Wed 05 Aug 2009 (in 3 weeks) Four areas of confusion in ethics (Matthew
Hammerton)
In this talk I will consider four popular ideas about ethics and diagnose
each idea as based on a philosophical confusion. The first idea I discuss is
the debate between moral absolutism and moral particularism. I argue that
contrary to what most people think there is not a coherent distinction
between absolute and particular moral judgments that can underlie such a
debate. The second idea I discuss is the is/ought thesis: you can't derive
an ought from an is. I argue that while this thesis is true (with one minor
modification), it is trivial and has no bearing on the question of whether
morals have a naturalistic grounding. The third idea I discuss is the
naturalistic fallacy. I argue first, that most people misunderstand what the
naturalistic fallacy is and second, that given a correct understanding of
this supposed fallacy we discover neither a fallacy nor a plausible
objection against moral naturalism. The final idea I discuss is moral
relativism. Although I acknowledge that there may well be sophisticated
arguments for moral relativism that are plausible or at least philosophical
interesting, I suggest that all of the standard arguments given for moral
relativism are straightforwardly flawed.
Time and Place for Philorum Group @ Central
1st and 3rd Wednesdays of every month.
18:15 for a 18:30 Start. Finish 21:30
(Feel free to come and go at any point during the night.)
The Members Bar, Floor 1
(Keep winding up to the top of the stairs.)
The Gaelic Club
64 Devonshire Street, Surry Hills
Sydney, Australia
(100 metres from a Central railway station exit.)
Cost: Free (Patronise the bar).
http://www.philorum.org/centralFutureCalendar.html
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