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Single Idea 18311

[filed under theme 22. Metaethics / A. Ethics Foundations / 1. Nature of Ethics / f. Ethical non-cognitivism ]

Full Idea

For philosophers, the higher must not be allowed to grow out of the lower, must not be allowed to have grown at all ...Moral: everything of the first rank must be causa sui. Origin in something else counts as an objection, as casting a doubt on value.

Clarification

'Causa sui' (Latin) means it causes itself

Gist of Idea

Philosophers hate values having an origin, and want values to be self-sufficient

Source

Friedrich Nietzsche (Twilight of the Idols [1889], 2.4)

Book Ref

Nietzsche,Friedrich: 'Twilight of the Idols and The Anti-Christ', ed/tr. Hollingdale,R.J. [Penguin 1972], p.37


A Reaction

This is so deep and central that I wrote a paper on it, advocating that the theory of values should focus of value-makers.


The 10 ideas with the same theme [there is no objective knowledge about ethics]:

Whether nature is beautiful or orderly is entirely in relation to human imagination [Spinoza]
Morality is merely interpretations, which are extra-moral in origin [Nietzsche]
Philosophers hate values having an origin, and want values to be self-sufficient [Nietzsche]
There are no moral facts, and moralists believe in realities which do not exist [Nietzsche]
Non-cognitivists give the conditions of use of moral sentences as facts about the speaker [Foot]
The 'error theory' of morals says there is no moral knowledge, because there are no moral facts [Mackie, by Engel]
We tolerate inconsistency in ethics but not in other beliefs (which reflect an independent order) [Williams,B, by Foot]
Moral conflicts have a different feeling and structure from belief conflicts [Williams,B, by Foot]
If moral systems can't judge other moral systems, then moral relativism is true [Williams,B, by Foot]
Noncognitivism tries to avoid both naturalism and mysterious morality [Hacker-Wright]