Compassion and Morality: Dr. Colin Marshall

Does compassion clue us into moral truth, or is it a purely subjective reaction that distracts us from impartial ethical principles?

This will be part of a series of events where local philosophy professors will lead discussions for the group. In order to facilitate interaction these sessions are not intended as lectures followed by Q and A, but rather as facilitated and guided philosophical conversations.

We would like to thank the Society for Philosophers in America (SOPHIA) for their support of this series as part of their effort to build communities of philosophical conversation. You can check out their website and membership opportunities here: https://www.philosophersinamerica.com/membership-account/membership-levels/

This session will be moderated by Dr. Colin Marshall, a philosophy professor at UW. It will be based upon his recent book, Compassionate Moral Realism.

https://global.oup.com/academic/product/compassionate-moral-realism-9780198809685?cc=us&lang=en&#

Session description:

Compassion is Perception: Does compassion clue us into moral truth, or is it a purely subjective reaction that distracts us from impartial ethical principles? In this discussion, drawing on my recent book, I will argue that compassion is a way of perceiving other creatures' pains, pleasures, and desires. Hence, people without compassion are genuinely missing something about the world. Morally good people, therefore, can face reality in a way that bad people cannot. In making my argument, I will examine the nature of perception, focusing both on normal perception and on the fascinating phenomenon of human echolocation. Our discussion will revolve around questions about moral truth, objectivity, perception, and what to do about the very real limits to human compassion.