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    Carmelics

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    LoyalLoyalJusticeJustice
    Made withinDC&Austin
    Statements
    321,452
    Perspectives
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    42
    Home/Original/inverse
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    Inverse View

    It is not the case that Moral concepts like 'rational being' and 'autonomy' are themselves shaped by historically contingent social practices, as Hegel argues in the Phenomenology.

    ?Set your confidence on the premises below to see your aggregate.

    Reasons For

    1 perspective
    Reason for
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    • 1.If moral concepts are entirely contingent on social practices, the critique of oppressive practices loses normative force—we cannot condemn slavery as wrong.
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    • 2.Some features of rationality (logical consistency, means-ends reasoning) appear universal across human societies, suggesting non-contingent elements.
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    • 3.Social contingency of concept *expression* doesn't entail contingency of what the concepts *refer to*; oxygen remained oxygen before chemistry named it.
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    Reasons Against

    1 perspective
    Reason against
    ?
    • 1.Concepts of 'rationality' differ markedly across cultures and historical periods, suggesting they emerge from social practices rather than fixed essences.
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    • 2.Hegel's master-slave dialectic shows autonomy requires recognition from others, proving it is constitutively dependent on social relations.
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    • 3.The criteria for who counts as a 'rational being' have historically excluded women, non-Europeans, and enslaved people, revealing social shaping.
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