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for example, when deciding how to divide limited benefits among themselves. Some-
times the competition is relatively trivial, such as when many people vie for tickets to
a concert. At other times the competition is much more significant, such as when two
start-up companies seek dominance of an emerging market. Every society has rules of
conduct describing what people ought and ought not to do in various situations. We call
these rules morality .
A person may simultaneously belong to multiple societies, which can lead to moral
dilemmas. For example, what happens when a pacifist (according to the rules of his
religion) is drafted to serve in the armed forces (according to the laws of his nation)?
Ethics is the philosophical study of morality, a rational examination into people's
moral beliefs and behavior. Consider the following analogy (Figure 2.2). Society is like
a town full of people driving cars. Morality is the road network within the town. People
ought to keep their cars on the roads. Those who choose to “do ethics” are in balloons
floating above the town. From this perspective, an observer can evaluate individual
roads (particular moral guidelines) as well as the quality of the entire road network
(moral system). The observer can also judge whether individual drivers are staying on
the roads (acting morally) or taking shortcuts (acting immorally). Finally, the observer
can propose and evaluate various ways of constructing road networks (alternative moral
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FIGURE 2.2 An analogy explaining the difference between ethics and morality. Imagine
society as a town. Morality is the road network within the town. People doing ethics are in
balloons floating above the town.
 
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