This unit is also concerned with moral decisions. Students will need to consider whether moral decisions should be made in terms of consequences alone, or whether moral rights, duties and principles, which have intrinsic value independent of consequences, are paramount. This material has links with Mill’s On Liberty, and also the Unit 3 theme on political philosophy.
Moral truth
- Moral truth as God-independent transcendent truth, the analogy with mathematical truths, the belief in Platonic forms as the archetypal example of this view, moral elitism, moral knowledge and of weakness of will; moral truth as based on natural facts, eg the view that what is morally desirable is to be understood in terms of what is in fact desired, the open question argument and the naturalistic fallacy; moral truth as based on relational properties which provide reasons for action; the analogy with secondary properties.
- Issues relating to the above views: the problem of how knowledge of moral truth is possible; the possibility of agreement over moral truth; the extent to which such truths can motivate/justify action.
- Moral judgements as social conventions relative to a given social group, the distinction between descriptive and normative relativism; moral judgements as serving a non-descriptive function, either emotivism or prescriptivism.
- Issues relating to the above views: the possibility of judging the abhorrent practices of other cultures/individuals; the possibility of moral progress and moral mistakes; the extent to which we can value what we like.
- The extent to which an action maximises happiness as the sole criterion by which its value can be judged, consideration of act, rule and preference utilitarianism. The strengths and weaknesses of utilitarian positions.
- The view that moral rights, duties and principles, which are not based on consequences, are required to make ethical decisions and the strengths and weaknesses of these positions. Kant’s attempt to provide a rational grounding for a deontological ethics, the importance of motivation in making moral decisions.
- Practical wisdom as the capacity to make informed, rational judgements without recourse to a formal decision procedure such as the hedonic calculus or the categorical imperative. The strengths and weaknesses of these positions.
- The above views should be discussed in relation to at least one practical ethical problem, eg the value of life: abortion, euthanasia; our treatment of the natural environment, non-human animals, and those in poverty, etc.
