1871 – 1947
Harold Arthur Prichard (1871–1947) was a British philosopher at Oxford whose work in moral philosophy and epistemology proved foundational to twentieth-century analytic ethics. He is best known for challenging the presuppositions of traditional moral theory and for defending a rigorous form of deontological intuitionism. His essay 'Does Moral Philosophy Rest on a Mistake?' (1912) redirected ethical inquiry by arguing that the demand to justify moral obligations through appeals to self-interest or the good was itself a category error.
Argued in 'Does Moral Philosophy Rest on a Mistake?' that moral obligations are self-evident and cannot be derived from non-moral facts
Developed a strict deontological intuitionism holding that duty is irreducible to goodness or consequences
Formulated what became known as 'Prichard's Dilemma,' challenging consequentialist and virtue-based justifications of obligation
Contributed to Oxford realist epistemology, particularly on the relationship between knowledge, perception, and appearance
Influenced W. D. Ross and the broader British intuitionist tradition in twentieth-century ethics