Required Readings
Philippa Foot, "Moral Beliefs," in 20th Century Ethical Theory, eds. Steven M. Cahn and Joram G. Haber (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1995), pp. 365-377.
John Searle, "How to Derive 'Ought' from 'Is'," in 20th Century Ethical Theory, eds. Steven M. Cahn and Joram G. Haber (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1995), pp. 408-417.
Suggested Readings
Philippa Foot, "Moral Arguments," Oct. 58; 67: 502-513; Reprinted in Virtues and Vices and Other Essays in Moral Philosophy (Oxford, UK: Clarendon Press, 2002).
______, "Goodness and Choice," 1961; Suppl 35: 45-60; Reprinted in Virtues and Vice and Other Essays in Moral Philosophy (Oxford, UK: Clarendon Press, 2002).
Alan Gewirth, "The Is-Ought Problem Resolved," in 20th Century Ethical Theory, eds. Steven M. Cahn and Joram G. Haber (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1995), pp. 500-518.
Study Questions
1. Explain Foot's distinction between internal and external relations to the object of our mental states. Give an example of an attitude that has an internal relation to its object.
2. A man says to you "I am proud of the Atlantic Ocean." You ask him, "What do you mean?" and he answers, "I created the ocean". Since he is delusional, he genuinely believes this statement. Does this example refute Foot's claim that many attitudes, such as pride, bear an internal relation to their objects? Why or why not?
3. Is Searle's argument of how to derive an ought from an is sound? Why or why not?
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Purchase This Course << Previous Next >> Return to Top
