"Above the sceptred sway": Retrieving the quality of mercy
Author(s)
Ransome, William
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2008
Metadata
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Mercy is often thought to be a praiseworthy moral virtue. However, the quality of mercy has been thrown into doubt. Since to be merciful is to be lenient to a wrongdoer beyond the dictates of justice, it seems as if mercy cannot be a praiseworthy virtue. I argue that several recent attempts to reconcile mercy with justice fail, and that the subsequent endeavour to resurrect mercy as a praiseworthy moral virtue is doubtful. However, I also show how the praiseworthy quality of mercy can be retrieved, if we carefully reconstruct the moral case in its favour outside the law.Mercy is often thought to be a praiseworthy moral virtue. However, the quality of mercy has been thrown into doubt. Since to be merciful is to be lenient to a wrongdoer beyond the dictates of justice, it seems as if mercy cannot be a praiseworthy virtue. I argue that several recent attempts to reconcile mercy with justice fail, and that the subsequent endeavour to resurrect mercy as a praiseworthy moral virtue is doubtful. However, I also show how the praiseworthy quality of mercy can be retrieved, if we carefully reconstruct the moral case in its favour outside the law.
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Journal Title
Critica: Revista Hispanoamericana de Filosofia
Volume
40
Issue
119
Publisher URI
Subject
Ethical Theory
Philosophy