Moral Decision-Making: Consequentialism and Character
Dissertation, The University of Wisconsin - Madison (
1997)
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Abstract
Bernard Williams has argued that on a consequentialist moral theory, individuals cannot possess what he calls "integrity." I argue that one central strand of this criticism concerns how persons must think about life-shaping decisions. I interpret "integrity" as a pattern of continuity in an agent's moral decision-making. In order to have integrity an agent must possess a stable character which unifies one's choices. Since a sophisticated consequentialist moral structure can properly value the having of a character on the basis of which agents guide their lives, it can successfully address this criticism