After doing research online discuss… Utilitarianism and Moral…

After doing research online discuss… Utilitarianism and Moral…

After doing research online discuss… Utilitarianism and Moral Responsibility

Smart argues that Simple Utilitarianism (SU) can avoid many counterintuitive results by sharply distinguishing the conditions in which a person’s action is wrong/right, on one hand, and those in which we should hold that person morally responsible for their action (blame/praise them), on the

other. In short, Smart thinks that in many cases, even though what you do is in fact morally wrong (say), nevertheless, we shouldn’t hold you morally responsible for that action. In this writing, you should critically evaluate Smart’s account of moral responsibility. Be sure to first carefully explain Smart’s conditions of moral responsibility and illustrate with examples.  Then give your own assessment of his account. Here are some questions to consider(but don’t try and address them all): Do the verdicts of Smart’s account (in various examples) line up with our (or your) intuitive judgments about those examples? Or are there examples in which you think we should (or should not)  hold someone morally responsible,  even though  Smart’s theory says we should not  (or should)? Does Smart’s account identify the right reasons for holding someone morally responsible (or not morally responsible)? How plausible would Smart’s theory be as an account of legal or criminal responsibility? What sort of implications would that have for our criminal justice system? Again, do not try to address all of these questions; it is enough to focus on just one or two.

The philosophical problem/question

• Under what conditions is someone morally responsible?
• Are there objective moral properties?

The philosophers you are engaging with

•  Bernard Williams
• Phillipa Foot
• Judith Jarvis Thompson

You contribution

• What do you want to say about those problems/questions?
• Do you agree with any of the above philosophers’ theories?
• Which philosopher’s view do you prefer? Compare to who?