Abstract

Although the importance of Williams's sustained negative critique of moral theory has been widely discussed, philosophers generally fail to appreciate the compelling positive account of ethical life contained in his work. This dissertation extracts, examines and extends that account. Following analysis of the goals and limitations of contemporary work in ethics , Williams's conception of practical reasoning is combined with his genealogy of ethical practice in an attempt to locate ethics "between the everyday and the eternal." Put differently, the relativity of Williams's account of internal reasons is combined with the objectivity associated with mechanisms of internalization and shame, as well as his characterization of "necessary identities," to underwrite the authority, legitimacy and revisability of ethical practice, while still preserving the radically first-personal character of practical deliberation and avoiding excessive systemization