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Moral realism and objectivity: debates and analysis

Whether objective moral facts exist, including moral realism, anti-realism, intuitionism, emotivism, error theory, and disagreement. Explore the published debate assessments, arguments and original sources.

About this topic

Whether objective moral facts exist, including moral realism, anti-realism, intuitionism, emotivism, error theory, and disagreement.

Debates are grouped by their main question. Scores assess the reasoning presented, not the truth of a position. Read the assessment method.

Explore the assessments

Eric Sampson vs Lance Bush: Is Moral Realism True? · 2022

Sampson narrowly prevails by defining a limited realism and defending its intelligibility, while Bush supplies powerful underdetermination and genealogy challenges that remain evidentially incomplete.

Eric Sampson: 82 · Lance Bush: 81. Scores assess the reasoning in this debate.

Lance Bush vs Derek McAllister: Moral Anti-Realism vs Realism · 2025

Bush systematically challenges realist presumptions from common sense, history, and semantics, while McAllister offers competent but insufficiently documented convergence and perspectival-collapse arguments.

Lance Bush: 90 · Derek McAllister: 76. Scores assess the reasoning in this debate.

Mike Huemer vs Matt Lutz: Is Morality Real? · 2026

Huemer defends objective morality through evaluative judgment and defeasible appearances; Lutz counters with desire-based reasons, projectivism, and explanationist standards for knowledge.

Michael Huemer: 88 · Matt Lutz: 81. Scores assess the reasoning in this debate.

Michael Huemer vs Lance Bush: Do Objective Moral Facts Exist? · 2024

Huemer defended attitude-independent morality through semantic tests and intellectual appearances; Bush countered with contextual quietism, folk indeterminacy, and challenges to intuition’s public authority.

Michael Huemer: 85 · Lance Bush: 83. Scores assess the reasoning in this debate.

David Enoch vs Lance Bush: Are There Objective Moral Truths? · 2026

Enoch defends mind-independent normativity through justified appearances and comparative explanation; Bush contests realist priority through neutral language, causal genealogy, pragmatism, and parsimony.

David Enoch: 85 · Lance Bush: 84. Scores assess the reasoning in this debate.

Alex O'Connor vs Craig Biddle: Is Morality Objective? · 2024

Biddle grounds objective morality in life and flourishing; O'Connor argues that conditional valuation cannot establish objective duties, especially toward other people and animals.

Craig Biddle: 82 · Alex O'Connor: 89. Scores assess the reasoning in this debate.