Organon F

Volume 31, August 2024, Issue 3, Pages 217–231

ISSN 2585-7150 (online) ISSN 1335-0668 (print)

Philosophers who work on desert-adjustment within axiology often articulate the concept of desert as follows: x deserves y on the basis of z. This formulation allows for a focused examination that encompasses deservers, deservings, and desert bases. I call this first-order desert. This paper posits that axiology grounded solely in first-order desert fails to adequately capture our nuanced intuitions concerning desert. I contend that to construct an axiology that more effectively aligns with our desert-sensitive intuitions, we must incorporate considerations of second-order desert. Second-order desert is defined as follows: x deserves to live a life in which x deserves y on the basis of z. Initially, I provide a definition of first-order desert, followed by an elucidation of second-order desert. Subsequently, I explore various counter-arguments against my proposition. I defend my proposal against potential counter-arguments, demonstrating that a desert-adjusted axiological theory will be significantly better-off by incorporating second-order desert considerations.

Desert; axiology; ethics; desert-adjustment.

Author

Beşir Özgür Nayır

Affiliation

Boğaziçi University, Turkey

Address

Department of Philosophy, Boğaziçi University 34342, Istanbul, Turkey

E-mail

ozgurnayir@gmail.com 

Received

13 February 2024

Accepted

1 July 2024

Publishers

Institute of Philosophy of the Slovak Academy of Sciences

Institute of Philosophy of the Czech Academy of Sciences

APA

Nayır, B.Ö. (2024). Defining Second-Order Desert. Organon F, 31(3), 217–231. https://doi.org/10.31577/orgf.2024.31302

Chicago

Nayır, Beşir Özgür. 2024. "Defining Second-Order Desert." Organon F 31 (3): 217–231. https://doi.org/10.31577/orgf.2024.31302

Harvard

Nayır, B.Ö. (2024). Defining Second-Order Desert. Organon F, 31(3), pp. 217–231. https://doi.org/10.31577/orgf.2024.31302

© Beşir Özgür Nayır

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