Five Elements of Normative Ethics - A General Theory of Normative Individualism

Ethical Theory and Moral Practice 15 (4):449-471 (2012)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

The article tries to inquire a third way in normative ethics between consequentialism or utilitarianism and deontology or Kantianism. To find such a third way in normative ethics, one has to analyze the elements of these classical theories and to look if they are justified. In this article it is argued that an adequate normative ethics has to contain the following five elements: (1) normative individualism, i. e., the view that in the last instance moral norms and values can only be justified by reference to the individuals concerned, as its basis; (2) consideration of the individuals’ concerns and interests—aims, desires, needs, strivings—insofar as they have a justificatory function; (3) a pluralism of references of these concerns and hence of moral norms and values to all possible elements of actions; (4) the necessity of a principle of aggregation and weighing with regard to these concerns; (5) finally, as a central principle of aggregation and weighing, the principle of relative reference to self and others, operating as a generalizing meta-principle that guides the application of concrete principles and decisions

Other Versions

No versions found

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 102,020

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

Normative Ethik.Dietmar von der Pfordten - 2010 - New York: De Gruyter.
The Anatomy of Normative Ethics.Andrew Forcehimes - 2016 - In Steven M. Cahn & Andrew Forcehimes (eds.), Principles of Moral Philosophy: Classic and Contemporary Approaches. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 3-18.
Moral Worth and Normative Ethics.Arpaly Nomy - 2015 - Oxford Studies in Normative Ethics 5.
The Fundamental Divisions in Ethics.Matthew Hammerton - 2025 - Inquiry: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Philosophy 68 (2):318-341.
The fundamental divisions in ethics.Matthew Hammerton - 2025 - Inquiry: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Philosophy 68 (2):318-341.
Theories of Ethics.Stephen L. Darwall - 2003 - In R. G. Frey & Christopher Heath Wellman (eds.), A Companion to Applied Ethics. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 17–37.
E. F. Carritt (1876-1964).Anthony Skelton - 2013 - In Hugh LaFollette (ed.), The International Encyclopedia of Ethics. Hoboken, NJ: Blackwell.

Analytics

Added to PP
2011-07-16

Downloads
117 (#186,011)

6 months
17 (#184,401)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?