Moral Realism as a Moral Doctrine

In this major new book, Matthew Kramer seeks to establish two main conclusions. On the one hand, moral requirements and other elements of ethics are strongly objective in a number of senses that that Kramer elaborates. On the other hand, the objectivity of ethics is itself an ethical matter that rests primarily on ethical considerations. Moral realism the doctrine that morality is indeed objective in the various respects which Kramer expounds is a moral doctrine.

This volume therefore fights battles on two complicatedly criss–crossing fronts. Many philosophers who deny the objectivity of ethics have sought to base their arguments on non–ethical considerations. They take themselves to be impugning the intellectual solidity of ethical claims and values without advancing any such claims or endorsing any such values in the course of their reflections. Quite a few champions of ethical objectivity have responded in kind by seeking to adduce alternative non–ethical considerations. Kramer, while aiming to dispel doubts about ethical objectivity, goes against both the doubters and their realist opponents by insisting that the key questions concerning ethical objectivity are not only about the domain of ethics but also within it.

Distinguished by its originality, ambition and quality of scholarship, Moral Realism as a Moral Doctrine will be of interest to a wide range of readers in metaethics and moral philosophy more broadly.

Preface.

1. Introduction.

2. Mind–Independence.

3. Determinate Correctness.

4. Uniform Applicability.

5. Invariance.

6. Transindividual Concurrence.

7. Impartiality.

8. Truth–Aptitude.

9. Further Dimensions of Ethical Objectivity?

10. Supervenience as an Ethical Phenomenon.

References.

Index.

Matthew H. Kramer is Professor of Legal and Political Philosophy at the University of Cambridge; Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge; and Director of the Cambridge Forum for Legal & Political Philosophy. His many previous books include The Quality of Freedom (2003); Where Law and Morality Meet (2004); and Objectivity and the Rule of Law (2007). He is also a co–editor of three books, most recently Freedom: A Philosophical Anthology (Blackwell, 2007); and The Legacy of H.L.A. Hart: Legal, Political, and Moral Philosophy (2008). His work covers many areas of moral, political, and legal philosophy.

"Kramer′s main point is a provocative one with potentially far–reaching consequences. His detailed discussions are rich, insightful and often lead the reader in surprising
directions. Moral Realism as a Moral Doctrine deserves much attention." (Australasian Journal of Philosophy, October 2010)

"The book is clearly laid out; it will be understandable to advanced undergraduates, but its main audience is graduate students and beyond." (CHOICE, November 2009)