non cognitivism (metaethics)

Question 1

define non-cognitivism

Answer 1

moral judgements express non-cognitive mental states rather than aiming to describe true or false reality

Question 2

define emotivism

Answer 2

moral judgements express non-cognitive FEELINGS of approval or disapproval

Question 3

hume’s 3 arguments against cognitivism, for emotivism

Answer 3

1. moral judgements motivate action (cognitive beliefs don’t motivate us)
2. hume’s fork (moral judgements aren’t ROI or MOF so aren’t cognitive judgements of reason)
3. is/ought gap

Question 4

Ayer’s argument for emotivism against cognitivism

Answer 4

Verification principle (statement only has meaning if analytic truth or empirically verifiable)

Moral judgements are meaningless

Question 5

define prescriptivism

Answer 5

moral judgements express non-cognitivist instructions that aim to guide behaviour.

Hare: moral language doesn’t just describe, it commends/criticises

Question 6

critique of non-cognitivism

Answer 6

if moral judgements can’t be true or false then we can’t use them in moral reasoning/arguments, but we do all the time so how does that work?