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Responsibility for Negligence in Ethics and Law: Aspiration, Perspective, and Civic Maturity

Online ISBN:
9780198948216
Print ISBN:
9780198948186
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
Book

Responsibility for Negligence in Ethics and Law: Aspiration, Perspective, and Civic Maturity

Verónica Rodríguez-Blanco
Verónica Rodríguez-Blanco

Professor of Moral and Political Philosophy (Jurisprudence)

University of Surrey
,
UK
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Published online:
1 April 2025
Published in print:
6 May 2025
Online ISBN:
9780198948216
Print ISBN:
9780198948186
Publisher:
Oxford University Press

Abstract

The idea of responsibility for negligent actions is perplexing because it states that we may be responsible when we act inadvertently. However, why should I be held responsible for acting unreasonably when my inherent faults in character or the circumstances of my actions prevented me from being aware of or noticing them? The book demonstrates that akrasia is the underpinning phenomenon that elucidates negligent action. It provides an explanation of akrasia, which revolves around the idea that the phenomenon occurs due to an uneven development of our character and thoughts about what is right, dutiful, and good. As a result, we fail to move ourselves forward and transform towards an aspirational-deliberative perspective. The monograph argues that there is an internal structure in negligence law that expands and embraces what is good, rightful, and dutiful. This does not mean that the law engages with non-juridical ‘external’ ends or values. On the contrary, the argument posits that courts’ decisions enable us to have a better grasp of what is good, rightful, and dutiful in the concrete particularities of actions. Courts’ decisions advance proleptic reasons, which are integral to the citizens’ practical reasoning. Proleptic means that, as reasoners, citizens can anticipate thoughts and ways of valuing that will help them to move forward and transform themselves through deliberating and acting. Negligence law invites the citizen to inhabit an aspirational-deliberative perspective, describing and re-describing the relevant values presented in particulars, allowing a space for civic maturity.

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