Divine Command Theory

According to Rachels, subjectivism is "the idea that or moral opinions are based on our feelings, and nothing more" (Rachels 26). This would indicate that there is no such thing as objective right or wrong. Ethical subjectivism does not try to say what is ethically right or wrong but simply to say that those opinions are based on personal feelings. In the simplest form, ethical subjectivism means that if something is moral or ought to be done, then the person speaking or writing approves of that thing or action. Within simple subjectivism there are inherent flaws and contradictions. People are fallible in their judgments, and there are disagreements between individuals about what is morally correct or not, leading to contradictions between people or within a single person (Rachels 29).

Second stage subjectivism, developed by philosopher Charles L. Stevenson, focuses on the emotional aspect of making a judgment and its communication through language and word choice. When one speaks about a moral situation, there generally is a strong indication in the language that it definitely wrong or right and the listener should obey what the speak

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ommands would carry no import. This relationship also works in a positive connective way. Religious and spiritual people the world over care very much what God wants and therefore subjectively work very hard to keep their thinking, feeling, and action in line with the perceived preferences of God. This is subjectivism. Especially if people believe in a loving, just God, who created humans in his own image and provided for them on the earth, people are strongly motivated to shape their behaviors in ways that are assumed to please God. However, according to Rachels, there are several lines of reasoning that lead one to believe that there are logical and philosophical difficulties in relating subjectivism and Divine Command Theory. First, atheists would not have a place in this system of thought because they do not believe in God. In order to find credence in Divine Command Theory, there has to be a belief in God. Next, following a Divine Command means that something is right or wrong because God says so. It would follow that there is no objective ethical framework in which things are inherently correct or incorrect apart from the opinion of God (Rachels 42). It would follow, as well, that the directives of God are arbitrar
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Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page)

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