Rawl offered a universal framework for justice along with a series of steps for obtaining it. He argued for a workable, scientifically testable form of government that would have political, social, and economic implications.
