META ETHICS

Question 1

Naturalism + Scholars

Question 2

What is BRADLEY’s view of Naturalism

Answer 2

• MORALS are OBSERVABLE as Part of the World
• SOCIAL ORDER + POSITION In Order DETERMINE DUTIES
• Our DUTIES are CONCRETE & UNIVERSAL, it’s OBJECTIVE , realises the whole person
• Can PROVE what GOOD PERSON IS ,using EXAMPLES from SOCIETY, e.g. GOOD PERSON is KIND (Mother Tersesa) , HOLY (Pope)
  MORAL STATEMENT is SAME as ANY OBJECTIVE Statement - can Use Empirical Evidence to back it up

Question 3

What is a CRITICISM of BRADLEY

Answer 3

His EVIDENCE to PROVE SOMETHING is GOOD/BAD is SUBJECTIVE –> e.g Is Something Good because it Generates Pleasure Or is Good as it Acheives Union with God
Some Might FIND EVIDENCE that MOTHER TERESA WASN’T a KIND PERSON

Question 4

What is FOOT’s view of Naturalism

Answer 4

• MORAL - kind of ‘NATURAL DEFECT’
• When We CALL Person ‘JUST MAN’ or ‘HONEST WOMAN’ , we REFER to SOMETHING - EVIDENCE to Back It Up
• are VIRTUES, Characteristics that AIM at Good, Virtues Recognised -> PROVE IF Someone is GOOD OR NOT BY WATCHING How they BEHAVE -> GOOD Person PRACTISES VIRTUES e.g. Courageous Person Stands Up for Justice
• Honest Person Does Honest Things -> Honest Things Can Be Observed -> Therefore we Can Perceive Moral Absolutes

Question 5

How does HUME CRITICISE NATURALISM

Answer 5

• MORAL Good and Evil CANNOT be DISTINGUISHED Using REASON
• MORAL Statement ISN’T the SAME as FACTUAL Statement , you CANNOT MAKE a FACTUAL Statment and ASSUME a MORAL Statement FROM IT
• e.g. ABORTION - FACTUAL - it’s Termination, MORAL - it’s Bad
  Moral Isn’t Objective

Question 6

What is MOORE’s view on INTUITIONALISM?

Answer 6

• YOU JUST KNOW
• ATTEMPTS to DESRCIBE GOOD as SOMETHING ELSE is NATURASLITIC FALLACY (criticises Naturalism)
  if you Describe GOOD as Something that creates MOST PLEASURE , you’ve BROKEN IT DOWN Into Something Else -> NOT POSSIBLE as GOOD is a SIMPLE NOTION -> CAN’T be BROKEN DOWN
• Gave EXAMPLE - YELLOW - simple notion-GIVING EXAMPLES of what YELLOW Is (banana) start to CHANGE what IT IS (fruity) - this is the same for Good
• “GOOD is GOOD and That’s the End of It”
• As you Start to Give Examples -> Confuses what We Mean , Good Knife Isn’t Same as Good Use of Time -> Become Subjective -> Not a Complex

Question 7

What is a CRITICISM of MOORE’s view on INTUITVISM ?

Answer 7

• IS BAD a SIMPLE Concept too?
• Surely NOT EVERYONE KNOWS What’s INTUTIVELY GOOD - we DON’T ALL THINK The SAME - DIFFERENT CULTURES

Question 8

Pritchard - Intuitionalsim

Answer 8

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Question 9

What is ROSS’ view on Intuitionalism

Answer 9

• What’s RIGHT is UNIQUE , DEPENDS on ‘What MORALLY SUITABLE’ for the Situation, PRINCIPLES CAN’T be ABSOLUTE
• NEVER Know ALL FACTS Of a SITUATION - BASE our JUDGEMENT of Right & Wrong on INTUITIONS
• It’s OBVIOUS that CERTAIN Type of ACTIONS are RIGHT -> Called these PRIMA FACIE DUTIES e.g. Promise Making, Gratitude
• DUTIES DON’T Tell Us WHAT To DO , our INTUITION IDENTIFIES the Prima Facie DUTIES, although Actual Action Isn’t Evident, OUTCOME Is a PROCESS of JUDGEMENT

Question 10

What is AYER’s view on Emotivism

Answer 10

• believed were 3 TYPES of STATEMENT, Factual, Logical and Moral
• MOVES AWAY from IDEA that MORAL Statement have Some SORT of ABSOLUTE Meaning
• MORALS are RELATIVE to FEELINGS /EMOTIONS , CAN’T be VERIFIED Through Science/Maths
• 2 CATEGORIES of MEANINGFUL STATEMENTS , FACTUAL (verified through senses) & LOGICAL (true by definition)
• MORAL JUDGEMENTS Aren’t Observable or True by Definition - they’re EXPRESSIONS of BELIEFs