Is morality a subjective matter, dependent on our desires and interests, or are there objective moral truths? And if the latter, can we explain the objectivity of morality without appeal to metaphysics, a robust teleology or divine command?
This book argues that we find just such an account of moral objectivity in Thomas Reid’s Defence of Duty. To make this case, the book provides an explanation of Reid’s way of philosophy and his reasons for rejecting moral subjectivism; presents Reid’s account of the concept, perception, and motivational force of duty; and responds to contemporary challenges of moral subjectivism and moral pessimism from the perspective of his moral philosophy. Further, this book argues that if Reid is correct, then there is an urgent need to reform current pedagogical practice and return to the teaching of practical ethics.
Brings Thomas Reid into conversation with contemporary moral philosophy.
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The central thesis of James Foster's Thomas Reid and the Defence of Duty is that Reid was mostly right and Hume mostly wrong about the nature of right and wrong. Anyone who dogmatically denies the objectivity of moral distinctions ought to read Fosters book; it is lucid, lively and wise. -- Douglas McDermid, Trent University An enlightening, valuable, and significant contribution not only to the literature on Reids moral theory but even more to important issues and debates running through the corpus of modern and contemporary moral theory. -- Fotini Vaki, Ionian University * Eighteenth-Century Scotland *
PrefaceSeries Editor's Introduction
Part I: Reids Rejection of Moral Subjectivism
Chapter
1. Reids Way of Philosophy
Chapter
2. Reid, Perception and Common Sense
Chapter
3. Reids Arguments against Moral Subjectivity
Part II: Reids Account of Duty
Chapter
4. Defining Duty
Chapter
5. Moral Perception
Chapter
6. Moral Motivation
Part III: Objections to Reids Account
Chapter
7. The Argument from Strangeness
Chapter
8. The Argument from Relativity
Chapter
9. The Argument from Interminability
Conclusion: The Practical Implications of Reids Defence of DutyWorks
CitedIndex
James J.S. Foster is Associate Professor of Philosophy and Theology and Director of the Honors Program at the University of Sioux Falls. His previously published two edited volumes, Scottish Philosophy in America (Imprint Academic, 2012) and Thomas Reid on Religion (Imprint Academic, 2017). He is also the editor of the Journal of Scottish Philosophy.
