2.3.2 Moral anti-realism

• What does moral anti-realism posit about moral statements?

  Not objective truths
• A moral realist believes that "Murder is wrong" reflects a real moral fact
• What is the key difference between moral subjectivism, relativism, and non-cognitivism?

  Source of moral authority
• What do non-cognitivists believe about moral statements?

  Express emotions, commands, preferences
• What do moral anti-realists argue about the existence of objective moral facts?

  It is implausible
• What do moral anti-realists argue about the objectivity of moral statements?

  Moral statements lack objectivity
• Moral anti-realists argue that moral statements express objective truths about the world.

  False
• Match the moral realism argument with its contrasting anti-realism claim:

  Disagreement ↔️ Persistent moral disagreements suggest the lack of objective moral truths.

  Queerness ↔️ Moral facts would be metaphysically strange entities not reducible to natural facts.

  Motivation ↔️ Moral facts alone cannot motivate action - morality is based on subjective attitudes or cultural norms.

  Epistemology ↔️ There is no reliable way to access objective moral facts, only subjective moral views.
• Moral realists believe moral disagreements arise because people have different subjective views.

  False
• Why do moral anti-realists believe persistent moral disagreements suggest the lack of objective moral truths?

  No universal agreement exists
• What is the anti-realist explanation for moral progress?

  Changes in cultural norms
• How do anti-realists explain moral progress in terms of subjective attitudes?

  Shifting cultural norms
• Moral subjectivism holds that morality is based on individual opinion.
• Non-cognitivism argues that moral reasoning is about discovering objective moral truths.

  False
• Moral realism views moral statements as objective truths
• Match the type of moral anti-realism with its definition:

  Moral Subjectivism ↔️ Morality is based on individual beliefs

  Moral Relativism ↔️ Morality is relative to cultural norms

  Non-Cognitivism ↔️ Moral statements express emotions
• Moral relativism holds that morality is universally true across all cultures.

  False
• Match the moral anti-realism argument with its corresponding claim:

  Disagreement ↔️ Persistent moral disagreements suggest the lack of objective moral truths.

  Queerness ↔️ Moral facts would be metaphysically strange entities not reducible to natural facts.

  Motivation ↔️ Moral facts alone cannot motivate action - morality is based on subjective attitudes or cultural norms.

  Epistemology ↔️ There is no reliable way to access objective moral facts, only subjective moral views.
• Moral anti-realists believe that moral truth exists independently of human minds.

  False
• Moral realists believe that moral statements like "murder is wrong" reflect real, objective moral facts
• Moral relativism states that morality is relative to cultural or social norms
• What is the moral realist view on epistemology?

  Objective moral facts are knowable
• Match the moral realist and anti-realist views on motivation:

  Moral Realism ↔️ Moral facts motivate action

  Moral Anti-Realism ↔️ Subjective attitudes motivate action
• Moral progress, such as the abolition of slavery, is seen by moral realists as evidence of objective moral truths.
• Moral anti-realists believe we can only access subjective moral views.
• Match the type of moral anti-realism with its implications:

  Moral Subjectivism ↔️ Universal moral truths do not exist

  Moral Relativism ↔️ Morality varies across cultures

  Non-Cognitivism ↔️ Moral statements express emotions
• What do non-cognitivists believe moral statements express?

  Emotions or preferences
• Moral anti-realism argues that morality is subjective, relative, or fictional.


  True
• What does a moral anti-realist believe about the statement "slavery is morally wrong"?

  Expresses a subjective moral view
• Moral subjectivism states that morality is based on individual beliefs, attitudes, and feelings
• All three types of moral anti-realism reject the moral realist view that there are objective moral facts
• Moral anti-realism posits that moral statements are not objective truths
• Match the concept with its view in moral realism or anti-realism:

  Nature of Moral Statements ↔️ Objective truths (Moral Realism) ||| Subjective or fictional (Moral Anti-Realism)

  Independence from Beliefs ↔️ Independent of human belief (Moral Realism) ||| Dependent on human attitudes or culture (Moral Anti-Realism)

  Moral Truth ↔️ Exists in the world (Moral Realism) ||| Does not exist outside human minds (Moral Anti-Realism)

  Objectivity ↔️ Moral statements have real, objective value (Moral Realism) ||| Moral statements lack inherent objectivity (Moral Anti-Realism)
• What is the basis of morality according to moral subjectivism?

  Individual beliefs and feelings
• Arrange the types of moral anti-realism based on their source of moral authority, from the individual to culture/society to no truth conditions:

  1️⃣ Moral Subjectivism

  2️⃣ Moral Relativism

  3️⃣ Non-Cognitivism
• Moral facts are considered "queer" by anti-realists because they are not reducible to natural facts.
• Moral anti-realists argue that objective moral facts alone can motivate moral action.

  False
• Moral motivation, according to moral realists, stems from objective moral facts.


  True
• Moral motivation, according to anti-realists, comes from objective moral facts.

  False
• Moral relativism asserts that moral progress is easily achieved because morality is tied to cultural context.

  False