The pseudonym "Philo Vaihinger" has been abandoned. All posts have been and are written by me, Joseph Auclair.

Friday, October 25, 2013

An imaginary undertaking

Not political science, not anthropology, and not sociology, but political philosophy is an imaginary undertaking, as is normative ethics, the broader imaginary undertaking of which it is a part.

As is theology, of which religious or theocratic politics and ethics are parts.

If there is a real sense in which Nietzsche had no politics, that is only as it should be.

Certainly, an amoralist can in consistency have preferences about politics as he can about the weather.

But in no case will they be moral preferences, sensu strictu.

Nor, if he is an atheist, will his preferences be based on or reflect God's, or any god's, supposed will.

That is not to say that, apart from imaginary criticisms, preferences are immune to evaluation.

But it will not be a moral or religious evaluation.

No comments:

Post a Comment