Moral sense can be understood as subjective or objective, depending on the meta-ethical theory adopted. If it expresses an individual's feelings, it is subjective; if it detects moral truths that exist independently of individuals, it is objective.
A moral sense is a supposed human capacity to distinguish right from wrong through immediate approval or disapproval. The central meta-ethical question is whether this response creates moral value or recognizes value that already exists.
| Position | Interpretation of moral sense | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Moral subjectivism | Moral judgments report or depend on an individual's attitudes. | “Cruelty is wrong” means that I disapprove of cruelty. |
| Sentimentalism | Moral judgment originates in emotions or sentiments rather than reason alone. | Observing suffering produces sympathy and moral disapproval. |
| Moral realism | Moral claims can describe mind-independent moral facts and be objectively true or false. | Cruelty remains wrong even if an individual or society approves of it. |
| Non-cognitivism | Moral statements express attitudes or prescriptions rather than factual beliefs. | “Cruelty is wrong” functions like “Boo to cruelty!” or “Do not be cruel.” |
For philosophers influenced by David Hume, moral distinctions arise from sentiment: reason identifies facts, but feelings of approval and disapproval motivate moral evaluation. This makes moral sense dependent on human psychology, although shared human sentiments may produce widespread agreement.
A realist can instead argue that moral sense resembles perception. Just as sight can detect physical features, moral awareness might detect objective reasons, duties, or values. However, disagreement and cultural variation may challenge the reliability of this faculty without logically proving that objective moral truths do not exist.
A common misconception is that widespread agreement makes morality objective. Agreement is evidence of shared attitudes, not proof of mind-independent truth; equally, disagreement does not by itself prove subjectivism.
In an IB Philosophy response, define “subjective” and “objective,” distinguish the origin of moral feelings from the status of moral truths, and evaluate at least two positions. Examiners reward a justified conclusion rather than an unsupported personal opinion.
