A Thomistic Perspective on the Inherent Translation Problem Between Universal Moral Laws and Singular Moral Actions - By Stephen Beach

A Thomistic Perspective on the Inherent Translation Problem Between Universal Moral Laws and Singular Moral Actions

"From the beginning of Western philosophy in Ancient Greece there has been a fundamental existential paradox that has puzzled human comprehension and been a driving force in the investigation into the nature of reality. This paradox is the simultaneous twofold nature of all things. All things exist in one sense as a universal, essential, and unified nature, and yet at the same time as a singular, individual, entity made of parts. This paradox similarly lives within the realm of philosophical ethics. There are the rational formulations of universal moral laws, and then there are individual moral actions and conditions in which the universal seeks to live. The inherent problem in this paradox is what leads to the breakdown between theory and action in real life. How does one fully and properly instantiate a universal norm into the realm of the particular and singular, given that there are always more individual factors than the universal law addresses? There always seems to be some aspect that is lost in translation or that breaks down in the conversion. Does this, though, present an insurmountable problem for ethics if there can be multiple interpretations regarding the proper application of a moral norm to a particular situation? The goal of this paper is to investigate the possibility of a rational system of ethics that can bridge this gap and objectively determine the moral nature of individual moral actions. This will be done by laying out the metaphysical foundations on which moral action rests in the thought of Aristotle and St. Thomas, investigating the conceptual tools of “intention,” “object,” and “circumstance,” and by offering a practical application of how these reflections can help one navigate the inherent complexity of lived moral situations."