Justification and Moral Cognitivism: An Analysis of Jürgen Habermas's Metaethics
2018 (Engelska)Självständigt arbete på avancerad nivå (masterexamen), 20 poäng / 30 hp
Studentuppsats (Examensarbete)
Abstract [en]
In this thesis, I scrutinise and interpret Jürgen Habermas’s claim that justification of moral norms necessitates cognitivism. I do this by analysing the general idea behind his discourse theory of morality and then his metaethics. From there, I examine the non-cognitivist theory called prescriptivism as set out by Richard Hare to see if his account of moral reasoning is able to counter Habermas’s claims and thereafter, I examine some criticism against his concept of communicative action. I also engage with the discussion on how to define cognitivism: that is, whether the line should be drawn between moral realism on the cognitivist side, and constructivism on the other, or if cognitivism can include constructivist theories too. I propose that it should, provided that it allows moral statements to be truth-apt and express a mental state like that of belief. Following this definition, I argue that Habermas can be labelled a cognitivist and finally, I conclude that Habermas's argument does not hold under scrutiny.
Ort, förlag, år, upplaga, sidor
2018. , s. 68
Nyckelord [en]
Habermas, cognitivism, metaethics, justification, human rights
Nyckelord [sv]
Habermas, kognitivism, metaetik, etisk teori, berättigande, mänskliga rättigheter
Nationell ämneskategori
Filosofi, etik och religion
Identifikatorer
URN: urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-351646OAI: oai:DiVA.org:uu-351646DiVA, id: diva2:1210641
Ämne / kurs
Mänskliga rättigheter
Utbildningsprogram
Masterprogram i mänskliga rättigheter
Handledare
Examinatorer
2018-05-292018-05-292018-05-29Bibliografiskt granskad