Simon Keller's Four Theories Of Filial Duty
Summarise Keller’s “special goods theory” of filial duty (pp. 264-) and the main arguments in support of it. Choose ONE of these arguments and challenge it.
In this essay the topic of Simon Keller's "special goods theory" will be discussed. I will be referring mainly to the article Four Theories of Filial Duty by Simon Keller. In it, with regards to the special goods theory, he discusses how the parent/child relationship is very unique and each has a special good to benefit the other person. These goods cannot be obtained from any other type of relationship, just between a parent and their child. He says how you think about your parents and the special place they have in your life is very unlike anything you are likely to get in any other …show more content…
He suggests that we are all uniquely placed to provide our parents with special goods and we are in a relationship in which our parents provide us with special goods. That is why we have special duties to our parents, because of all they have done (and continue to do) for us. According to Keller, that is to say that when the fully grown children keep in touch with their parents, send them presents on their birthdays and so on, they are providing their parents with something they can only receive from their …show more content…
He speaks about a hypothetical case where a child feels no more attached to his/her parents then he/she does to anyone else. They have no especially heightened motivation to make sure that their parents needs are fulfilled. He/she cannot be blamed for feeling this way as it is simply the way they were born. Even though the parents prioritize the child's needs, the child does not feel like they should prioritize their parents needs. Keller ponders whether the child still has a duty to look after the parents. He goes on to say that if the child genuinely lacked this instinctive concern for their parents, and not because they were selfish and uncaring, then it is no fault of their own and is a legitimate excuse for not prioritizing their parents in the ways that would normally be expected of a
In this essay the topic of Simon Keller's "special goods theory" will be discussed. I will be referring mainly to the article Four Theories of Filial Duty by Simon Keller. In it, with regards to the special goods theory, he discusses how the parent/child relationship is very unique and each has a special good to benefit the other person. These goods cannot be obtained from any other type of relationship, just between a parent and their child. He says how you think about your parents and the special place they have in your life is very unlike anything you are likely to get in any other …show more content…
He suggests that we are all uniquely placed to provide our parents with special goods and we are in a relationship in which our parents provide us with special goods. That is why we have special duties to our parents, because of all they have done (and continue to do) for us. According to Keller, that is to say that when the fully grown children keep in touch with their parents, send them presents on their birthdays and so on, they are providing their parents with something they can only receive from their …show more content…
He speaks about a hypothetical case where a child feels no more attached to his/her parents then he/she does to anyone else. They have no especially heightened motivation to make sure that their parents needs are fulfilled. He/she cannot be blamed for feeling this way as it is simply the way they were born. Even though the parents prioritize the child's needs, the child does not feel like they should prioritize their parents needs. Keller ponders whether the child still has a duty to look after the parents. He goes on to say that if the child genuinely lacked this instinctive concern for their parents, and not because they were selfish and uncaring, then it is no fault of their own and is a legitimate excuse for not prioritizing their parents in the ways that would normally be expected of a