From Biology to Normativity
TL;DR
It is argued that the fact-value dichotomy, the biological reductionism and the moral absolutism or essentialism can be reconciled through the synthesis of evolutionary ethics and Deweyan pragmatism.
Abstract
The genesis of morality has remained a subject of perennial debate, and philosophers have yielded variegated and irreconcilable accounts regarding its origins and application. The argument has been between rationalist-transcendental approaches (e.g., Plato, Kant) and naturalist-evolutionary accounts (e.g., Hume, Darwin). The former derive universal, objective and absolute moral principles from articulated rational theories, and de-emphasise the factors of empirical and biological conditions of human life upon ethical discourse. However, evolutionary ethics establishes a descriptive or biological account of our natural moral capacity, and never treats it as an external imposition or as pure rational discovery. Yet such a natural account of morality is challenged (as Hume, Moore and Street noticed) to corroborate how normative authority can be derived from biological and experiential origins. Unless this gap is resolved, we remain caught between the extremes of “ethical absolutism”, which maximises abstract normativity, and a “biological reductionism” that reduces complex moral reasoning to biochemical or genetic facts. Thus, I contend that the fact-value dichotomy, the biological reductionism and the moral absolutism or essentialism can be reconciled through the synthesis of evolutionary ethics and Deweyan pragmatism. Against the two extreme views, Dewey’s ethical inquiry (characterised by its experimental, practical, and context-sensitive nature) can provide normative justification for evolutionary ethics. Accepting the biological origins of morality and treating moral judgment as a problem-solving tool, Dewey proposes pragmatic alternatives that transform natural capacities into normative authority. Methodologically, I follow a critical-analytical approach and combine philosophical exegesis with conceptual reconstruction. Through engaging with key thinkers (Dewey, Darwin, Dawkins, De Waal, and Churchland), comparative analyses, and integrative argumentation, I construct a systematic account of moral origins and growth that is both empirically grounded and normatively strong.