Why Contractarianism?: Hume & Gauthier

Question 1

What is Gauthier’s main point?

Answer 1

It is rational to be moral.

Question 2

___ ___ is the motivating factor to get into a contract with others.

Answer 2

Self-interest.

Question 3

What is the State of Nature?

Answer 3

• Idea of equality.
• Right to everything.
• Try to satisfy self-interest.

Question 4

What does Hume say about the social contract?

Answer 4

Criticizes the Hobbesian “state of nature” and how governments are formed by an “original contract” as that which belies the formation of a civil society.

Question 5

Why does Hume reject Hobbes’ ideas?

Answer 5

It is not justified by history or experience; no a priori.

Question 6

What does Hume say about tacit consent?

Answer 6

It only applies where the person has a choice.

Question 7

How did Hume object to the Original Contract with regard to moral duties?

Answer 7

1. Natural instinct and immediate propensity can play a role.
2. We perform things out of a sense of obligation.

Question 8

Role of Reflection

Answer 8

Engages us to sacrifice such strong passions to the interests of peace and public order.

Question 9

Gauthier says that contract is like a bargain where…

Answer 9

We negotiate the rules.

Question 10

Gauthier offers a possible defeat against the moral skeptic by…

Answer 10

Grounding morality in rationality.

Question 11

Bargaining when negotiating rules involves…

Answer 11

Concessions that I make from my ideal outcome relative to the concessions that you make.

Question 12

Morality of Justified Constraint

Answer 12

Minimal characterization of morality that faces the crisis.

Question 13

What are Gauthier’s 3 objections to the ground of constraint?

Answer 13

1. Morality is grounded in some self-conceptions of yourself as a free (self-understanding) agent.
2. Morality as independent of desires, interests, and affections, but rather concerned with the well-being of all persons.
3. No extramural foundations of moral justification.

Question 14

Deliberate Justification

Answer 14

Gauthier’s nonmoral mode of justification.

Question 15

Maximizing Principle

Answer 15

We order our preferences, in relation to decision and action, so that we may choose in a way that maximizes our expectation of preference fulfillment, and in doing so, we show ourselves to be rational agents, engaged in deliberation and deliberative justification.

Question 16

Does morality perish under deliberative justification?

Answer 16

Not necessarily, as long as:

1. Explanatory role is found prior to justification.
2. Idea of justification is reinterpreted.
3. Deliberative justification is embraced.

Question 17

Deliberative justification does not ___ morality, it simply ___ it and seemingly ___ it.

Answer 17

Refute, ignore, replaces.

Question 18

Reflections leads us to recognize that those who belong to groups whose members adhere to such a practice of mutual assistance…

Answer 18

Enjoy benefits in interaction that are denied to others.

Question 19

What is the Fool’s 2 errors?

Answer 19

1. The real acceptance of such practices as assisting one’s fellows, or keeping one’s promises, or telling the truth is possible only among those who are disposed to comply with them.
2. The Fool fails to recognize that in plausible circumstances, persons who are genuinely disposed to a more rigorous compliance with moral practices than would follow from their interests at the time of performance can expect to do better than those who are not so disposed.

Question 20

Hypothetical agreement provides a test of the ___ of our existing moral principles.

Answer 20

Justifiability.