S & W of NL

?

S & W of NL

Advantages

  • Absolutist/deontological view of morality à establish common rules à structure communities
  • NL = universality à idea of common nature, morality for all Goes beyond religion + culture à East vs. West?
  • Seems rigid, but more flexible however if the case has REASON. Secondary precepts make it more flexible.
  • Appeals to thought that right and wrong depend on more than personal opinion. Childhood instincts tell us rights + wrongs. Suggests instincts right Appreciating that we have a faculty that we can use as well.
  • Concrete reason to be moral à justification + support for certain core ideas popular in modern times: HR + Equality
  • Christian version of NL = combining faith with reason Respects our human ability to reason
  • Acc to evolution à naturally selfishly seek own survival à 1st PP = self preservation, nothing wrong with evolutionary theory.

Disadvantages

  • Peter Atkins/Bertrand Russell - brute fact, just exists, by chance
  • Dk purpose, Aq's reason for purpose - 1 interpretation
  • Difficult to work out what is + isn’t natural – fact that a lot of things that were unnatural before, are natural now. Truly natural/Culturally acceptable? Definition of natural not agreed upon, diff to appeal to nature in making moral decisions.
  • Aq= humans must preserve species T/f, every discharge of semen should be associated with life generation. Usage of genitals other ways immoral Don’t need all to produce human life
  • If you follow Aq’s arg strictly, come up with absurd conclusions: teeth à canines = vegetarians wrong sex for procreation = infertile à no sex with spouses
  • Is there just one purpose for humanity No universal purpose even if there is, doesn’t require every single person to be following it.
  • Not everyone has same purpose à Jeremiah = Prophet, Mary = Mother of Jesus, Biblical view = God, diff plans + purposes for diff people. Aq responded = careful education of conscience + emotional maturity necessary for people to know what is right.
  • Purposes tend to compete with each other + purposes conflict
  • Not enough attention to doctrine of the Fall humanity = tainted due to sin of A + E Karl Barth à ppl recognise + accept revelation of God, only source of truth, rather than depending on fallible human reason

Evaluation

Comments

No comments have yet been made