Relation to others· Morals
Correct, not retaliate
Axis: Moral responsibility — Should we assign blame and credit?
We should keep responding to acts, blaming, sanctioning, praising, not because it is deserved at bottom, but because it works: understanding does not rule out acting. We give up resentment, not response; the question is no longer "is it deserved?" but "".
Philosophers 1
Russellexplicit
If actions have causes, the notion of desert collapses, and with it that of sin: one cannot both explain a piece of conduct by heredity, upbringing and circumstance, and maintain that its author deserved it. Russell draws from this not the abandonment of all reaction but a change in its object: what remains legitimate is to modify the causes — to instruct, to treat, to prevent — and what falls away is the wish to inflict suffering in return, which he takes to be the most durable root of human cruelty. He keeps blame as a tool, however, which stops him short of abolishing imputation altogether.
"The Elements of Ethics" (1910), § "Determinism and Morals" · "Has Religion Made Useful Contributions to Civilisation?" (1930) · Sceptical Essays (1928)
- Descriptive QuestionThe lottery of merit
Two identical reckless drivers, a child crosses in front of only one: chance makes one a killer and the other lucky. And what we praise, talents, character, was no more chosen: if luck pervades everything, what remains of merit properly one's own?
the part of luck in merit - DescriptiveDoes understanding all excuse all?
If every act has its causes, the excuse valid for one, the tumour, the constraint, should hold for all, and no one would be to blame. Unless the excuse precisely distinguishes between causes, and understanding is not excusing.
the universal excuse - PrescriptiveMoralCan we give up resentment?
Would a world cured of resentment be gentler or less human? To give up holding things against people, is that an attainable wisdom, or the end of person-to-person relations?
resentment - PrescriptivePolitical & legalFrom blame to punishment
If no one deserves at bottom, retribution collapses, but is it to be mourned? Protecting, deterring, and repairing may suffice to ground punishment, without ever speaking of a debt.
deserved punishment