Wk Clifford The Ethics Of Belief

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The Ethics of Belief is a argument against Pascalian Wagers written by the British philosopher W. K. Clifford. In his essay, he writes that holding beliefs involves ethical principles, and that we are morally wrong if we hold beliefs without sufficient evidence to support them. In Clifford’s first illustration, he describes the story of a ship-owner. The ship-owner is in possession of a ship he suspects to be unfit for sail, but pushes asides his doubts for the belief that Providence will care for his ship, and sends it out to sea. Whether or not the ship succeeds in it’s journey, the ship-owner’s choice to push aside his doubts was morally wrong. If the ship had failed, he would be guilty for the loss of all the lives taken. If the