Volume 26, Issue 52, November 2018
Filosofia e Medicina sobre Dor e Sofrimento
Pedro Galvão
Pages 29-41
Agonia e Razões Para Agir
Uma Crítica a Parfit
Relying mostly on his Agony Argument, Derek Parfit argued against all the theories that take reasons for acting as based on the agent’s attitudes. I use R. M. Hare’s so-called “Conditional Reflection Principle” –here relabeled as “Mirror Principle” – to challenge Parfit’s contention that subjectivists about reasons cannot consistently endorse the view that “we all have a reason to want to avoid, and to try to avoid, all future agony.” Several objections to the Mirror Principle are examined and shown to result from incorrect interpretations of its content.