Ideal spectator approach

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Ideal spectator approach

• Lecture 2
• The hypothesis which we embrace is plain. It
  maintains that morality is determined by
  sentiment. It defines virtue to be whatever
  mental action or quality gives to a spectator the
  pleasing sentiment of approbation and vice the
  contrary. --Hume, Appendix I

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Topics today

• Humes view of moral judgment
• His critique of the rationalist position

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Sec. 5 Why utility pleases

• Why do we morally admire those qualities that are
  socially useful?
• Cant just be a result of education. There must
  be a basis in human nature.
• 2 possibilities self-regard or humanitarian
  concern

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Self-regard or concern for others?

• Moral sentiment can oppose our self-interest
• Can concern matters that dont affect our
  self-interest
• far away in space or time
• fictional
• Concern for self and moral concern feel different
• Moral sentiment cannot be a form of self-regard
• Must be a concern for others

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Universal benevolence

• Rooted in an innate human capacity for sympathy
• Sympathy can take the form of a sentiment of
  benevolence toward all, a humanitarian concern.
• This concern is what drives our moral judgments

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Objection

• Sympathy leads to more concern for those close to
  us
• Our moral judgments do not vary in this way

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Reply

• Unequal concern arises from a biased point of
  view
• An impartial consideration of the situation
  channels benevolence equally toward all
• Correct moral judgments express the attitudes of
  an impartial, sympathetic observer

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Role of reason in morality

• Reason ascertains facts about what promotes or
  diminishes pleasure and happiness
• So reason plays a role
• But reason does not make the moral judgment
• Moral judgment expresses a sentiment evoked by
  consideration of the facts revealed by reason.

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1st argument against rationalism

• Reason inductive or demonstrative
• Inductive infers facts from observation
• Demonstrative works with abstract mathematical
  and logical relations.
• Moral judgments dont pick out such facts or
  relations
• Hence they are not made by reason

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Example the crime of ingratitude

• Observable fact ill will or indifference in the
  mind of the ungrateful person
• This is not a moral fact because it is not always
  wrong
• Abstract relation contrariety of attitude
• Again, this is not always wrong

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2nd argument

• Reason operates to infer NEW facts and relations
• A moral judgment must be based on all the facts
  of a situation
• Hence moral judgments are not made by reason

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3rd argument

• Moral judgments are like judgments of beauty
• Beauty is not a quality or feature we discover in
  the object
• Rather, a judgment of beauty is an expression of
  a favorable sentiment toward the object
• Moral judgments express a similar kind of
  sentiment

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4th argument

• Non-human objects can manifest all the relations
  that obtain in a moral situation.
• But we dont apply morality to the non-human
  world
• Hence morality is not a matter of relations.

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5th argument

• Reason alone is never a motive to action
• Moral judgments can move us to action
• Hence reason by itself cannot give us morality