The Moral Problem

Now we jump forward 91 years. If Moore’s Principia Ethica is the most natural launching point for looking at metaethics in the twentieth century, Michael Smith’s 1994 book, The Moral Problem, is the best place to go in order to see what twentieth-century metaethics looked like in the rear-view mirror as the century drew to a close. Like Moore’s book, Smith’s book was a provocative entry point into the questions of metaethics for many philosophers who came after him.

Warning

Throughout Smith’s book, and especially in the first two chapters, Smith namedrops liberally. Make sure that you do not become intimidated by it. Try to overlook the names that only come up once, but keep track of the names that get repeated, and we will learn about some of them as we go along. Remember that Smith was writing for other philosophy researchers and not with students in mind.

Reading

We’re going to start this week with Smith’s own introduction to the way that he sees the problems of metaethics. Please read chapter one of The Moral Problem in preparation for class. As you read, challenge yourself to answer: what is the moral problem, according to Smith? Would you be able to explain to a friend who is not taking any philosophy why the moral problem feels like a problem? Would Moore feel challenged by the moral problem? If so, what would he find pressing about it, or what would you expect him to say about it?