Exemplarist Moral Theory

Abstract This book develops an original moral theory based on direct reference to exemplars of goodness, identified through the emotion of admiration. Since a motivating emotion is at the root of the theory, it is intended to serve the practical purpose of making us want to act morally and showing us how to do so in addition to serving the theoretical purpose of mapping the main moral terms by reference to exemplars: “good person,” “good motive,” “good end,” “virtue,” “good life,” “right act,” and “duty.” The theory links the a priori side of ethics with empirical work in psychology and neuroscience, and it gives narratives a key function in the theory. Since it tracks a natural process of moral development in…