Arguments For And Against Divorce: Virtue Ethics And Natural Law

People make decisions through every aspect of their life; they decide what to wear, what to eat and what to do. These decisions can either be good or bad. Decisions are based on a person’s morals and values. A person with skewed morals and values will more likely make bad decisions. A person does not need to have bad morals and values to make a bad decision, they could have made a mistake, or their mental health could have not been the best at the time. Ethics and conscience, conscience is “the awareness of a moral or ethical aspect to one’s conduct together with the urge to prefer right over wrong,” help people make good decisions through them judging situations and having the understanding and feeling of what the right decision is. The definition of ethics is “the systematic, rational reflection on what we are to do and who we are to become. A search for principles and norms, decisions of right versus wrong, just, fair, qualities of character and actions which make us successful at being human.”

Divorce is the act of legally ending a marriage. Divorce is an issue in today’s world as it can be a stressful experience affecting finances, living arrangements, household jobs, schedules, parenting and affecting the children from the marriage. Divorce or parental separation is associated with these children having academic difficulties, e.g. dropping out of school and having lower grades. Disruptive behaviours have also been associated with divorce. Young people who have experienced the divorce of their parents have higher rates of emotional distress, lower self-esteem and depressed moods. These children are also more likely to experience educational failure, earlier marriage, divorce and poverty. Divorce also affects the lifestyle and the people personally; it causes stress and can cause setbacks and changes in lives. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the number of divorces granted increased by 2,428 (5.2%) in 2017 and the crude divorce rate increased from 1.9 divorces per 1,000 estimated resident population in 2016 to 2.0 divorces per 1,000 estimated resident population in 2017. The median age of divorce for both males and females were unchanged in 2017. For males the median age at divorce was 45.5 years of age and the median age of females was 42.9 years of age. The median duration from marriage to divorce in 2017 also remained stable at 12.0 years.

Arguments in support of divorce include where there has been wrongdoing within a marriage that cannot be forgiven by the person who was wronged. Examples of this include violence, addictions and infidelity. In these cases, if a person stays in a marriage they could be harmed. However, some couples fall out of love and choose to divorce. The fact that divorce has been legal in Australia for so long suggests that many people argue in support of divorce. The key to being successful in a family is to love and care for each other unconditionally and if something were to happen that would cause resentment, the family is not successful, which in turn make an unsuccessful human.

One of the opposing arguments for divorce is that God made marriage a sacrament and sacraments should not be broken. God made marriage to be a lifelong union and divorce breaks that. Another argument is that an individual has a family, it is best not to cause distress to the children and work through the problems. Finally, there is a reason the couple fell in love in the first place which is natural for humans, as we are social creatures, finding that attraction and love and using it to mend the marriage is another argument against divorce.

According to natural law divorce is wrong. Natural Law is the ethical framework of following human nature and letting things occur naturally. This is because the idea of going through with the divorce and breaking up a family is not a natural occurrence. A person following natural law would not get a divorce as they would believe that breaking up their family goes against nature, and they would try and work things out with their partner. The fact that divorce interferes in the relationship of marriage by putting the idea that a marriage will not last and will end in divorce into people’s heads. The statistics and in some cases, negativity concerning marriage tarnishes the idea that marriage will be everlasting. Natural law is mostly about following human nature and it is in human nature to fight and argue but also to forgive and makeup, divorce is not about forgiveness, so it is wrong according to natural law.

Virtue ethics is doing what is best for a person and their opinions are the right things to do for all people involved in the situation. If going through with a divorce is what is best for a person and those around them, then virtue ethics says divorce is right. However, if a person’s opinion does not match up with divorce and it is not best for them or those around them, then virtue ethics says divorce is wrong. These mindsets say that virtue ethics is both, for and against divorce as it regards how people involved will be affected by the issue. With virtue ethics every decision is based on an individual’s conscience and what is best for the people also affected.

To compare the two frameworks of natural law and virtue ethics, it could be said that their approaches to divorce are very similar. With the both of them doing what is best for those also involved in the situation. The only difference is that regarding virtue ethics, there is a more personal approach to situations. As to the ethical frameworks regarding divorce, they say that divorce is wrong, but virtue ethics can also say that divorce is right. Natural law requires following a form of the pre-determined ethical framework while virtue ethics allows an individual to make choices, although based on the idea of virtue.

The Catholic Church disagrees with divorce. The church has this position because marriage is sacred as it is a sacrament. The church also believes that divorce is morally wrong, ‘People naturally know what is right through the use of their intelligence. Reason and reflection. Moral wisdom to guide them in making choices and decisions.’ – the ten principles of catholic ethical behaviour. A bible reference that shows this is Matthew 19:6 “6 So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” Matthew 19:6 is saying that two humans joined together in marriage are finally complete and are no longer two flesh but one and they cannot separate. The reference refers to God and his role in joining people together. The joining represents that God plays a role in everything and what happens, happens because God has a plan for us. A reference from the Catechism of the Catholic Church that explains the churches position is ‘2384 divorce is a grave offence against the natural law. It claims to break the contract, to which the spouses freely consented, to live with each other till death. Divorce does injury to the covenant of salvation, of which sacramental marriage is the sign. Contracting a new union, even if it is recognised by civil law, adds to the gravity of the rupture: the remarried spouse is then in a situation of public and permanent adultery:’ The reference is saying that divorce is a grave offence. The reference says that it is a grave offence because divorce breaks the contract of marriage, which was done in free will. It says that divorce injures the covenant of salvation, which is marriage. The Catechism also explains that even after remarrying, the spouse is then committing public and permanent adultery.

I think the argument that the Catholic Church and The Catechism present concerning that divorce is a grave offence and after divorce, a person is then committing public and permanent adultery, is what I find to be the least persuasive. I believe this because the separation between two parties is what they chose, and it is not what others think that counts. After a divorce, if a person chooses to have another relationship or remarry The Catechism says that they are committing adultery. Adultery is by definition a “voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and a person who is not their spouse”, they are no longer married so they are not committing adultery.

The most persuasive argument for divorce to me, a one from virtue ethics, is that if a person cannot find it in themselves to forgive their spouse for cheating. If they are truly hurt by the mistreatment they receive from their spouse, they do not need to forgive them, as it is what they value and how they feel.

According to virtue ethics my opinion would be dependent on what I was feeling and my opinions. I would also look to others for advice and work out how it would affect others.