Social Contract theory

Overview

People would agree to limit the pursuit of their self interests in order to avoid chaos and have a better life

Prisoner’s dilemma

Situation in which people would be better off if they scaled back their pursuit of self interest

State of Nature

Situation in which there is no government with exclusive power to enforce its will onto others

The social contract

zto get out of prisoner dilemma posed by the state of nature

a) people create beneficial rules that require cooperation and punish betrayal

b) people enable an enforcer who ensures that the rules are obeyed

-people give up their free will to live by rules

-These rules are then enforced

Social Contract theory

An action is morally right if and only if they are
permitted by rules that free, equal, and rational
people would agree to live by, on the condition that
others obey these rules as well. People don’t steal because they do not want people stealing from them

Advantages of social contract theory

• Social phenomena

  • Moral rules govern interpersonal interactions. SCT explains this because it views moral rules and rules of cooperation between people

• Explains and justifies content of morality

  • Moral rules are those that everyone would agree to live by

  • Rawl’s veil of ignorance

• Explains why morality is objective

  • Morality not merely a matter of opinion

• Explains why is it sometimes acceptable to break moral rules

  • Moral rules are designed for
    cooperative living.
    When cooperation collapses, the
    entire point of morality disappears.
    If people are no longer being
    moral, your obligation to be moral
    no longer applies.

Rawl’s veil of ignorance

You can make rules as a society in Heaven, but you do not know who you will be and how those decisions will affect you-equality

Problems with SCT

1. Is it rational to be moral?

   1. SCT suggests that it is rational to be moral since moral rules are the ones rational people would agree to

   2. There are some cases where it is not rational to be moral

   3. Free rider problem

2. Consent to social contract

   1. moral rules are omnes that are free, equal, and rational that people would agree to. There is no explanation of where these came from

3. Disagreement among contractors

   1. Can they disagree and what are the consequences?

4. Scope of moral community

   1. Who has rights and who warrants respect?

   2. Contractarian

Free rider problem

People are able to obtain a share of some common good without contributing to it (ex. vaccination)

Contractarian

Anyone whose interests are
protected by the rules that
contractors agree upon.

Contractors are self-interested.
They are not benevolent,
generous, and self-sacrificing.

Contractors would only agree to
protect the interest of themselves.

If you are not worried about being exploited for something, then you would not give up your rights