Francis Hutcheson's Moral Philosophy: As a System and Its Problems

My dissertation examines the moral philosophy of Francis Hutcheson as a system. I argue that for Hutcheson, there is a conflict rooted in our nature: we are such beings that it is in our nature to go against what is natural to us. It is natural for us to form associations and habits because we need them in order to survive and expand our rational capacity. However, it is also essential for us to break our habits and associations otherwise we cannot form the idea of moral goodness, which seems necessary for making moral judgments and cultivating moral growth.;There is a solution to resolve the conflict because for Hutcheson, perfect moral knowledge exists. It is sensible, immediate and non-propositional, but when we obtain it, we have it perfectly. My argument for the status of moral knowledge is primarily based on an interpretation of the "Moral Sense" as a metaphorical rule in which it illuminates everything in the Moral Realm. I interpret Hutcheson's transformation of the Moral Sense into Conscience as evidence that the Moral Sense/Conscience has the same function in Hutcheson's system as the Forms do in Plato's system. For Plato, the Forms are the objects of true knowledge in the Intelligible Realm that make particular statements true in the sensible realm. For Hutcheson, similarly, the Moral Sense is that which makes possible the existence of moral values.;Lastly, I argue that Hutcheson's moral knowledge can be obtained through non-discursive meditation. This is because meditation captures the decisive elements of the experience of benevolence in Hutcheson's theory: pre-reflective, non-propositional and immediate. Hutcheson's pure benevolence is analogous to Purusha in Samkhya Philosophy. It is a pre-reflective awareness where things are directly experienced without the attachment of the "I." Moreover, the meditative strategy is incorporated into Hutcheson's own writing style. Inductive argumentative style and usage of thought experiments found in the text are the strategies through which Hutcheson invites the reader to meditate and introspect.