Caring (name of the Book) By Nel Noddings

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Caring by Nel Noddings
In her work Caring, a Feminine Approach to Ethics and Moral Education, Nel Noddings, 1984, disputes the existence of any system that examines the requirements for caring. She does not believe in a systematic examination of the requirements of caring. Her argument that caring is more of the feminine ethics than the masculine ethics is based on the fact that mothers have stronger feelings than the fathers who believe in justice and fairness (Noddings). On the other hand, the feminine ethics are based on the responsiveness, relatedness, and receptivity. It is, however, important to note that despite the fact that Noddings associated the act of caring to be feminine. She does not imply that only mothers can care or that the mother has a monopoly on the aspect, but for a long time, it has been perceived to be a role of mothers.
Nel Noddings’ way of approach to care ethics has been considered as relational ethics as it prioritizes relationships concerns. She believes that approaches based on justice which happen to be more masculine are good ethics of care alternatives. She, however, believes that caring is a more preferable ethics approach as it is rooted in receptivity, relatedness as well as responsiveness (Noddings, 2).
According to Noddings, the person caring should show some form of engrossment and motivational displacement while the one receiving the care should respond in some way too (Noddings, 12). Engrossment in this context refers to a person thinking about another with the aim of understanding him or her better.

It does not require that you get fixated on them but rather pay attention to them and details about them that makes one understand the other.
She makes a clear distinction between the ethical caring and the natural ethics. The natural caring is often associated with the words ‘I want.’ For instance, if one sees his/her friend in need, or sees his/her child in distress, naturally they want to help and remove anything that is causing the distress. On the other hand, ethical caring is associated with the words ‘I must.’ There are some cases where caring naturally can result in one feeling some discomfort, but one ends up acting as they feel it is the right thing to do. Natural caring comes effortlessly while ethical caring is when one cares because that is the appropriate response.
Noddings claims that it is by an individual’s experience care from others that they build up a virtue known as an ethical ideal that determines their personality. If the ethical ideal disappears or diminishes and evil replaces it, then it would be viewed that a person is doing wrong. To her, the ethical ideal can diminish if a person is either forced or chooses to behave in a manner suggesting that they are rejecting their caring instincts. She says that people or organizations can be responsible for the diminishing of a person’s ethical ideal by either teaching those practices that are against care or putting the individuals in a situation that restricts them from caring (Noddings, 117).
In summary, Noddings believes that ethics has for a long time been considered as a father’s language. She associates the caring aspect with the feminine side, but it is worth noting that as much as the aspect is associated with the female side, it does not necessarily mean that the female sides have a monopoly on it, but rather it is how traditionally been viewed. She discusses the aspect of engrossment and distinguishes the natural caring from the ethical caring.
Work Cited
Noddings, Nel. Caring: A Feminine Approach to Ethics and Moral Education. Berkeley u.a: Univ. of California Pr, 1984. Print.