The conscience is the voice of reason Essay Example for Free

The scruples is the joint of debate EssayCritically assess the claim that moral sense is the vocalize of indicate. 35The origin of the conscience is much debated by both(prenominal) secular and religious beliefs. One whitethorn insist that the conscience is the congresswo objet dart of campaign and this provoke be supported by Aquinas belief in the recta ratio. One may however prove that the conscience is the voice of divinity fudge, supported b y the Butler and Newman, or is allured mainly by society, parents or authority figures, usually supported by secular views. This essay leave al wizard critically asses these claims.Aquinas considerd that the conscience is the obligation reason (recta ration) and this reason is central to moral life to aid the conscience in choosing right on from wrong. If man can use reason correctly, in line with the conscience, then it can help us to understand what it is God sees as good. We must use reason to what is good as some may perform bad actions due to faulty reasoning and thus commit sins for example this is seen in the topic of the man who slept with a nonher mans wife believing that is was his own wife and thus did not reckon he was committing a sin. As this is faulty reasoning, the conscientia helps to distinguish between right and wrong. Along with the Synderesis set up it is vital for making moral decisions. Aquinas states that the conscience is the voice of reason as it enables man to to the full assess good actions before taking them.Others if religious belief may argue that the conscience is the voice of God rather than the voice of reason. Both Newman and Butler argue that the conscience is the actual voice of God and thus makes us different from animals. As the conscience is seen as God-given, it is understandable for one to also believe that it must be his voice, and that by following our conscience we are effectively following divine law.believe this, Newman went on to say that man must also use reason to enable man to root what Gods voice guides man towards. For Newman, Gods voice gives moral direction and for us to recognise the goodness of the Popes tenets, we must recognise this if from both his judgment of Biblical teachings and his understanding of the voice of God I toast the Pope, but I toast the conscience first. Newmans reasoning to believe that the conscience is the voice of God outweighs the belief that it is purely the voice of reason and therefore disagrees with the beginning statement.To reason and rationalise makes man different from animals and thus one may argue that the conscience is the voice of this reason, however Butler believes that it is the voice of God which man must then apply reason to.As the ultimate authority in moral judgements, one may argue that it must be given that it must be given by the ultimate authority in the universe God. It is our immanent guide, the guide assigned to us by the author of our nature that author is God a nd his voice volition guide man to make the right decisions. For instance as man is motivated by both self-love and benevolence, as a benevolent God He will guide man remote from selfish love and towards a benevolent society that will ultimately focus on happiness.As Gods purpose for man is to reach eudemonia it is understandable why Butler and Newman may believe that it is Gods voice that guides us towards this through the conscience.A secular approach may turn down Aquinas belief that the conscience is the voice of reason (given by God) and Newman/Butlers belief that it is the voice of God. For thinkers like Fromm, Freud and Piaget the conscience is instilled by society, authority figures and parents. Fromm believed that the society and authority around us from a raw age, influences man to believe that if society accepts/denies something then this is likely to be right/wrong this is the authoritarian conscience. ilk Piaget, Fromm believed that this influence of beliefs and mor als will be internalised over time. Piaget and Kohlberg believed that it is the authority figures in our life, most specifically our parents, which will influence the morals of our conscience. Between the ages of 5 and 10 our conscience is still immature and under the influence of our parents, to shows us the punishments for rules macrocosm broken Heteronomous. From the age of 10 we gain Autonomous morality, as this initial teaching of morals and influence of the conscience is replaced with the child developing their own understanding of morals. It is clear that the voice of reason in the conscience is in fact the voice of authority figures in society, and the voice of our parents prescribing their beliefs onto their children, therefore Fromm, Piaget ad Kohlberg disagree with the statement.Rather than parents and authority figures dictating the morals of man, under Piaget and Fromm, Freud argues that the conscience is the product of the mind that will be influenced by the values of the society they live in. Mans personality is made from the Super-ego, ego and the id the super-ego specifically sets moral codes that are given by outside influences.This understanding of the conscience rejects the idea that the conscience is the voice of reason but rather the implementation of a variety of outside secular influences, ranging from parents and teachers to society as a whole. If societies hold different morals, then the use of reasoning (given by God) cannot be implemented universally as this is proven to be insufficient. Though all of mankind possess reason it is the influences of outside agencies that allows man to use the conscience in line with what they have been taught as right and wrong therefore it cannot be the voice of reason.By discussing Aquinas support for claiming that the conscience is the voice of reason and analysing it with the concept of the conscience being the voice of God, viewed by Newman and Butler, and the concept that it is instilled by soc iety, viewed mainly by those of secular beliefs. From this one may in the long run come to the conclusion that the conscience is not the voice of reason. Although it is still much debated, it is clear through account statement that society and authority figures play a major role in deciding what is morally right or wrong. In addition to Fromms authoritarian conscience there is the negative authoritarian conscience that misleads groups of people into doing sinful things for example the Rwanda genocide in 1994. If all mankind posses reason how can one truly believe that the killing of innocents is the best thing for society.