Skip to content
Carmelics
TopicsThinkersChangesContributorsLoading account…

    Carmelics

    A reasoning platform. Break down any belief into clear reasons, explore both sides, and weigh the evidence honestly.

    Navigate

    • Topics
    • Search
    • Recent Changes
    • Contribute
    • How It Works
    • Glossary
    • Thinkers
    • Contributors
    • About
    • Statistics
    • Terms
    • Privacy

    Database

    Statements
    —
    Perspectives
    —
    Topics
    —

    Press ? for keyboard shortcuts

    LoyalLoyalJusticeJustice
    Made withinDC&Austin
    Statements
    321,452
    Perspectives
    108,905
    Topics
    42
    One can act only if one acts in accord with norms that an... — Carmelics
    Home/Moral Responsibility
    HistoryEditSee Inverse

    One can act only if one acts in accord with norms that any rational agent could accept.

    Consequentialism
    ?Rate how convincing each reason is below to see the overall strength.
    1 reason for
    2 reasons against

    Reasons For

    1 perspective
    Reason for
    ?
    • 1.In order to count as an action, something done by a person must be done for a reason.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.Acting for a reason means acting in accord with norms that any rational agent could accept.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 3.What counts as an action is determined by the nature of action itself.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    Reasons Against

    2 perspectives
    Reason against 1 of 2
    ?
    • 1.Agents can act from particular desires, habits, or emotions that are not universalizable yet still constitute genuine actions (Humean tradition).
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.The causal history of an action, not its conformity to rational norms, is what distinguishes action from mere bodily movement (Davidson, 'Actions, Reasons, and Causes').
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    Reason against 2 of 2
    ?
    • 1.Nietzsche and Williams demonstrate that agents with radically idiosyncratic value systems act purposively without appealing to norms any rational agent would share.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.If acting for a reason only requires that the agent's own motivational set grounds the behavior, universalizability is a moral constraint on action, not a constitutive one (Williams, 'Internal and External Reasons').
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    Sign in or register to share your perspective on this statement.

    Next step

    Based on where you are in your exploration

    Strongest counterpoint
    Explore the most compelling reason on the other side.

    Topics

    Moral ResponsibilityConsequentialism

    Connections

    2 topics

    Free Will & Foreknowledge1 linkedModality & Possibility1 linked

    Related

    Acting for a reason means acting in accord with norms that any rational agent co...Agents can act from particular desires, habits, or emotions that are not univers...If acting for a reason only requires that the agent's own motivational set groun...In order to count as an action, something done by a person must be done for a re...
    +3 moreShow less
    Nietzsche and Williams demonstrate that agents with radically idiosyncratic valu...The causal history of an action, not its conformity to rational norms, is what d...What counts as an action is determined by the nature of action itself.

    Similar

    Acting for a reason means acting in accord with norms that any rationa...84%One acts rationally when one acts for reasons that make it rational fo...82%Acting rationally only requires acting in a way that is consistent wit...82%We are necessarily bound by the norms of rationality and morality.81%

    Source

    AI-extracted1/3 agreementValid
    SEP: normativity-metaethics
    View source passageHide passage
    Christine Korsgaard has proposed (1996), roughly, that in order to count as an action, something done by a person must be done for a reason, and this means it must accord with norms that any rational agent could accept. Given what actions are, one can act only if one acts in accord with such norms.
    Extraction notes

    Validity: Extracted via Max plan + API grounding/validity checks

    Details

    Type
    claim
    Perspectives
    3 (1 for, 2 against)
    Edits
    1 edit