Toni Rønnow-Rasmussen's public lectures

Professor Toni Rønnow-Rasmussen (University of Lund) will give two lectures at the Department of Philosophy on September 27th and 28th.

Wednesday 27th September at 14:15 in room Jakobi 2-336 "R. M. Hare's utilitarianism"

Thursday 28th September at 14:15-... Informal meeting with students

Thursday 28th September at 16:15 in room Jakobi 2-336 "Value Dualism and Good-for Unitarianism"

Abstract

Modern ethics turns around the divide between what is good for us and what is impersonally good. However, formal value theorists do not agree on the precise nature of this divide. After having outlined some salient positions about the relation between ‘good’ and ‘good for’, I shall argue in favour of a value dualistic approach that acknowledges (rather than explains away) the divide between non-relation and relational value. I shall then address a second pivotal issue: do we need one or more analyses of good-for. A recent attempt to offer a single so-called fitting-attitude analysis of “good-for” faces various counter-examples that suggest that ‘good-for’ is in effect an ambiguous notion. In this talk I shall defend the “Unitarian” idea that we only need one kind of analysis against one kind of objection that sets out from the idea that there is a tight conceptual bond between what is good for someone and what constitutes this person’s wellbeing.