I’m a moral philosopher- AMA

[randommorning]

I don’t know whether anyone would find this interesting but, as the title indicates, I am an academic who specialises in moral philosophy (ethics). People have seemed to find this interesting at various points - AMA!

What book(s) would you recommend to an intelligent layperson?

Xing Ming - I’m not a utilitarian I’m afraid! That’s probably a position I’m less comfortable with and wouldn’t be happy to support. I’m interested in virtue theory and I also think the deontological approach of Kant still has much to be said for it, although I wouldn’t let the murderer in!

How is ethics not ‘just’ politics?

EmmaH - I absolutely believe in the importance of philosophy. It think that it helps us to bring together our ideas about the world and ultimately, for me, these are the most important questions worth thinking about. The history or ideas for example is fascinating- the philosophy of a time reflects its history. I really do believe that the unexamined life is not worth living! I hope that perhaps I am in some small way adding to the ripples in the pool of thought that we all share, even if I play a very small role.

Could you say something about the role of moral intuition/gut feeling v moral reasoning, or recommend something to read?

I’d also be really interested if you could recommend a lay person’s guide to virtue ethics.

Did you do Latin and Classical Greek at school? (My daughter does them and they're often scoffed at but through them she has been introduced to so many great thinkers and ideas at a very early age.)

(I think politics is really important so that’s wasn’t a negative!)

How do you make ethics or moral philosophy applicable across multiple societies with different traditions- given that we have global problems like climate change to sort out urgently?

Does it make a difference that you’re usually teaching quite young people, do other age groups have different concerns or ethical perspectives?

Who’s the moral philosopher’s moral philosopher?

Well ethics are politics are related. But not the same. An example of how they are similar is the issue of breaking the law - a problem surely in terms of politics and we could refer to Socrates for a discussion of why one should uphold the law!
An example of how they are different. Adultery may be immoral, but we may not wish to argue it should be illegal. Furthermore, we may wish to consider whether adultery is objectively wrong and what the implications are for reality if we do.

Do you think that morals are a product of the society we live in. Or are they a human trait.
If you believe the first and not the latter, do you think other lifeforms (plants/ animals) have their own code of morals?

Who’s the moral philosopher’s moral philosopher? Everyone will have different influences and preferences depending on their position. Alistair MacIntyre, Philippa Foot, Aquinas, Kant... maybe Aristotle! We always end up going back to Aristotle!

Thank you. Ylvamoon already asked my follow up question!

Is the money good?
Do you ever have a strong gut instinct about something and find it hard to be reasonable about it?

In terms of books (sorry, getting in muddle with what I’m replying to) to be honest I might struggle to give you a good answer as most of what I read is very specialist and the student recommendations are perhaps outing as they are linked to courses. I don’t really read ‘pop’ philosophy books. Jumping into a primary source is very difficult so you don’t want to just pick up Kant for example. You would want a more general overview of the area of philosophy you want to cover. I know that there are the Very Short Introduction books. These are very readable but I feel that they seem to push the writers position which is not necessarily what you want from an introductory text. I’ll have a think!

What do you think ethically is the best way to tackle climate change?

And do you think that religion and ethics are linked? Do you have to believe in some kind of organised religion to live a morally good life?

What is a woman?
(Not so much a question but more interested in how a moral philosopher would approach the question.)

Do you think the PM and chancellor should resign?

Age groups and and nationality makes a huge difference to the responses. I was fortunate to run a class in media ethics for an international class and the responses were completely different from the ones I usually got. The question is though, does this difference tell us anything important? The fact is there is a difference, but does that difference prove a fact? If we want to say that some things are definitely wrong, how do we account for differences in opinion between cultures and society?
Do I think morals are a human trait? Well are we talking about morals in terms of moral properties or are we talking about our responses to them? I think that a moral sense is a trait of being human. We perhaps create morals as a concept but there are a response to external factors

Is it required that you come to your work objectively without personal prejudices and if so, how do you manage to not bring your personal anxieties or fears or dislikes (or the opposite) into your work?

Does it help to do a lot of therapy to understand yourself as well as you can, to be a philosopher?

Do philosophers typically declare their philosophical/political/religious interests explicitly in their work?

Which subjects are you interested in considering that are political hot potatoes/liable to land you in trouble?

What do you make of cancel culture?

Are you a freedom of speech absolutist?

Some interesting answers from a some-time undergrad studying philosophy (sort of, lots of modules that encompass philosophy but not a philosophy degree).

Kantian ethics for me seem appealing on a surface level, but become far more problematic upon proper exploration. What is your opinion of the criticisms of those such as Nussbaum? I find his "rational being" (e.g. white man) obsession difficult to get past, though one of my lecturers chooses to take the idea and simply apply it to mean 'human beings' as a whole, even if Kant himself did not.

I'm just finishing up a dissertation that draws heavily on Foucault though, so I am more than able to appreciate the work and understand that the thinker may be ever so slightly extremely problematic as an individual!

Do you find yourself shying away from strong black & white thinking OP? I've found as I've got further through the degree as students we seem to have gone one of two ways: those who have mellowed significantly and approach things with a much more open mind, and those who just absolutely reject some thinking if they don't like it and refuse to consider the reasons that others may find it appealing. I am much less sure of my own amazingness now!

I think that there is a misconception that an atheist or agnostic position is not a religious position. In many ways we can say it is - it gives us a world view and conception of reality after all. This means that our religious/non-religious views are completely tied to our ethical viewpoints. If you believe that we are living in a material universe, then you are unlikely to believe in objective moral laws. Likewise, if you believe that we are made by God, then that is going to alter how you see your responsibilities. It is, by the way, completely possible to argue for a moral position as an atheist, it is just not going to be an objective law based system.

Will try to keep answering questions but have an upset child - bad dreams!

@randommorning

I don’t know whether anyone would find this interesting but, as the title indicates, I am an academic who specialises in moral philosophy (ethics). People have seemed to find this interesting at various points - AMA!

How would Machiavellian philosophy fit with modern-day political climate ?

It’s late so will have to answer more tomorrow. I try to teach impartially so that students can make us their own minds but if a student read a lecturer’s papers they would see their opinions. If I wrote a journal paper on moral duties, it would give my opinion and position on them.

@randommorning

Will try to keep answering questions but have an upset child - bad dreams!

All the best and positivity