Metaethics digs into the foundations of morality, asking big questions about the nature of right and wrong. It explores whether moral truths exist independently of us or if they're just human constructs.

This topic sets the stage for understanding different ethical theories. By examining the basis of moral claims, we can better evaluate various approaches to ethics and their implications for how we should live our lives.

Metaethical Foundations

Ontology of value in metaethics

• Investigates the nature and existence of moral properties and facts
  • Explores whether moral properties and facts are objective, mind-independent features of reality (moral realism) or subjective, mind-dependent constructs (moral anti-realism)
  • Considers the metaphysical status of moral values, principles, and obligations
• Shapes the foundation and scope of moral discourse and reasoning
  • Determines the truth-aptness of moral claims and the possibility of moral knowledge
  • Influences the methods for acquiring moral knowledge (intuition, reason, empirical observation)
  • Informs the interpretation of moral language and the meaning of moral terms (good, right, ought)
• Impacts the plausibility and implications of moral theories and frameworks
  • Affects the viability of moral realism and the challenges faced by moral anti-realism
  • Guides the development and evaluation of normative ethical theories (utilitarianism, deontology, virtue ethics)

Realism vs anti-realism in ethics

• Moral realism asserts the objective existence of moral properties and facts
  • Moral claims are truth-apt and can be true or false based on mind-independent moral reality
  • Moral knowledge is possible through the discovery of objective moral truths
  • Provides a foundation for moral objectivity, moral reasoning, and moral progress
  • Faces challenges in explaining moral disagreement and the nature of moral facts (metaphysical queerness)
• Moral anti-realism denies the objective existence of moral properties and facts
  • Moral claims are not truth-apt and are expressions of subjective attitudes, preferences, or cultural norms
  • Moral knowledge is not possible in the traditional sense, as there are no objective moral truths to discover
  • Encompasses various views, such as subjectivism (individual attitudes), relativism (cultural norms), and non-cognitivism (expressions of emotions or prescriptions)
  • Struggles to account for the apparent objectivity and normativity of moral discourse and avoid moral nihilism

Moral language and cognition

• Moral semantics examines the meaning and use of moral terms and statements
  • Investigates how moral language functions in ethical discourse and reasoning
  • Explores the relationship between moral language and moral reality
• Moral psychology studies the cognitive processes underlying moral judgments and behavior
  • Examines factors influencing moral decision-making and moral development
  • Investigates the role of emotions, intuitions, and reasoning in moral cognition
• Moral epistemology explores how we acquire moral knowledge and justify moral beliefs
  • Considers various sources of moral knowledge, such as intuition, reason, and experience
  • Examines the reliability and limitations of different moral epistemological approaches
• Moral motivation investigates the connection between moral judgments and moral action
  • Explores what motivates individuals to act in accordance with their moral beliefs
  • Examines the relationship between moral reasoning and moral behavior

Theories and Dilemmas

Foundations of morality theories

• Divine command theory grounds morality in the commands or nature of God
  • Strengths: provides an objective foundation, explains the perceived authority of moral norms, aligns with religious beliefs
  • Weaknesses: faces the Euthyphro dilemma, challenges from the problem of evil, relies on the existence and knowability of God
• Natural law theory bases morality on objective, discoverable natural principles
  • Strengths: offers an objective foundation, allows for moral reasoning and progress, compatible with secular worldviews
  • Weaknesses: difficulty identifying and justifying natural principles, accounting for moral disagreement, potential for cultural bias
• Social contract theory derives morality from principles agreed upon in a hypothetical social contract
  • Strengths: explains the origins and authority of moral norms, enables moral progress, emphasizes individual autonomy and consent
  • Weaknesses: relies on a hypothetical contract, challenges in determining universally acceptable principles, potential for majority tyranny
• Ethical relativism ties morality to individual or cultural beliefs and practices
  • Strengths: accounts for moral diversity, avoids challenges of moral realism, respects cultural differences
  • Weaknesses: implies all moral beliefs are equally valid, hinders moral criticism and progress, risks moral nihilism

Euthyphro dilemma and moral authority

• Euthyphro dilemma questions the relationship between morality and divine commands
  1. Is something morally good because God commands it?
  2. Does God command something because it is morally good?
• Implications for the nature of goodness
  • If divine commands are based on independent moral standards, morality is not ultimately grounded in God
  • If moral standards are determined by divine commands, morality seems arbitrary and not necessarily good
  • Suggests the possibility of objective moral standards independent of divine commands
• Implications for moral authority
  • If morality is independent of divine commands, God's commands are not the ultimate source of moral authority
  • If morality is determined by divine commands, the authority of those commands is questioned (why obey a seemingly arbitrary authority?)
  • Indicates that moral authority may stem from objective moral principles, human reason, or social consensus
• Relates to normative ethics by influencing the development of ethical theories and principles