Full Idea
Recently there has been much emphasis on the importance of our capacity to have second-order desires - the desire to have certain desires - and its significance for ethical reflection and the practical consciousness.
Gist of Idea
A crucial feature of moral thought is second-order desire - the desire to have certain desires
Source
Bernard Williams (Ethics and the Limits of Philosophy [1985], Ch. 1)
Book Reference
Williams,Bernard: 'Ethics and the Limits of Philosophy' [Fontana 1985], p.11
A Reaction
This is a crucial point if we are to defend a reasonably rational view of morality against (say) emotivism. I agree that it is crucial to morality.