C-004MetaethicsConfidence: Medium
Relax? Don't Do It! Why Moral Realism Won't Come Cheap
McGrath (2014)
One-Sentence Thesis
The author argues that moral realism, specifically the 'relaxed realism' perspective, is problematic and that its defenders' comparisons to mathematics are unconvincing.
Argument Outline
- 1Introduction to moral realism and the concept of 'relaxed realism'
- 2Critique of the comparison between morality and mathematics
- 3Analysis of Dworkin's defense of relaxed realism in 'Justice for Hedgehogs'
- 4Conclusion that relaxed realism is not supported by the lessons from mathematics and Dworkin's defense
Key Distinctions
Moral properties vs. natural properties
Irreducibly normative properties vs. non-normative properties
Key Terms
Relaxed realism
A perspective that combines a commitment to moral realism with a lack of anxiety about the status and standing of morality
Irreducibly normative properties
Properties that are not reducible to any set of non-normative properties
Flashcards
24 cardsRelated Questions
4
Which of the following does McGrath criticizes in "Relax? Don't Do It! Why Moral Realism Won't Come Cheap"?
4
What is the author's main concern with the 'relaxed realism' perspective?
4
In McGrath's "Relax? Don't Do It! Why Moral Realism Won't Come Cheap", Dworkin defines which of the following?
3
In McGrath's "Relax? Don't Do It! Why Moral Realism Won't Come Cheap", Dworkin endorses which of the following?
3
In McGrath's "Relax? Don't Do It! Why Moral Realism Won't Come Cheap", Scanlon applies which of the following?
3
In McGrath's "Relax? Don't Do It! Why Moral Realism Won't Come Cheap", Dworkin develops which of the following?