2015 John Passmore Lecture

Title: Constructivism in ethics and the problem of attachment and loss

Since the overall view is too much to defend in one paper, I focus on developing one limited part of it.

I begin by offering a general characterisation of the constructivist strategy for vindicating the objectivity of ethics.

After raising some questions about Christine Korsgaard’s implementation of the strategy, I suggest an alternative implementation.

I explore the idea that every agent necessarily faces what I call the problem of attachment and loss.

I close with a brief suggestion as to why, even though the problem of attachment and loss presents itself in a different substantive form to each individual agent, it is still possible that the best solution to the problem is universal, and involves taking up an ethical perspective on the world.

Sharon Street specialises in metaethics, and is the author of a series of articles on how to reconcile our understanding of normativity with a scientific conception of the world. Her work concerns the nature of both practical and epistemic reasons, and draws especially on an evolutionary biological perspective

Date and Times

Location

Coombs Lecture Theatre (Building 8A), Fellows Road, Acton

Speaker

Contact

  •  Susan Cowan, School of Philosophy
     +61 2 61257050