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SUMMARY AND READING QUESTIONS : An Introduction to Moral Philosophy - Jonathan Wolff

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This document contains the extensive answers (discussed in class) of the reading questions of the book "An Introduction to Moral Philosophy" from Jonathan Wolff, as well as a summary of the chapters, starting from the fourth one (the previous ones being quite short). It also provides a summary of a...

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  • March 28, 2020
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  • 2019/2020
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An introduction to Moral Philosophy - Jonathan Wolff

Moral philosophy : thinking and reflecting about morality, attempt to overcome skeptical
doubt, effort to find a procedure by which we can demonstrate that we really do know what
we think we know.
Ethical =~= moral
Ethics =~= morality

Lecture 1 : Relativism, Subjectivism, Objectivism

CHAPTER 1 : Moral philosophy and Moral reasoning

1. (A) Explain the distinction between meta-ethics, normative ethics, and applied ethics.
Meta-ethics:
- meta = of a higher order
- questions about the nature and existence of value
- questioning the authority of a moral rule, the nature of a thing or its origins.
- fundamental issues of trust and justification.
Normative Ethics:
- norm = standard
- questions about what we should do and how we should live
- study of what we morally ought to do.
- ex : what moral principles should we accept? what benchmarks should we live by?
Applied Ethics :
- questions about specific problems
- real life issues
- ex : under what circumstances, if any, is abortion permitted ?

2. (B) What is the difference between a valid argument and an invalid argument? When is a
valid argument also sound?
- Valid argument : the conclusion logically follows from the premises. If the premises
are true, it is impossible for the conclusion to be false.
- Invalid argument : Even if the premises are true, the conclusion can be false.
- Sound argument : valid + true premises

3. (C) What is a thought experiment?
- Experiment in which a situation is described in order to stimulate people to think
deeply.
- Godwin - Philippa Foot (trolley problem/ judge vs. rioters) p.13/14
How can they be used in moral arguments?
- Way of discovering people’s moral intuitions => moral theory in line with ppl’s intuition
= great advantage, more likely to be right (if people don’t agree with theory => they
find it counterintuitive. They have to reject some of their moral beliefs to accept it.)
- Way of testing a moral theory by considering how it fares against (performs in
comparison with) our moral intuitions. (intuitive or counterintuitive)
! Not infallible : our intuitions can be wrong !
4. (D) What is meant by the fact/value distinction?
Special moral arguments :


1

, - Universalization : one way of testing whether something is right or wrong is by asking
ourselves “What if everyone did that?”. If nothing seriously bad would happen => not
a bad thing.
- Fact/value distinction : Hume’s theory; Is-ought Problem; You cannot logically derive
an “ought” from an “is” (without explaining how the derivation is possible/adding a
premise which brings a value for the moral claim to exist).
- Fact can be right or wrong (deontic concept)
- Value can be good or bad (value concept)

CHAPTER 2 : Cultural Relativism

REVIEW : Moral values vary across the world, for what is accepted in one community may
be frowned upon in another. And not only do moral evaluations change over place, they also
change over time. What used to be acceptable (ex: advertising two different rates of pay for
men and women in the late 60s) can now have become illegal.

There are then 2 moral intuitions we can have about moral variation : or, one certain set of
practices is the true correct moral standpoint and all others are in error, or moral truth is
relative to a particular culture or tradition and there is no basis for saying that one is the
superior to others. This is a dispute in meta-ethics, concerning the nature of moral value.

1. (B) How should the cultural relativist position be formulated?
- idea that moral truth is in some way relative to a particular culture or tradition, no
basis for saying that one is superior to others. >< objectivism (there is one correct
moral standpoint, all others are false ; moral values are objective).
- moral values vary from culture to culture
- each of us has to see things from the perspective of our own culture, but there is no
right or wrong, it would be arrogant to think that you idea is superior.
- no basis for regarding a culture’s ideals as superior to others, in =/= times & places.
=> Cultural Relativism is the belief that there is no “right” or “wrong” since moral truths are
relative to particular cultural or social contexts, and what is right in a context may be wrong
in another.
In objectivism :
- Moral Realism : view that values exist in the world, independently of what humans
think of them.

2. (C) What considerations support cultural relativism (=cultural subjectivism)?
- no basis for regarding a culture’s ideals as superior to others, in =/= times & places.
- variation visible from one culture to another (acceptable for one, not for other).
- many people find it more intuitive than objectivism.
- had we been brought up under =/= circumstances, we would just as firmly hold
different moral beliefs => no objective moral values.


3. (D) What considerations oppose cultural relativism?
- Even though facts of variation are impressive, they are not enough to show that
cultural relativism is true (that would be a fallacy, deriving an “ought” from an “is”
without explaining how the derivation is possible).


2

, - CR assumes that it makes sense to assign each person to his/her particular,
hermetic group. => can’t always be true, one can belong to several groups or identify
more with a group he wouldn’t be put into.
- CR assumes that within each group, there is a single agreed-on moral standpoint. =>
can’t be true, always variation amongst population, everybody =/= ideas, any culture
includes wide variety of views.
- CR assumes that the moral beliefs of any individual are a direct consequence of the
values of his/her group. => can’t be true, critical thinking can lead anywhere and
drive one’s away from the values he has been brought up around. Individuals don’t
automatically adopt the the moral values of their culture.
=> overlapping groups / problem of intercultural evaluation / problem of intracultural
divergence / moral progress, moral reformers (ex. ML King).

=> CR doesn’t reflect the complexities of our moral lives.

4. (A) What is the distinction between cultural relativism and liberalism?
- CR : A statement about right and wrong can’t be universal (applicable to everything),
otherwise it is not relative to a particular society/context anymore, and so contradicts
in itself the claim that all ideas of right and wrong are relative. => proposes a
universal, so objective truth, applicable to everything, everywhere, at every time.
However CR denies the existence of universal values.
- Liberalism : Philosophy calling for the toleration or even encouragement of diverse
ways of living. Liberalism = CR (no right or wrong, depends on cultural/social context)
+ idea that we must therefore not intervene nor criticize (1 universal value => no
relativist position anymore).
=> Pseudo-relativism : liberal position asserting that there is at least one universal
value : each culture has the right to moral self-determination. One society should not
interfere with the values of another society, but to draw this conclusion is to state that
there is a universal value of cultural self-determination, which is a form of liberalism.

- Strong liberalism : everyone should tolerate diverse ethical views, cultures have the
right to “moral self-determination”.
- Weak liberalism : *J.S.Mill: “we should tolerate other views unless they harm
others”

=> Distinction : CR rejects the existence of all universal moral values while Liberalism
recognizes one (we all have to tolerate other ways of living).

- Individual Subjectivism : The truth of a moral claim depends on each person’s
preferences/judgment. (CR: depends on a group’s preferences/judgments)




5. (C) What is two-level cultural relativism?
(Moral rules can vary from society to society even though they serve the same general
purposes.)
Two levels of morality :
- UNITY : (objectivist) Moral core, that all moralities (must) share = purpose of sets of


3

, rules : value of cooperation, conflict resolution, ideals of a good life, all of this for the
benefit or everyone.
- DIVERSITY : (relativist) Particular practices of society = set of rules to serve the
desired purpose : here varies from one society to another.
One level is the moral core, values that all moralities of all societies share.
Second level is the way they ensure these values to be respected.
ex: moral core = fidelity. Practises in some countries to ensure it = taboo, moral
disapprovement, marriage contract. In some others = genital mutilation/cutting,
stoning to death if adultery, etc. → serves the value of fidelity but still can be
condemned.
ex: “moral core”/rule = road safety in a country. Practises/Solution in some countries :
everybody drives left, Practises/Solutions in other countries : everybody drives right.
=> different ways societies can try to solve a societal problem.

Two-level cultural relativism = Modest relativism : Acceptation of only some of the diversity
of different societies’ standpoint. Distinguishment in 2 levels to morality.

CHAPTER 3 : Skepticism and subjectivism

1. (D) What is moral nihilism?
- Idea that since there have always been different customs in different times and places,
there is no such thing as morality. The way a society acts is related to traditions and not to
any moral value (because there aren’t any)
- No such thing as morality => Nothing can be morally wrong.
- Moral knowledge does not exist.
- The nihilist acts as (s)he feels, since there is no good argument to do anything else.
- Psychopath ?
- 2 brands : error theory (moral claims are truth apt, it’s just that they’re all false) /
expressivism (moral claims are not truth apt, they’re not even false)

- Crime and Punishment (1866) : moral action is a form of cowardice and the truly strong
person will, in the appropriate circumstances, rise above it. (ex: Newton would have had the
right to kill 10….0 people if they were trying to interfere with his discoveries or stand as an
obstacle in his path). Morality is a device to protect the weak from the strong.

*Nietzsche : “We need to revalue our values. Nowadays : slave morality. Time has passed, it
is necessary to replace obsolete values with more positive suitable for our time ones.”
Morality is purely a device used by the weak to curb the strong, especially Christian morality.
This morality generalises humility, meekness (douceur) and conformity, and stifles (to
withhold from expression; to cut off) those who have the potential to be truly great.
~=~nihilism. Nietzsche’s idea is different from rejecting all moral values.

truth apt: quality of statement which can be put out of its context without a change of its
meaning and which could then be true or false.

2. (A) Does subjectivism reduce morality to individual preferences?
Individual subjectivism : there is no general truth about morality, even within a culture (><
CR), rather, it depends on the beliefs of the individual.


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