On Morality and Ethics

Ethics and Morality are the terms that are used interchangeably with the general idea of something which establishes good and bad. But the difference between the two brothers is not yet clear as the definition provided can be put to both of them. So let’s understand each of those and see if we can sight a difference between the two.

What is morality? The most obvious definition is right and what is wrong. Well, why do we need morality? Because a person needs to decide to every minute of life what is right and what is wrong. That’s why you do certain things and you avoid certain things. But who decides what is right and what is wrong? Well, the person decides what is right and what is wrong. But there can be a case where a person thinks killing women is a right. What do you do about it then?

Yes, that’s the very reason why morality can’t be entirely subjective. There can be instances where your subjective morality can win over the objective morality but it cannot be left onto people. Because people are prone to make terrible and violent choices. So in order to live together which humans do, we needed to figure out a way to establish a ground where we know what is right and wrong for individuals and everybody else. So we made stories that dictate the ways to live, which we identify as religion.

But where does this idea of right and wrong come from?

Let’s say you want to become an astronaut. You have a choice whether you want to choose science in your college or commerce. What would you choose? It is obvious that you would choose science. Why? Because in order to be an astronaut you need to have a bachelors degree in science

What you aim at, establishes what is right and what is wrong. If you aim to become CA then taking commerce would be the right thing to do. So does that comment upon the other case where a person who wants to become an astronaut takes science, is wrong? No, because he aims to be an astronaut.

But who are these right and wrong for? Why is it considered that an aspiring astronaut should take science in college? It’s because it’s not that only you are asked to make such a choice, it’s that all of the astronauts need to do because if they don’t they won’t understand the basics of physics, which might contribute to bigger fucks ups in the moon mission which would impact the larger amount of people.

So right and wrong is not just about me but also for the other people around me. It’s a universal code according to which you need to act. Because if you don’t make it universal again people would mess up things and it would become difficult to sustain societies. So the question here arises, what is ethics? Because people define it as something similar to morality “universal good and bad”

But in my interpretation, Ethics are a lot more personal especially in the domain of how to conduct life. Because what morally is unacceptable might not align with your subjective beliefs. For example, giving a credit to an artist for their work might not have anything to do with the overall morality of the society. It has to do with the ethics of an artist and the person using its artwork. Also, we can say that Ethics too aim to differentiate between what is right and wrong but the stakes are lower as compared to morality. These ethical values might change and differ depending upon the community or social setting. In my limited understanding ethics serve a purpose mostly in business, medicine, and law. On the other hand, morality serves a greater purpose than ethics roughly speaking, as it defines ‘good and bad on a societal, cultural and personal but more the former than the latter.

Lastly, I must say this, this is completely context-dependent. Ethics and Morality are more similar than they are different. People often use these terms interchangeably in debates, discussions, or conversations. But this essay should be the end of your quest to explore Morality and Ethics. I would be humbled if you take this essay as a starting point of getting a brief idea about these two concepts. In no way I am an academic Philosopher to draw explanations on Morality or Ethics, this essay was just an attempt to disseminate my understanding of the concepts and present it in a digestible form.