The Generality Of Reason In Nagel's Argument

The second argument Nagel gives to prove objectivity is reason. To reason is to think systematically in ways anyone looking over someones shoulder ought to be able to recognize as correct. It is this generality that relativists and subjectivists deny.4 The essential characteristic of reasoning is its generality.5 The generality of reasons mean that they apply not only in identical circumstances but also in relevantly similar circumstances-and that what counts as a relevant similarity or difference can be explained by reasons of the same generality. Ideally, the aim is to arrive at the principle that are universal and exceptionalness.6 Reason is used to deflect argument, or to belittle the pretensions of the arguments of others. Claims that …show more content…
“The serious attempt to identify what is subjective and particular, or relative and communal, in one’s outlook leads inevitably to the objective and universal. That is so whether the object of our scrutiny is ethics, or science, or even logic.”10 This is because, “The concept of subjectivity always demands an objective framework, within which the subjective is located and his special perspective or set of responses described. We cannot leave the standpoint of justification completely, and it drives us to seek objective grounds.11 In summary, Nagel is trying to say because man has the ability to reason; he can then think objectively, “We discover objective reason by discovering that we run up against certain limits when we inquire whether our beliefs, values, and so forth are subjective, culturally relative, or otherwise essentially