Post an initial thread discussing, the problems with evolutionary
ethics. Which of the problems McQuilkin and Copan mention in
Chapter 11 are most important — that is which is the most
compelling reason to reject" Evolutionary Ethics and why.
Consider whether McQuilkin and Copan overstate the case or not
(are the problems with evolutionary ethics inevitable, or merely
possible problems, for example). Consider whether Evolutionary
Ethics is compatible with belief in God as the foundation for
Ethics. (Don't merely say, "The Bible teaches creation, therefore
evolution is incompatible. . ."" Instead, consider the logic of the
question and offer a defense of your view that will be convincing
to a general reader.)
In the reading for this week from the McQuilken and Copan book,
the authors begin by defining evolutionary ethics as the view that “our
ethical beliefs have developed through evolution to help us survive and
reproduce.”[1]That is, human morality has adapted over time in order to
improve humanity’s ability to survive. Evolutionary Ethicist Michael Ruse
explains it this way: “we are moral because our genes, as fashioned by
natural selection, fill us full of thoughts about being moral.” John Liptay [2]
states that the argument of the evolutionary ethicist is that the upshot of
looking at morality as an adaptation is that, “once we have affirmed that
morality has been adopted as the uniquely human strategy for pursuing
the biological ends of the species, nothing more can or need be said.
