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The derivation of a morally binding ought?

spirit-salamander April 13, 2021 at 11:47 3925 views 12 comments
As is well known, Hume's guillotine forbids a derivation of ought from is. But that does not mean that it cannot be derived at all.

One should first distinguish between a morally non-binding ought and a morally binding one.

Then you have to say that you can derive an ought from a will, to put it more precisely, from another will, a will different from one's own.

The foreign will is to be understood as a request, claim, demand or command, all of which only another person can do.

Since I am German, my reasoning comes from the logic and semantics of the German verb "sollen", which translates to ought or should in English.

Almost all grammars of German explain "sollen" or ought by saying that there must be another personal agent who wants something from you. So, if A ought to do X, this implies that someone wants A to do X.

For example: I go to the doctor and he tells me to take pills twice a day. Then I later tell my wife I ought to take pills twice a day. It is important to add that it is not just a recommendation of the doctor, it is already more, so more binding.

The question that now arises is, how can I distinguish morally binding ought from morally non-binding ought? Because not everything that people demand of me is really binding.

Let's take the concrete example of when a person is lying on the street seriously injured and is just unable to help herself. But she calls out to me to help her, as I am just in the visible vicinity.

Here, any normal and reasonable person would say that there is a moral ought in me. To whom can this particular ought be traced?

1. To the injured person, who has nothing left at the moment but her being an end in herself. This would be the position of the German philosopher Gerold Prauss, who says the following according to my rough translation: "Thus, ought is nothing but the synthetic result of the encounter of subjects, each of which is a knowing end in itself in relation to the other, a knowing willing and thus also a knowing demanding." It proves for Prauss to be the case that the order of morality in general, is conditioned by a very peculiar situation: a claim to morality is grounded only when the person handled is precisely not in a position to help herself and as long as she remains in this position. This self-help represents then the decisive criterion. When we do not help someone in need, we do not solely prove to be non-meritorious but we commit an evil, whatever our maxims might be.

2. Or to society or God, who additionally demand something from me or give a binding note to the demand of the injured.

If I bring in God or society, my ought could be reduced to a have to or must.

Here is the logical semantic scheme for the must:

(1) A must do X for Y to happen, and
(2) A wants Y to happen.
______________
(3) So A must do X.

In concrete terms, this means that I do not want to be punished by God or society, so I must help the injured person.

So not only ought, but also must can be normative. Here is a quote from the German action theorist Peter Stemmer, roughly translated again by me:

"To express a normative situation linguistically, we usually use a "must" sentence: "You must, in order to catch the 10 o'clock train, leave now." With these formulations, we might say, strictly speaking, only a must of a necessary condition is brought into language. But it is presupposed in each case that the corresponding wanting/willing is present. It would be pointless to tell someone who does not want to catch the 10 o'clock train that he must leave now in order to catch the train. That he wants to do so is assumed in the situation, and thus it is presupposed that the must is normative."

Comments (12)

javi2541997 April 13, 2021 at 12:19 #522327
Quoting spirit-salamander
Since I am German, my reasoning comes from the logic and semantics of the German verb "sollen", which translates to ought or should in English.


Could it be a problem of interpretation or vocabulary the morally bending ought?

Quoting spirit-salamander
(1) A must do X for Y to happen, and
(2) A wants Y to happen.
______________
(3) So A must do X.


I guess your syllogism is not good here because there are only two parts while a syllogism needs three:
S: subject of the conclusion.
P: predicate of the conclusion.
M: the middle term.

Nevertheless, I guess your syllogism fits the DARAPTI type:
1) The minor premise must be affirmative.
2) The conclusion must be particular.

I prefer quote @tim wood here because he is better than me in explaining syllogisms.
khaled April 13, 2021 at 13:13 #522343
Reply to spirit-salamander
Quoting spirit-salamander
a claim to morality is grounded only when the person handled is precisely not in a position to help herself and as long as she remains in this position.


An interesting angle but I can think of scenarios where someone who can’t help themselves do something wants you to do it, and yet the ought is not binding. If you work as a teacher’s assistant and a classmate asks you to steal the exam answers and share them is that a binding ought? The classmate can’t accomplish this task so it seems to fit the bill. There are countless other scenarios.

Quoting spirit-salamander
When we do not help someone in need, we do not solely prove to be non-meritorious but we commit an evil


The problem is when the person in question needs you to commit an evil.
Deleted User April 13, 2021 at 13:43 #522348
This user has been deleted and all their posts removed.
javi2541997 April 13, 2021 at 13:54 #522350
Quoting tim wood
What's missing here is an "if." Then it becomes a hypothetical syllogism. Without the if, there is no bridge from "want" to "must."


Thanks Tim for the properly explanation and argument :up: :100:
spirit-salamander April 13, 2021 at 14:17 #522356
Reply to tim wood @javi2541997

(1) a must (necessary condition) do x for y to happen.
(2) That y happens is something a wants.
The conclusion is then:
(3) So a must (normatively) do x for something to happen that a wants.

The must from (1) expresses only a necessary relation: y happens only if x is given. To this must a normative component is added in the conclusion through (2). And it is exactly this relation of will that makes this must a normative must, a must that concerns a and that is connected with a pressure to act.
Deleted User April 13, 2021 at 14:30 #522361
This user has been deleted and all their posts removed.
javi2541997 April 13, 2021 at 14:31 #522362
Reply to spirit-salamander

Check this website, you will see what are you missing about, I learned a lot since the last month I currently visiting it: Aristotle Syllogisms (Rules)
spirit-salamander April 13, 2021 at 15:07 #522370
Quoting khaled
An interesting angle but I can think of scenarios where someone who can’t help themselves do something wants you to do it, and yet the ought is not binding. If you work as a teacher’s assistant and a classmate asks you to steal the exam answers and share them is that a binding ought? The classmate can’t accomplish this task so it seems to fit the bill. There are countless other scenarios.


I guess you have to commit to cases where it's a matter of life and death. Thus, the ought always becomes binding when the other person will soon die without immediate assistance from others.

Quoting khaled
The problem is when the person in question needs you to commit an evil.


I think the injured person's claim cannot go beyond their own injury.

But you're right, there are certainly cases where there could be tension.

spirit-salamander April 13, 2021 at 15:15 #522373
Quoting tim wood
Else how do you avoid the conclusion that I must do or act in some way to achieve all of my wants. And I have lots of wants I have no intention of acting on.


Okay, this would be another premise, that there needs to be a strong interest in what is wanted. It must be such that the absence of it would be a negative thing to be avoided at all costs.
spirit-salamander April 13, 2021 at 15:18 #522374
Quoting javi2541997
Check this website, you will see what are you missing about, I learned a lot since the last month I currently visiting it: Aristotle Syllogisms (Rules)


Thank you for the reference.

But my question would be whether every logically structured argument must have an Aristotelian structure to be valid?
javi2541997 April 13, 2021 at 15:42 #522382
Quoting spirit-salamander
But my question would be whether every logically structured argument must have an Aristotelian structure to be valid?


No! I like your argument and post. Nevertheless, I thought you would like some advises or tricks to use syllogisms. Sorry if I sound mean or cocky. It was not my intention.
spirit-salamander April 14, 2021 at 07:11 #522663
Quoting tim wood
It appears to be that if "ought" cannot be got from "is," then morality "is not founded merely on the relations of objects, nor is perceived by reason."


Quoting tim wood
Hume seems to be warning us not to look in the wrong place for something that is not there in any case. If anything more, someone will kindly point it out.


It is said that only if there is at least one ought in the premises, then the ought in the conclusion is justified.
My point was, one can extend this. Namely, that there merely has to be a will in the premise in order to get an ought in the conclusion. Because an ought is just a will from a different perspective.

But if there is neither ought nor will in the premise, there can be no ought in the conclusion.