Moral Philosophy

The philosophy of morals, at least that which has developed in Western culture, arguably started with the Ancient Greek philosopher Plato. In his Republic, Plato portrayed morality as a universal set of ideals, unchangeable by Man. This idea of a concrete morality, given to Mankind by a higher power, was the basis of moral philosophy for almost 2000 years, from Plato, through Descartes, and up to Schopenhauer. It is especially obvious in Christian morality, in which good and evil are defined by an unknowable higher power, that of the Judeo-Christian God. Under this philosophy, the Whitechapel murderer would be seen as undeniably evil, acting as he is against Mankind’s “heaven-sent” morality.