Defining Ethics

Ethics is described on Wikipedia as:

“.. a general term for what is often described as the "science (study) of morality". In philosophy, ethical behavior is that which is "good" or "right." The Western tradition of ethics is sometimes called moral philosophy. This is one part of value theory (axiology) – the other part is aesthetics – one of the four major branches of philosophy, alongside metaphysics, epistemology, and logic.”

The American Heritage Dictionary defines ethics as:

“A set of principles of right conduct. or A theory or a system of moral values. 2. ethics. (used with a sing. verb). The study of the general nature of morals and of the specific moral choices to be made by a person; moral philosophy. 3. ethics. (used with a sing. or pl. verb). The rules or standards governing the conduct of a person or the members of a profession.”

By either definition, I’ll take the word ethics to mean that set of values which, defined on a personal level, makes you feel guilty about something you know to be wrong, due to socialization or high moral standards.

Each of us are taught ethics while growing up, though admittedly, some of us have a different set of ethics, or values, than do others. Ethics can vary widely, due to ethnic background or religious beliefs, but humanity, as a whole, should expect to have a similar set of ethics, or values, that mankind have in common.