Define Ethical Naturalism.
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Ethical naturalism is a metaethical theory that posits a naturalistic basis for ethics, asserting that moral properties are reducible to or identical with natural properties. In other words, ethical naturalism contends that moral truths and values can be understood and explained in terms of the natural world and its features.
Key features of ethical naturalism include the rejection of non-natural or supernatural explanations for moral properties, the belief that moral facts can be subjected to empirical investigation, and the idea that ethical statements can be grounded in the objective features of the natural world. Ethical naturalists often draw upon scientific, psychological, or sociological insights to provide a naturalistic foundation for moral principles.
However, ethical naturalism faces challenges, including the articulation of a plausible account of moral ontology and the so-called "is-ought" problem, which questions the derivation of normative ethical statements from descriptive natural facts. Despite these challenges, ethical naturalism remains a prominent position within the landscape of metaethics, offering a naturalistic perspective on the nature and foundation of morality.