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Abstract
Current moral philosophy is often seen as a debate between the two great traditions of consequentialism and deontology. Although there has been considerable work clarifying consequentialism, deontology is more often attacked or defended than analyzed. Just how is one to understand the very idea of a deontological ethic? Competing conceptions of deontology have been advanced in recent ethical thinking, leading to differences in classifying ethical theories. If one does not focus on implausible versions, the idea of a deontological ethic is far more attractive than most philosophers have thought. Indeed, in an important sense, only a deontological ethic can be plausible. Admissible conceptions of the good are those whose ends and activities accord with the requirements of principles of right.