Moral Worth
Journal of Philosophy 99 (5):223 (2002)
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Abstract |
I argue that a right action has moral worth if and only if it is done for the right reasons - that is, for its right-making features. The reasons the agent acts on have to be identical to the reasons for which the action is right. I argue that Kantians are wrong in thinking that a right action has moral worth iff it is done because the agent thinks it is right, giving examples of morally worthy actions that are done by agents who think they are wrong (Huckleberry Finn) and right actions done "because they are right" that have no moral worth. I also discuss degrees of moral worth as well as blameworthiness.
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Keywords | Moral Worth Reasons Huckleberry Finn Praiseworthiness Blameworthiness Motive of Duty Right Reasons Huck Finn Moral Reasons Inverse Akrasia |
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DOI | 10.2307/3655647 |
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Normativity in Action: How to Explain the Knobe Effect and its Relatives.Frank Hindriks - 2014 - Mind and Language 29 (1):51-72.
Accidentally Doing the Right Thing.Zoe Johnson King - forthcoming - Philosophy and Phenomenological Research.
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