I guess the question I’m getting at is, can you care about someone else and their utility function without feeling empathy for them? I think you can, and saying you can’t just boils down to saying that ethics are determined by emotions.
I think that ethics, as it actually happens in human brains, are determined by emotions. What causes you to be an utilitarian?
There’s more to it than that. How about upbringing and conditioning? Sure, it made you feel emotions in the past, but it probably has a huge impact on your current behaviour although it might not make you feel emotions now.
I think that ethics, as it actually happens in human brains, are determined by emotions. What causes you to be an utilitarian?
There’s more to it than that. How about upbringing and conditioning? Sure, it made you feel emotions in the past, but it probably has a huge impact on your current behaviour although it might not make you feel emotions now.