Date of Award
4-15-2009
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Philosophy
First Advisor
Dr. Andrew I. Cohen - Co-Chair
Second Advisor
Dr. Andrew Altman - Co-Chair
Third Advisor
Dr. Andrew J. Cohen
Fourth Advisor
Dr. William Edmundson
Abstract
Joseph Raz has developed a concept of authority based on the special relationship between reasons and action. While the view is very complex and subtle, it can be summed up by saying that authorities are authorities insofar as they can mediate between the reasons that happen to bind their subjects and the subjects’ actions. Authorities do this by providing special reasons via directives to their subjects. These special reasons are what Raz calls “protected reasons.” Protected reasons are both first-order reasons for action and second-order “exclusionary reasons” that exclude the subject from considering some reasons in the balance of reasons for or against any action. I first make clear what Raz’s view of authority is, and I then defend this view from some contemporary critics.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.57709/1059783
Recommended Citation
Craig, Jason Thomas, "Raz and His Critics: A Defense of Razian Authority." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2009.
doi: https://doi.org/10.57709/1059783