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Circular Definitions of ‘Good’ and the Good of Circular Definitions

Garcia, Andrés LU (2024) In Ethical Theory and Moral Practice
Abstract
I defend the view that circular definitions can be useful and illuminating by focusing on the fitting-attitudes analysis of value. This definition states that an item has value if and only if it is a fitting target of attitudes. Good items are the fitting targets of positive attitudes, and bad items are the fitting targets of negative ones. I shall argue that a circular version of this definition, defended by Rabinowicz and Rønnow-Rasmussen (2006), is preferable to its non-circular counterpart and upholds reasonable standards of acceptability. The standards I will be discussing come from Humberstone (1997), who claims that definitions cannot be informative as long as they are inferentially circular.
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author
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
epub
subject
in
Ethical Theory and Moral Practice
publisher
Springer
ISSN
1386-2820
DOI
10.1007/s10677-024-10439-y
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
3fd3d798-b4e1-42a9-88f0-792f20787e54
date added to LUP
2024-03-06 13:58:46
date last changed
2024-04-10 12:42:45
@article{3fd3d798-b4e1-42a9-88f0-792f20787e54,
  abstract     = {{I defend the view that circular definitions can be useful and illuminating by focusing on the fitting-attitudes analysis of value. This definition states that an item has value if and only if it is a fitting target of attitudes. Good items are the fitting targets of positive attitudes, and bad items are the fitting targets of negative ones. I shall argue that a circular version of this definition, defended by Rabinowicz and Rønnow-Rasmussen (2006), is preferable to its non-circular counterpart and upholds reasonable standards of acceptability. The standards I will be discussing come from Humberstone (1997), who claims that definitions cannot be informative as long as they are inferentially circular.}},
  author       = {{Garcia, Andrés}},
  issn         = {{1386-2820}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  series       = {{Ethical Theory and Moral Practice}},
  title        = {{Circular Definitions of ‘Good’ and the Good of Circular Definitions}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10677-024-10439-y}},
  doi          = {{10.1007/s10677-024-10439-y}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}