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The Real Problem with Evolutionary Debunking Arguments

Hanson, Louise

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Authors

Louise Hanson



Abstract

There is a substantial literature on evolutionary debunking arguments (EDAs) in metaethics. According to these arguments, evolutionary explanations of our moral beliefs pose a significant problem for moral realism, specifically by committing the realist to an unattractive pessimism about the prospects of our having moral knowledge. In this paper, I argue that EDAs exploit an equivocation between two distinct readings of their central claim. One is plausibly true but has no epistemic relevance, and the other would have epistemic consequences for realism, but is false. If I'm right, this undermines attempts to use evolutionary explanations to debunk belief in other domains too.

Citation

Hanson, L. (2016). The Real Problem with Evolutionary Debunking Arguments. Philosophical Quarterly, 67(268), 508-533. https://doi.org/10.1093/pq/pqw075

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Oct 17, 2016
Online Publication Date Nov 18, 2016
Publication Date Nov 18, 2016
Deposit Date Jan 30, 2019
Publicly Available Date Jun 20, 2019
Journal Philosophical Quarterly
Print ISSN 0031-8094
Electronic ISSN 1467-9213
Publisher Oxford University Press
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 67
Issue 268
Pages 508-533
DOI https://doi.org/10.1093/pq/pqw075
Related Public URLs https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/261709

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Copyright Statement
This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in The Philosophical Quarterly following peer review. The version of record Hanson, Louise (2017). The Real Problem with Evolutionary Debunking Arguments. The Philosophical Quarterly 67(268): 508-533. is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1093/pq/pqw075.




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