RE: Metaethics Part 1: Cognitivism/Non-cognitivism
February 10, 2022 at 8:41 pm
(This post was last modified: February 10, 2022 at 9:38 pm by vulcanlogician.)
Great thread.
I'm a cognitivist because, to me, ethics is a rational enterprise.
Only rational beings can make decisions based on ethical concerns. As far as metaethical nihilist or non-realist theories go, I think error theory is the strongest and most cogent. That's not to say I dislike noncognitivist theories. I like them. Why I tend to reject them is that they are explanatory theories rather normative ones.
To me, it is the ethicist's job to address the validity of normative value claims. Error theory does this... "No moral claim can be true."
But one must involve cognition to determine the truth or falsity of a claim. When understanding the truth value of the Pythagorean theorem, it is of little value to exemplify a student who solves geometry problems in order to get a pat on the head from the teacher; it may well be the case that she did. And that explains why the student was motivated to give the correct answer. But the example of a student who solves a geometry problem... her motivations or impulses... has little to do with mathematical truth.
I'm a cognitivist because, to me, ethics is a rational enterprise.
Only rational beings can make decisions based on ethical concerns. As far as metaethical nihilist or non-realist theories go, I think error theory is the strongest and most cogent. That's not to say I dislike noncognitivist theories. I like them. Why I tend to reject them is that they are explanatory theories rather normative ones.
To me, it is the ethicist's job to address the validity of normative value claims. Error theory does this... "No moral claim can be true."
But one must involve cognition to determine the truth or falsity of a claim. When understanding the truth value of the Pythagorean theorem, it is of little value to exemplify a student who solves geometry problems in order to get a pat on the head from the teacher; it may well be the case that she did. And that explains why the student was motivated to give the correct answer. But the example of a student who solves a geometry problem... her motivations or impulses... has little to do with mathematical truth.
