Inquiries in Modern Moral Philosophy
The Action Theory of G.E.M. Anscombe
This study deals with Anscombe’s moral philosophy, and examines his
observations, criticisms, and recommendations on existing moral theories.
In his 1958 article “Modern Moral Philosophy”, which is considered
to be his main work in the field of moral philosophy, Anscombe
argues that moral theories that break away from the ancient tradition
cannot cope with the problems of the modern age and puts forward
three main theses: It is necessary to proceed through the philosophy
of psychology in the field of morality; the issue of moral obligation
cannot be resolved with concepts such as “duty”, “ought”, “right” and
“wrong”; there is no difference between philosophers who evaluate
moral action only according to its consequences. In the first chapter,
Anscombe’s thesis that “it is necessary to proceed through the philosophy
of psychology in the field of ethics” has been presented. In this
context, Anscombe’s philosophy of action centered on the concept of
intention has discussed and the concepts of action, self, first person,
practical knowledge, practical reason, and practical inference that describe
this understanding have been explained. In the second part, the
implications of Anscombe’s other two theses, namely, the question of
moral obligation cannot be settled by concepts such as “duty”, “ought”,
“right” and “wrong”, and there is no difference between philosophers
who evaluate moral action only in terms of its consequences, have been
discussed. Thus, the connections of these claims with ancient and modern
moral theories, the meaning of “consequentialism” and ultimately
what should be understood from all these terms have been emphasized.
In conclusion, according to Anscombe, a functional moral theory that
can respond to the problems of our age can only be accessed through
psychology. Moreover, the problem of morality cannot be solved with
concepts such as duty, law, and ought, which are the remnants of our
ancient conception of morality, because they cannot respond to the
problems of the modern era. Philosophers or theories that judge moral
action based solely on its consequences have failed to clarify the issue of
moral responsibility by distinguishing between the intended and foreseen
consequences of action.
Keywords: Morality; Ethics; Anscombe; Intention; Action; Moral Obligation;
Consequentialism