Robert Holmes’s Ethical Theory: Contextualism
Rightness: 3 Types
1. actual rightness—what is really right
2. subjective rightness—what is believed to be right
3. actionable rightness—what is justifiably believed to be right
Contextualism: a theory of actionable rightness
Main Theses:
 Very often we do not have enough information to know what is actually right—
e.g., information about the consequences of our actions.
 Whether an action is actionably right depends on what we are trying to do rather
than what we actually accomplish—i.e., it depends on our thoughts, feelings,
motives, and intentions.
 Most of the considerations emphasized by traditional ethical theories—
consequences, justice, rights, etc.—are relevant in different situations. However,
there is no final, all-encompassing moral principle or rule.
 Contextualism is primarily an ethics of virtue in that it emphasizes character—i.e.,
the personal characteristics we should value in ourselves and in others.
 However, contextualism is also an ethics of conduct in the sense that any virtue
ethics is an ethics of conduct—i.e., it implies that we should act as a virtuous
person would act.
 Particular cases precede moral principles. I.e., we determine whether an ethical
principle is correct by testing it against our knowledge of right/wrong in particular
cases.
 We know what is right/wrong in particular cases on the basis of our moral
experience. Moral experience involves exercising our powers of moral
discernment or conscience while reflecting on particular situations in all their
complexity.
 In judging particular situations, we should be constrained by the principle of
universalizability—i.e., we should judge two situations similarly unless we can
identify morally relevant differences between them.
 In some situations, we will determine what is right by appealing to moral
principles (not always the same principles or with the same priorities).
 In general, we should strive to cooperate with others to better the world.
Therefore, this is an axiological theory.
 There are a variety of respects in which we can better the world—not just one
(e.g., maximizing happiness).
 Among the most important goods are the “nurturing goods”—caring,
considerateness, compassion, sympathy, love, etc.