Research Workshop: "Aristotelian Prohibitions"
Dr. Jeremy Reid (SFSU)
Friday, February 11, 2022 (12:10-2:00 PM) Business (Bldg. 003) Room 113
Abstract:
Contemporary virtue ethicists in the Aristotelian tradition generally do not give a central place to rule-following in their theories, and tend to be hostile to the idea that there are absolute prohibitions in ethics. But I think that the debate about absolute prohibitions has been clouded by standards that Aristotelians shouldn't accept, insofar as those standards assume that ethical truths will be like axioms in mathematical theories rather than results of experience living well in the world. My goal is to present an Aristotelian account of ethical prohibitions that emphasizes both the empirical nature of ethical inquiry and its practical purpose for people like us, in contexts like ours. If I'm right, then we should expect moral rules to be helpful discoveries that help us live better lives, and you should ignore most of the thought experiments that philosophy professors have forced upon you.
Link to Dr. Reid's website: https://jeremywreid.weebly.com/