Can virtue be taught? How can we know -- and justify - the right thing to do? Moral epistemology studies the question of whether and how we know right from wrong. It is one of the perennial problems of philosophy, reaching back to Plato and Aristotle, and has recently been the subject of intense debate as a result of findings in developmental and social psychology. In this outstanding introduction to the subject Aaron Zimmerman covers the following key topics: What is moral epistemology? Including Socrates, Gettier, Frege and Moore Methodological questions facing moral epistemology, including cognitivism and noncogntivism Challenges to moral epistemology from moral nihilism and scepticism, including debates concerning god and morality and the role of motives and reasons in grounding morality Moral disagreement, including contextualism Throughout the book Aaron Zimmerman argues that in spite of sceptical challenges such as the pervasiveness of moral disagreement, one can have knowledge about morality. He also draws on a rich range of examples including Plato's Meno and Dickens's David Copperfield.
Including chapter summaries and annotated further reading at the end of each chapter, Moral Epistemology is essential reading for all students of ethics, epistemology and moral psychology.