Lesson 4 The Human Act as Knowingly Done PDF

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THE ACT Module 4: The Human Act as Knowingly Done Introduction

This module is concerned with developing your understanding of what human act as knowingly is, the modifier of knowledge and, reason and impartiality as minimum requirement of morality. It is hoped that the discussion, description and explanation in this module will further help in your journey to the understanding of ethics, especially knowledge as an essential attribute of human act. Make use of this module to provide you with insights and ideas to help you understand knowledge as an essential attribute of a human act. Learning Objectives With the completion of this self-learning module, you should be able to:

1. Describe knowledge as an essential attribute of human act. 2. Cite and explain the principles related to ignorance as a modifier of knowledge. 3. Interpret what it means by saying reason and impartiality are the minimum requirements of mortality.

Developmental Activities

Acts as knowingly Done Another essential attribute for human act is knowledge. It means that you should be sure that you know what you are doing. To will something, one has to know beforehand. Man cannot choose or act unless he know which is a better good. When a person chooses to act according to what he knows, he acts freely. What can make man know what he is doing is his reason. . But the intellect does not always determine the will. Modifier Of Knowledge: Ignorance We are familiar with the saying, “Ignorance of the law excuses no one”. This implies that one should not act in the state of ignorance and the one who has done wrong may n0ot claim ignorance as a defense. Ignorance is the absence of knowledge which a person ought to possess. A lawyer is expected to know his law, the doctor his medicine; and the manager, his business operations. In the realm of morals, every one of age and reason is expected to know at least the general norms of good behavior. 44

Ignorance is either vincible or invincible. Vincible ignorance can easily be reminded through ordinary diligences and reasonable efforts. The ignorance of a visitor regarding a particular address in a certain place is vincible, since he can easily ask for information from a policeman or pedestrian. Invincible ignorance is the type which a person without being aware of it, or having awareness of it, lacks the means to rectify it. The ignorance regarding missing persons or objects is often invincible. Thus a cook might be unaware that the food he is cooking is contaminated. Under the category of vincible ignorance is affected. This is the type which a person keeps by positive efforts in order to escape responsibility. It is affected ignorance when an employee refuses to read a memo precisely so that he may be exempted from its requirements. Principles:

1. Invicble ignorance renders an involuntary, A person cannot be held morally liable if he is not aware of his state of ignorance. A waiter who is not aware that the food he is serving has been poisoned cannot be held for murder. 2. Vincible ignorance does not destroy but lessens the voluntariness and the corresponding accountability over the act. A person who becomes aware of the state of ignorance he is in has the moral obligation to rectify it by exercising reasonable diligence in seeking the needed information. To act with vincble ignorance is to act imprudently. A waiter who suspects that the food he is serving has been laced with poison has the moral obligation to ascertain the fact or at least forewarn the guests about the suspicion. 3. Affected ignorance though it decreases voluntariness, increases the accountability over the resultant act. Insofar as affected ignorance interferes with the intellect, it decreases voluntariness. But insofar as it willed to persist, it increases accountability. Certainly, refusing to rectify ignorance implies malice. And the malice is greater when ignorance is used as an excuse for not doing the right thing. Thus a child who refuses to be guided by his parents has only himself to blame for his wrongdoing. Reason and Impartiality

Reason plays a vital role in Ethics as moral truths are truths of reason; a moral judgment is true if it is espoused by a better reason than the alternatives. If someone tells us that a certain action is immoral, we may ask why it is so and if there is no reasonable answer, we may discard the proposition as absurd.

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Impartiality It involves the idea that each individual’s interests and point of view are equally important. It is a principle of justice holding that decisions ought to be based on objective criteria, rather than on the basis of bias, prejudice or preferring the benefit to one person over another for improper reason.

Synthesis/Generalization

A knowingly done act can be disturbed the by the presence of ignorance. A knowingly done action must be product of reason and impartiality, must be backed up with valid arguments and executed without prejudice, selfishness and bias.

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