Moral Extremism - Ethics and Psychology

Extremism on my account is a vice. What it consists in, roughly, is an intense moral conviction that prevents the agent from perceiving, or ... WelcometotheNexusofEthics,Psychology,Morality,PhilosophyandHealthCare Welcometothenexusofethics,psychology,morality,technology,healthcare,andphilosophy Thursday,June10,2021 MoralExtremism SpencerCaseWuhanUniversity,PenultimateDraftforJournalofAppliedPhilosophyAbstractTheword‘extremist’isoftenusedpejoratively,butit’snotclearwhat,ifanything,iswrongwithextremism.Myprojectistogiveanaccountofmoralextremismasavice.Itconsistsroughlyinhavingmoralconvictionssointensethattheycauseasortofmoraltunnelvision,pushingsalientcompetingconsiderationsoutofmind.Weshouldbeinterestedinmoralextremismforseveralreasons:it’sconsequential,it’sinsidious–wedon’texpectimmoralitytoarisefromexcessivedevotiontomorality–andit’syettoattractmuchphilosophicalattention.Igiveseveralexamplesofmoralextremismfromhistoryandexploretheirsocial-politicalimplications.Ialsoconsiderhowweshouldevaluatepeoplewhomissthemark,beingeithertooextremeintheserviceofagoodcauseorinconsistentwiththeirrighteousconvictions.IcompareJohnBrownandJohnQuincyAdams,whofelloneithersideofthisspectrum,asexamples.ConclusionAccusationsofextremismareoftenthrownaroundtodiscreditunpopularpositions.Itseemsfairforthepersonaccusedofbeinganextremisttoask:“WhocaresifI’manextremist,orifthepositionI’mdefendingisextreme,ifI’mright?”Ibeganwithquotesfromthreereformerswhotookthislineofreply.I’veargued,however,thatweshouldworryaboutextremismintheserviceofgoodcauses.Extremismonmyaccountisavice.Whatitconsistsin,roughly,isanintensemoralconvictionthatpreventstheagentfromperceiving,oractingon,competingmoralconsiderationswhentheseareimportant.I’vearguedthatthisvicehashadbalefulconsequencesthroughouthistory.ThediscussionofJohnBrownandJohnAdamsintroducedawrinkle:perhapsinrarecircumstances,extremistscanalsoconfercertainbenefitsonasociety.Agenerallessonfromthisdiscussionisthatwemustoccasionallylookatourownmoralconvictions,especiallytheonesthatgeneratethestrongestemotions,withadegreeofsuspicion.Passionforsomerighteouscausedoesn’tnecessarilyindicatethatwearemorallyontherighttrack.Evilcanbeinsidious,andevenourstrongestmoralconvictionscanmorallymislead.Apdfishere. 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