Combining Texts

All the ideas for 'fragments/reports', 'Epistemic and Metaphysical Possibility' and 'Anarchical Fallacies: on the Declaration of Rights'

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4 ideas

10. Modality / A. Necessity / 6. Logical Necessity

12185	Logical necessity is epistemic necessity, which is the old notion of a priori [Edgington, by McFetridge]
	Full Idea: Edgington's position is that logical necessity is an epistemic notion: epistemic necessity which, she claims, is the old notion of the a priori. Like Kripke, she thinks this is two-way independent of metaphysical necessity.
	From: report of Dorothy Edgington (Epistemic and Metaphysical Possibility [1985]) by Ian McFetridge - Logical Necessity: Some Issues §1
	A reaction: [her paper was unpublished] She hence thinks an argument can be logically valid, while metaphysically its conclusion may not follow. Dubious, though I think I favour the view that logical necessity is underwritten by metaphysical necessity.

21. Aesthetics / C. Artistic Issues / 7. Art and Morality

468	Musical performance can reveal a range of virtues [Damon of Ath.]
	Full Idea: In singing and playing the lyre, a boy will be likely to reveal not only courage and moderation, but also justice.
	From: Damon (fragments/reports [c.460 BCE], B4), quoted by (who?) - where?

24. Political Theory / A. Basis of a State / 3. Natural Values / c. Natural rights

20977	Natural rights are nonsense, and unspecified natural rights is nonsense on stilts [Bentham]
	Full Idea: Natural rights is simple nonsense: natural and imprescriptible rights, rhetorical nonsense — nonsense upon stilts.
	From: Jeremy Bentham (Anarchical Fallacies: on the Declaration of Rights [1796])
	A reaction: If you want your opinion to be remembered, express it memorably! I take natural rights to be the basic principles and values which are obvious to almost everyone when they come for formulate legal rights (which are the only true rights).

25. Social Practice / C. Rights / 1. Basis of Rights

21003	Only laws can produce real rights; rights from 'law of nature' are imaginary [Bentham]
	Full Idea: Right, the substantive right, is the child of law; from real laws come real rights; but from imaginary laws, from 'law of nature' can come only imaginary rights.
	From: Jeremy Bentham (Anarchical Fallacies: on the Declaration of Rights [1796], II.523), quoted by Amartya Sen - The Idea of Justice 17 'Ethics'
	A reaction: I am coming to agree with this. What are called 'natural rights' are just self-evident good reasons why someone should be allowed a right. A right can, of course, come from an informal agreement. The question is: why award that particular legal right?