Ideal spectator approach

1. Ideal spectator approach Lecture 3 Hume’s Enquiry, Section 9

2. Main topics • Hume on moral judgment • Hume on objectivity • Hume on motivation • Recap of main argument • Morality and self-interest

3. Hume on moral judgment • Moral judgments express humanitarian sentiments of approval or disapproval • From an impartial, sympathetic perspective

4. Hume on objectivity • It is not common cognitive access to a single moral reality that explains agreement • Rather, it is our common sympathetic nature, which makes our moral sentiments agree when we consider a matter impartially.

5. Hume on motivation • Reason is never a source of motivation • Moral motivation stems from humanitarian concern • The drama is not reason versus passion but moral versus nonmoral passion

6. Two distinctions among passions

7. Reconstruction of main argument • Morality requires a sentiment common to all • Must be self-regarding or humanitarian • Both comprehensive and agreement-producing • Self-regard fails both these tests • Humanitarian concern satisfies them • Moral judgment rests on humanitarian concern

8. Classification of virtues • Qualities useful to others • Qualities useful to the bearer • Qualities agreeable to the bearer • Qualities agreeable to others

9. Are the virtues in one’s interest? • Useful to bearer: clearly • Agreeable to bearer: ditto • Agreeable to others: everyone wants these • Useful to others: • benevolence: why not cultivate benevolent desires? • Justice: sensible knave presents a problem

10. Analysis of the sensible knave • Definition: generally observes justice but violates it when it would advance his interests and he could get away with it. • Not in the interest of the just person to become a sensible knave • People not already just might find it in their interest. • Hume differs from Plato