Rule egoism is the doctrine under which an individual evaluates the optimal set of rules according to whether conformity to those rules bring the most benefit to himself.[1] An action, therefore, is right if it promotes his welfare at least as well as any alternative rule available to him.[2] It is associated with foundational egoism, which maintains that normative factors must be grounded in consideration of the agent's well-being - something that rule egoism does but in a way that avoids factoral egoism.[3]
Development
editAlthough it is claimed that Thomas Hobbes is a rule-egoist, the term "rule egoism" was first coined by Richard Brandt in his work "Rationality, Egoism, and Morality, where it was briefly mentioned.[4]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Kagan, Shelly. 1998. Normative Ethics. Westview Press. p. 199
- ^ Copp, David (2006). The Oxford Handbook of Ethical Theory. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 384. ISBN 9780195147797.
- ^ Kagan, Shelly (2018-02-12). Normative Ethics. Routledge. ISBN 9780429978289.
- ^ Osterberg, Jan (2012). Self and Others: A Study of Ethical Egoism. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers. p. 230. ISBN 9789401077965.
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