What is Ethics?
'''Ethics''' is the [[study (field)|study]] of [[good and bad]] [[behaviour|behavior]]. It is [[one]] of the main parts of [[philosophy]]. Ethics tries to answer [[question]]s like: * What [[action]]s are [[good]]? What actions are [[evil]]? * How can we tell the [[difference]]? * Are good and evil the same? * How should we make hard [[decision]]s that might help or hurt other people? * How do our actions affect others? == Ideas about ethics == When discussing ethics, the philosophy is generally separated into: * [[thinking]] about [[morality]], * the involvement of [[science]], * the [[freedom]] of people to decide for themselves how to [[act]] within their own [[belief]]s. ''Morality'' is what someone [[think]]s or feels is good or bad. There are many [[different]] moralities, but they share some things. For example, most people think that [[murder]] (killing somebody) is [[wrong]]. (compare [[Exodus]] 20:13) Some philosophers hope to find more things that moralities [[share]]. They think that ethics should use the [[scientific method]] to [[study]] things that people think are good or bad. Their work can be used to [[test]] the fairness of a situation, such as how people should [[treat]] each other. An [[example]] of this [[kind]] of thinking is the [[categorical imperative]]. Many countries have laws based on this [[idea]] of fairness. == What is ethics used for? == Understanding ethics can [[help]] people decide what to do when they have [[choice]]s. Many [[mwod:philosopher|philosophers]] think that doing anything or making any [[choice]] is a part of ethics. Ethics is part of other [[field]]s of study in many ways. Here are some ways: * Ethics is part of the study of [[religion]]. In religion, people often learn what is good or bad from what they believe about [[God]] (or gods). Some important ideas about what is good or bad have come from religion. See [[Ten Commandments]]. * Some theories of [[economics]] say ethics has to do with [[money]]. Money is a big part of most people's lives. Thinki