The Right and the Good

Ross's "The Right and the Good" presents a deontological ethical theory that, while not primarily theological in orientation, carries significant implications for debates about divine command theory and the relationship between morality and God. The work develops an intuitionist approach to ethics centered on prima facie duties—self-evident moral obligations that can conflict with one another and must be weighed in particular situations.

The monograph critiques both utilitarian ethics and Kantian formalism, arguing instead for a pluralistic understanding of moral obligation grounded in rational intuition. Ross identifies seven prima facie duties: fidelity, reparation, gratitude, justice, beneficence, self-improvement, and non-maleficence. These duties are known through a form of moral perception analogous to mathematical intuition, requiring no external justification or divine grounding.

This approach poses a significant challenge to divine command theory, which roots moral obligation in God's will or commands. Ross contends that moral truths are necessary and eternal, existing independently of any mind, divine or human. The rightness or wrongness of actions stems from their intrinsic nature rather than from divine decree. This position aligns Ross with a tradition of moral realism that includes figures like G.E. Moore, though Ross develops a more nuanced account of how multiple moral considerations interact in concrete situations.

The work's relevance to philosophy of religion extends beyond its implicit critique of divine command theory. By establishing morality as an autonomous domain of truth accessible through reason, Ross provides secular thinkers with a robust alternative to religiously grounded ethics. Simultaneously, his intuitionism and commitment to objective moral truth may appeal to theists who wish to maintain moral realism while avoiding the difficulties of crude voluntarism about divine commands.

Ross's careful phenomenology of moral experience and his attention to the complexity of ethical decision-making have influenced subsequent debates about moral epistemology and the metaphysics of value. His theory suggests that even if God exists, morality possesses its own authority and intelligibility. This position has proven influential in twentieth-century moral philosophy, shaping discussions about whether ethics requires religious foundations and how moral knowledge relates to other forms of rational insight. The work thus contributes to ongoing debates about the independence of ethics from theology while maintaining a strongly realist stance about moral truth.