Journal ArticleDOI
Rational Morality for Empirical Man
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In this paper, the Summum Bonum, the rational basis of moral thinking, is replaced by an empirical model, which takes account of man's actual capacities and limitations.Abstract:
“It Seems natural to suppose”, wrote Mill, “that rules of action must take their whole character … from the end to which they are subservient”. Many moralists have agreed. If we could establish the Summum Bonum, the foundation of morality, the rational basis of moral thinking, this would constitute a criterion, a rule, by means of which men could actually make good practical judgments. This view is radically mistaken. I first try to show this by means of an a priori argument, and then urge the replacement of the “rational model” of practical thinking embodied in this view by an “empirical model”, which should take account of man's actual capacities and limitations. This has important consequences for morality, some of which I investigate.read more
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Journal ArticleDOI
Pursuing the Good-Indirectly
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the structure of the argument Gray attributes to Mill, a structure that is commonplace in philosophical treatments of morality and practical reasoning generally, and label the structure as "pursuing the good indirectly." Such a structure may be quite proper given the way the world and human beings are, but it is undoubtedly quite troublesome.
Journal ArticleDOI
The Doomsday Machine: Proportionality, Punishment and Prevention
TL;DR: Wasserstrom as discussed by the authors showed that there are two distinct moral enterprises that frequently overlap in the punishment of criminals, and that punishing criminals is more closely related to placing valuables in a safe or locking a door than to giving the wicked their due.
Book ChapterDOI
Dokumentation, Analyse, Kommentar und Kritik
John Rawls,Brian Barry,Norbert Hoerster,P. H. Nowell-Smith,Karl G. Ballestrem,Richard W. Miller,Benjamin R. Barber,Michael Gagern,David Hume,Jeremy Bentham,John Stuart Mill,Rainer W. Trapp,John Rawls Gerechtigkeit +12 more
TL;DR: In this article, Hoffes beitrag (1977, S. 11 ff) eroffnet wie kein anderer eine erste Einfuhrung in die Grundgedanken von John Rawls’ „Theorie der Gerechtigkeit“.
References
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Book
The Methods of Ethics
TL;DR: Sidgwick as mentioned in this paper presents a collection of addresses and essays of Henry Sidgwick, 1871-1911, c.300pp "Miscellaneous Essays of Henry's Address to the Society of Physical Research", c.200pp "The Methods of Ethics" 1874 edition, 498pp "Practical Ethics: a Collection of Addresses and Essays" 1898 edition, 268pp "Lectures on the Ethics of T.H. Green, Mr Herbert Spencer, and J. Martineau" 1902 edition, 294pp "Philosophy
Book
Modern Moral Philosophy
TL;DR: The authors argued that it is not profitable for us at present to do moral philosophy; that it should be laid aside at any rate until we have an adequate philosophy of psychology, in which we are conspicuously lacking.
Book
An outline of a system of utilitarian ethics
J. J. C. Smart,Bernard Williams +1 more
TL;DR: For example, the authors argues that the majority of meta-ethics are based on non-cognitivist theories of ethics, which imply that our ultimate ethical principles depend on our ultimate attitudes and preferences, not on empirical facts about which the philosopher is not specially qualified to judge.