Meta Ethics Flashcards
What is suggested by naturalism?
That ‘good’, ‘bad’, ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ can be observed and discovered empirically- using our senses.
What does Aquinas say (naturalism)?
The world has a God-given natural order that we can discover through observation and reasoning.
What does Mill’s naturalism suggest?
That as we observe the world, we see that certain actions lead to pleasure and certain actions lead to pain; this enables us to see what is right and wrong.
What do naturalists argue?
The fact that we largely agree on what is right and wrong suggests this is a factual matter (similar to us agreeing that bricks are a solid and not a liquid or gas) rather than a matter of opinion.
What is naturalism guilty of (a criticism)?
Naturalism is guilty of a thinking error called the naturalistic fallacy. This claims that is something is natural, then it must be good. Nature has given us sharp teeth that makes it natural for us to eat meat, yet we cannot jump from this to the conclusion that it would be morally wrong to be a vegetarian.
What did F.H. Bradley say?
We can prove what a good person is by using different examples from society- e.g. a good person is kind (mother Teresa), campaigns for justice (Martin Luther King), etc.
A moral statement is the same as any other kind of objective statement- we can use empirical evidence to back it up one way or another.
What did Philippa Foot say?
- We can seek proof of whether someone is a ‘good person’ or not by looking at how they behave.
- A good person will practice virtues- e.g. a generous person gives freely, a trustworthy person doesn’t lie.
- You can prove moral statements by looking at a person’s actions/characteristics.
What did Hume say?
A moral statement is not the same as a factual statement. E.g. abortion is the termination of a pregnancy (factual statement). Abortion is wrong (moral statement).
