pimpythepug | Notes on Recording of Lecture of 14/09/2022

The root of ethics is emotion. What feels wrong? What feels right? If a person feels guilt, then it is wrong. If they do not, then all is good.
Ethics springs from sentiment. Sentiment is an emotion that is felt.
Ethics should not be universal. There should be varying degrees of ethics for various entities.
The issue is virtuous. It would be virtuous to repay the favor. Martians may not understand because they are not a part of the population that established this rule.
Benevolence is generally showing kindness. A benevolent person is kind to others.
Benefits to society should not be a measure. Factory workers keep society running but doctors save lives.
Humes is really focused on the benefits to society. But is that all there is to it? Should people only be benevolent because it benefits society? I believe that people can do it for personal benefits too. The conviction might be even stronger if it was for personal benefit.
Theory 5: You would feel guilty if the kid fell into the well.
It would be impossible to construct ethics from pure logic. Sometimes the reasonable choice is crueler than the sentimental one. People often do things that are not logical for a better outcome in their opinion.