58吃瓜

This week we are discussing Pamela Hieronymi’s 鈥極f Metaethics and Motivation: The Appeal of Contractualism鈥�.

Here is the abstract: In his 1982 article, T. M. Scanlon noted that, despite the widespread attention to Rawls鈥� A Theory of Justice, the appeal of contractualism as a moral theory had been under-appreciated. It seems to me that, nearly thirty years later, despite the widespread attention to Scanlon鈥檚 work, this appeal is still largely under-appreciated. In this paper, I try to present Scanlon鈥檚 appealing answer to what he once called 鈥渢he question of motivation鈥� and the relation of this answer to the more metaethical 鈥渜uestion of subject matter.鈥� I then defend Scanlon鈥檚 view against various, standard objections, which, I claim, typically misunderstand it. I close by considering what it would take to wed Scanlon鈥檚 attractive answer to the question of motivation to another, non-contractualist, theory. I conclude that, even if the marriage could be arranged, a good part of the appeal of contractualism would inevitably be lost. In particular, the marriage would sacrifice the central place in Scanlon鈥檚 theory for what might be called liberty of conscience.