WD Ross And Prima Facie Duties Flashcards
(4 cards)
Who was W.D. Ross?
-Ross was a Scottish philosopher and moral realist
-He rejected ethical naturalism and believed in moral intuitionism. He argued that certain moral duties (like keeping promises) are self-evident and known intuitively
What are Prima Facie Duties?
-These are duties that are binding “at first glance,” unless they conflict with a stronger duty
-Ross listed seven, including fidelity, justice, beneficence, and non-maleficence. When duties clash, we must use reason and moral maturity to judge which one takes priority.
What did W.D Ross believe about intuitionism?
-W.D. Ross believed that moral truths are self-evident and grasped through intuition, not derived from empirical facts or logical proof.
-Ross claimed that when we reach “sufficient mental maturity,” certain moral duties (such as promise-keeping or avoiding harm) become clear to us without needing justification: “it is evident without any need of proof.”
-Ross called these prima facie duties—moral obligations that are binding unless they conflict with stronger duties
-When duties clash, such as telling the truth versus protecting someone from harm, we must weigh them using practical reasoning and common sense
-Ross argued that our moral intuition, if developed enough, will guide us to the right outcome. His use of examples like the axe-murderer scenario (where we intuit the duty to protect life outweighs truth-telling) shows that morality is not fixed by rules but responsive to context
What did H.A Prichard believe?
-Prichard built on Ross’ ideas argued that moral truths are not derived from reason or logic, but from immediate intuition.
-He distinguished between two kinds of thinking: general reasoning (used to assess facts) and moral thinking (used to determine what we ought to do).
-Prichard claimed that when someone fully understands a situation, they simply “see” what the right action is
-Disagreement in morality happens when someone’s moral thinking hasn’t developed enough
