Can you have ethics without morals?

Question

Can you have ethics without morals?

Answer 1

Sure you can live by an ethical code as accepted by society.

Morals....are a bit more complex.  I don't feel they are connected absolutely to religion.  For me morals are inate within a person.  By that I mean that we are holders of a sense of right and wrong ..........so we may accept ethics but we are more deeply entrenched in the moral issues.  Religion taps into the sense of morals we have.  Life and events can warp the moral sense hence we see people abandoning and behaving in ways we find shocking.  But then it is the fool who says they would never.......do whatever.....given the right circumstances we would.  So ethics to me are more man made and morals are more a gut feeling.

Answer 2

yeah. i mean you can have great work ethics for example but be moral-less regarding other areas of your life i guess.

Answer 3

Ethics in my mind are rules, something that you follow because that is the general public opinion in your culture. Morals however are more personal. Not always religious, but usually. Those are your personal convictions that you wouldn't go against even if your culture disagrees.

So yes, I suppose you can have ethics without morals, but they are probably not something that you would stick with if it wasn't necessary, or culturally correct.

Answer 4

If you mean can you have a sense of ethics without religious morals then yes, you can.

Answer 5

Ethics are entirelly based on a moral system. Thus, yes. Are there ethics against killing? Is there a Commandment against murder? Yes. Is there an ethic against running off with another woman? There is a Commandment against it too. Ethics codes came after moral codes. Morals are the foundation of ethics. If you were a Hindu, you have different ethical standards than a muslim. More Evidence. All evidence points to no, you can't have ethics without morals.