Consider the extent to which knowledge issues in ethics are similar to those in at least one other area of knowledge.
The essence of the Q: You'll have to get to grips with what KIs are to answer this Q - make sure you check all the posts relating to this concept. Even though this Q focalises you on 'similarities', the exploration of differences is implied (you must always aim to provide a balanced approach). While the Q also limists you to Ethics as a main approach, we recommend that you choose at least 2-3 other AOKs depending on the words you have left. Please do not start by defining your understanding of of the concept of 'knowledge issues'. You know that knowledge is a great force in our lives. You know that we gain knowledge through the four WOKs but that these can either help or hinder the acquisition of knowledge. You know also that knowledge itself can be used for purposes both beneficial and detrimental to humanity; knowing something can be an advantage or disadvantage depending on the circumstances. Your job in this Q is to imagine or find real life ethical circumstances and explain how the WOKs help or hinder us in knowing what to do. Compare these circumstances to say Historical, Artistic, Mathematical, Psychological (Human Sciences) or Biological (Natural Sciences) - choose any 2-3 from the list. Think about scenarios where the other AOKs involve an Ethical dimension.
Knowledge Issues: To what extent are KIs in Ethics more controvertial than KIs in other AOKs? In what ways are KIs in Ethics more subjective than KIs in other AOKs? How far is the notion of truth irrelevant to KIs in Ethics? To what extent do KIs in Ethics rely on evidence? How far is Ethcial knowledge useful in other AOKs? How do we maintain an open-mind when it comes to Ethical KIs?
Approaches: Remember that KIs in Ethical situations require us to decide the right course of action to take. Can we always make a right decision? You should be able to find (or think up) many situations in which making a right decision can be extremely difficult, if not nigh on impossible. What does this tell us about Ethical knowledge? How does this differ from the Natural Sciences? Think of a scientific experiment and explore how we use the data of these experiements to acquire knowledge about the world by means of general theories and laws. Do our theories always explain the facts clearly? Move on and think about how artists represent the world in their work. Controvertial modern artists stretch the boundaries of art so that they border on Ethics: should we allow animals to be pickled and displayed in an art gallery? Are the ways in which we decide what is good and bad art the same as how we decide what is a good or bad action? Mathematical KIs seem far away from Ethical ones. You might argue that Mathematical knowledge can never help us decide Ethical questions. How does knowing a solution to a quadratic equation ever help us decide whether or not to turn off the life support machine to which a loved family memeber is attached? Historians reconstruct the past and are faced by a great many problems relating to the sources they use. How do they decide which sources are relevant and which aren't? Again, doesn't their choice of sources border on ethical concerns? So you might end up arguing that while the KIs of Ethics might be very different in Ethics, nearly all the AOKs sometimes involve an Ethical dimension when it comes to the acuisiton and use of knowledge.
