Reconstruction Of Economics Ethical Dimension

The interrelation between the economics and ethics is an important problem in the filed of theory and practice. The ancient economic thoughts had been thought as a part of ethics. The moral philosophy had never been eliminated even in classic economics. It is along with technicalization, axoiomatization and scientifization in economic study that economics has increasingly lost moral interest in 20th century. However, economics is destined to go further the ethical question behind the economic formula in order to understand and explain the real world. In the context of a serious distance between economics and ethics, Amartya Sen, winner of the 1998 Nobel Prize in economics, sets off a revolution in the area of economics. He has tried to revive the union between economics and ethics and restored an ethical dimension to the discussion of vital economic problems. Sen argues that modern economic thought about the distance between economics and ethics is a departure from classic economics, and also is a misunderstanding to the nature of economics. What he does is to renew the alliance between economics and ethics, which had been emerged. The ethical dimension of economics called here means to be the ethical level of economics itself and its understanding. As far as the reestablishment Sen has been engaged in is concerned, it includes the following aspects: (1) from the premise of reestablishment, economics and ethics interacts each other, economics can make greater contributions to the study of ethics, and ethics can also make greater contributions to the economic analysis; (2) from the method of reestablishment, the relation between economics and ethics should be considered through a method of plurality and balance;(3) from the goal of reestablishment, it rebuilds the human dimension and value dimension of economics on the basis of economics which is broadly understood. The view of rationality is the base on which Sen is restoring an ethical dimension to the discussion of economics. By criticizing two predominant methods of defining rationality of behavior in mainstream economic theory iii(rationality as internal consistency of choice and as rationality as self-interest), Sen points out that each way has not been a full approach to rationality, thus resulting in the distance of economics from ethics. On the base of that, Sen emphasizes that we should grasp the broader implication of rationality. The first and the most direct use of rationality is not predictive and descriptive, but normative, viz., man should think and act wisely and judiciously. The discipline of rationality is that personal choice must be subject to the need for reasoned scrutiny, and man's economic behavior and moral conduct should be led by rationality. From the relationship between rationality and morality, moral sentiments are influenced and fostered by rationality and the reasoning directed by rationality understands, assesses and chooses values. From the relationship between rationality and identity, the identity of community is certainly important, but identity couldn't exclude the use of rationality, choice and reasoning still exist in the identity's cognition. From the relationship between rationality, tradition and culture, culture and tradition do affect human's use of rationality, but cultures are diverse, complicated and variable, and anytradition must be critical reflected and chose by rationality Understanding and perceptions fostered by rationality could become the source of cultural interchange and exchange between diverse tradition. The core of reestablishment is to establish the new system of valuation. Through analyzing advantages and limitations of utilitarianism, welfare economics, John Rawls' Justice theory, and Robert Nozick's Libertarianism, Sen develops a broader frame of valuation. The framework includes three aspects: first, on its informational base of valuation, functionings and capability are see...