J. L. Mackie: Ethics: Inventing Right and Wrong

question 13

Essay

J. L. Mackie: Ethics: Inventing Right and Wrong
Mackie's position, which he calls "moral skepticism" but has come to be more commonly known as "the error theory," involves two central claims. First, Mackie claims that ordinary moral discourse contains a "claim to objectivity." When someone makes a moral claim-e.g., that abortion is immoral-they do not mean to merely express their feelings or issue a command. Rather, they are seeking to describe an intrinsic feature of the action in question-in this case, that abortion is objectively the sort of thing that ought not to be done. Second, Mackie claims that objective moral values do not exist. It follows from these two theses that all moral claims are false.
Mackie gives two main arguments for his claim that objective values do not exist. The Argument from Relativity maintains that variation in moral judgments, both between individuals and between societies, is best explained by the hypothesis that moral judgments reflect ways of life rather than objective moral facts. If so, Mackie claims, there is good reason to believe that moral facts do not exist. The second argument, the Argument from Queerness, has two parts, one metaphysical and one epistemological. Metaphysically, if objective values did exist, they would be completely unlike anything else in the universe, in that they would give us reasons for action independently of what we happen to desire or aim at. Epistemologically, if such values existed, they would have to be known by some special faculty of intuition, completely different from our other ways of knowing about the world. Because it is implausible that such strange facts or faculties exist, Mackie claims, we should accept that no objective values exist. Mackie concludes with a brief discussion of how people could come to believe in objective values, despite their non-existence.
-What two arguments does Mackie give for his claim that there are no objective values? Do you find these arguments convincing? Why or why not?

Recognize the role of hormones in the regulation of bodily functions, including responses to stress and the regulation of blood glucose levels.

Understand the dual role of certain glands as both endocrine and exocrine.

Identify the effects of hormonal imbalances and disorders.

Understand the feedback mechanisms and interactions between different hormones.

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Definitions:

Taxable Income

The portion of an individual's or business's income used to determine how much tax will be owed to the federal government.

Marginal Tax Rate

The percentage of tax applied to an individual's or entity's income for each additional unit of income.

Taxable Income

The amount of income used to calculate how much tax an individual or a company owes to the government in a given tax year.

Progressive Tax

A tax system in which the tax rate increases as the taxable amount increases, typically imposing higher rates on those with higher incomes.