Abstract

PRONO, Santiago N.. Racionalidad universal y demandas locales en R.M. Hare y K.-O. Apel. Tópicos [online]. 2005, n.13, pp.91-111. ISSN 1666-485X.

This article studies one specific aspect of two of the most important contemporary ethical theories for the rational foundation of morals norms: R. M. Hare's universal prescriptivism, and the discursive ethics of the German philosopher Karl-Otto Apel. In this way, and bearing in mind the necessity of always establishing a mediation between the universal ethics of principles, and the concrete historical contexts of the communities which apply the aforementioned norms, this last question is studied in the theories of both philosophers. In Hare's case, besides the inherent difficulty of the formalism he adopts, he cannot account for the problems indicated, inasmuch as, on the one hand, the incorporation of the utilitarianism that he proposes for this request is not justified and, on the other hand, with the method of interpersonal transferences, it is difficult to get to know the people's desires and interests, because of the impossibility of putting oneself in the other's place. As regards Apel, although he proposes a more coherent thesis, he does not in fact appropriately take into account the problems of the justification of decisions, and of the application of principles to historical situations. All these issues, pose the necessity of considering the feasibility of complementation with Habermas's conception of discursive ethics.

Keywords : Hare; Apel; Habermas; Universal ethics of principles; historical contexts of application.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )