Final answer:
Virtue ethics and Kantianism both use reason as a guide to morality, but virtue ethics focuses on developing good character traits, while Kantianism emphasizes adherence to universal moral duties.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question asks us to describe one similarity and one difference between virtue ethics and Kantianism. Both of these ethical theories seek to provide a framework for moral behavior and decision-making, but they approach the issue from different angles.
Virtue ethics, such as that proposed by Aristotle, focuses on the importance of developing good character traits or dispositions. The theory suggests that by cultivating virtues, like compassion and empathy, individuals can become morally good, and right actions will naturally flow from this good character.
Kantianism, on the other hand, is understood through the philosophical work of Immanuel Kant, particularly his concept of the categorical imperative. Kantian ethics is deontological, meaning that it is concerned with adherence to obligations or duties. It suggests that moral actions are those that conform to a set of universal maxims and that these duties are absolute, not dependent on individual character or the consequences of actions.
A similarity between the two is that both emphasize the importance of reason as a guide to moral behavior. However, a key difference lies in their foundational principles: virtue ethics emphasizes the development of personal character, whereas Kantianism prioritizes adhering to universal moral laws or duties.