Golden Rule Vs Virtue Ethics

The golden rule is amongst some of the many moral maxims that are normally found within several human cultures as well as different religions.  As a result, the maxims may be considered as being a fundamental part of the humanity as a totality. One of the principles on which the golden rule is based is that one should treat their fellows just the same way they expect to be treated in return. For instance, if one expects others to treat them with respect then they must show respect first in order to earn it back. It means that one has no moral authority to treat others in a way that he does not expect to be treated in return. If one wishes others to be happy in their lives then his life may also be a happy life. On the contrary, if a [person wishes evil for others then the same evil may befall them.

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The golden rule can be used in the scenario for ABC Company where Luke, one of the employees is faced with a dilemma. Luke is torn between two things:  telling his brother Owen about the new project that the company expects to launch in his area very soon. On the other hand, he has an obligation that he is expected to live upto, where he is expected to keep the matter confidential. Using the golden rule, Luke should just be open to his supervisor or the CEO of the company and tell them outright about the plans that that Owen has. As a brother, Luke is expected to let Owen know about the upcoming project and the negative effects that the project will have on the prices of the property within the neighboring locations. Luke should be confident enough to take the bull by its horns since any member of the company would not allow their brother to suffer from such a scenario yet they had a prior knowledge of such a situation. If the owners cannot allow Luke to tell Owen about the upcoming project then they should also not expect the rest of the employees to treat them with so much respect since they violate the same.

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Virtue ethics emphasizes on the character of an individual and the virtues that such an individual holds which in turn determine their ethical behavior within the societies. For instance, if a person tells lies all then the society might have questions regarding the character of such a n individual as well as his moral behavior. The same analogy can be used for the case of ABC Company that intends to have a massive project in one of the localities where Owen happens to be a resident.

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Luke, being a brother to Owen has the moral authority to let his brother know about the upcoming project without necessarily having to think about the confidentiality that he has to protect. If on the contrary he chooses not tell his brother about the project then Owen might in the future have so much doubts on the credibility of Luke.  Additionally, other staff members who happen to know Owen might begin questioning the moral behavior and character of Luke. No one might even trust him in any dealings of the company in the future arguing that if he can lie to his own brother then possibly he can do much worse with a non-relative.

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