Lecture 9 Metaphysics Part V Flashcards
What is The Principle of Alternate Possibilities (P.A.P.)?
The Principle of Alternate Possibilities (P.A.P.): A person is morally responsible for his or her actions only if he or she could have done otherwise
Whose quote is this: “…the principle of alternate possibilities is false. A person may well be morally responsible for what he has done even though he could not have done otherwise.
Harry Frankfurt
What is the Modified Principle of Alternate Possibilitites?
The Modified P.A.P.: A person is not morally responsible for what they have done if they did it only because they could not have done otherwise.
What is the case of Jones 4?
- Jones4 is never able to do anything other than what Black wants him to do, but he never does anything he himself doesn’t want to do, and it’s his wanting to do x that is always his reason for doing x.
- Here, the fact that Jones4 isn’t able to do otherwise plays no role in his decision – he does exactly what he would’ve done were Black not hiding in the shadows ready to manipulate him.
Getting to the modified pap:
“This, then, is why the principle of alternate possibilities is mistaken. It asserts that a person bears no moral responsibility – that is, he is to be excused – for having
performed an action if there were circumstances that made it impossible for him to avoid performing it.”
“But there may be circumstances that make it impossible for a person to avoid performing some action without those circumstances in any way bringing it about
that he performs that action.”
What is Frankfurt’s view of the reasons for acting?
When we try to determine whether an agent is morally responsible for a particular action, we should be focusing on their reasons for acting (i.e. on what actually caused them to act). If an agent acted on the basis of their own reasons (i.e. on the basis of a sincere desire to
act as they did), then we can hold them morally responsible for their action.
Why does coercion exclude an agent from responsibility?
The original choice for acting has been removed and now plays no role in the action. They are only doing so because of the coercive force acting upon them.
