Thanks for this. I’m already aware of all of the definitions you’ve mentioned, and in fact I don’t like to use the word realism because of the ambiguity.
Is there an obvious next step, once you realise what the options are and what the questions are, or are there only the hard questions left?
It depends on what you think the next questions are. Uncertainty about the truth of moral realism1, moral realism2, or anti-realism leads the inquiry in one direction. If one is satisfied with the meta-ethical issue, object level moral questions predominate—and probably must be approached differently depending on one’s meta-ethical commitments.
If you are unsure about what the next step is, I might recommend reading Camus’ “The Stranger” and examining what you think the main character is doing wrong—that should help you focus your interest on object-level ethics or meta-ethics.
Thanks for this. I’m already aware of all of the definitions you’ve mentioned, and in fact I don’t like to use the word realism because of the ambiguity.
Is there an obvious next step, once you realise what the options are and what the questions are, or are there only the hard questions left?
It depends on what you think the next questions are. Uncertainty about the truth of moral realism1, moral realism2, or anti-realism leads the inquiry in one direction. If one is satisfied with the meta-ethical issue, object level moral questions predominate—and probably must be approached differently depending on one’s meta-ethical commitments.
If you are unsure about what the next step is, I might recommend reading Camus’ “The Stranger” and examining what you think the main character is doing wrong—that should help you focus your interest on object-level ethics or meta-ethics.