Moore on Right and Wrong

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-ix

   PDF

2. Introduction

   • William H. Shaw

   Pages 1-7

3. “Good” and the Things That are Good

   • William H. Shaw

   Pages 8-39

4. Moore’s Commitment to Consequentialism

   • William H. Shaw

   Pages 40-67

5. Rebuttals and Refinements

   • William H. Shaw

   Pages 68-93

6. Limits to Moral Knowledge

   • William H. Shaw

   Pages 94-122

7. Moral Rules

   • William H. Shaw

   Pages 123-147

8. Individual Moral Choice

   • William H. Shaw

   Pages 148-178

9. Conclusion

   • William H. Shaw

   Pages 179-188

10. Back Matter

    Pages 180-205

    PDF

G.E. Moore's work shaped twentieth century ethics. But while his metaethical doctrines have seen decades of debate, little attention has been paid to his normative theory. Yet Moore broke fresh and important ground in elaborating an indirect, sophisticated, and non-hedonistic form of utilitarianism. Moore on Right and Wrong is a critical reconstruction and exposition of this neglected side of his ethical thought. It situates his normative ethics with respect to traditional utilitarianism and assesses Moore's case for consequentialism. The final chapters explore in detail the implications of Moore's theory for individual moral conduct -- in particular, his denial of self-evident moral rules; his skepticism about knowledge of one's duty; his attempt to establish the validity of certain moral rules; and his account of what moral agents should do in situations where such rules apply and in situations where they do not.

• Consequentialism
• Hedonism
• Utilitarianism
• ethics
• knowledge
• morality

• Department of Philosophy, San Jose State University, USA

  William H. Shaw

Policies and ethics