Clifford The Ethics Of Belief Summary

Clifford has strict principles for his guidelines on the ethics of belief. He has a small margin which he can justify a belief, or if that belief was true or false. However, Wood tests Clifford’s claims by offering alternatives for justifying a belief. Wood’s ethics of belief widen the genre under which beliefs can fall. Even though Clifford’s and Wood’s principles challenge each other, they come to a consensus when this issue involves harm to others or honesty to one’s self.
Clifford’s view on the ethics of belief is simple: “It is wrong always, everywhere, and for anyone, to believe anything upon insufficient evidence.” His principle is short and sweet; if the evidence is adequate, then the belief can be true. He hold such a strong belief because he thinks that believing in something, though it may seem insignificant, all ties into a harmonious web that does not selfishly belong to one man, but to all of humanity. Clifford thinks that since every person’s beliefs bind them to every man, it is man’s duty to only hold correct beliefs based on sufficient evidence. If humanity holds beliefs in such a way, then all of humankind will become stronger. He also makes the point that this duty is difficult, and it may leave people feeling vulnerable and bare, …show more content…
He explains this eloquently that every time others let themselves believe for worthless reasons they allow themselves to be distrustful, weaken their powers of self-control, and lose the power to judicially weigh evidence. He thinks that knowledge is power, and that holding a belief with no knowledge of the matter can be detrimental to humanity. Clifford explains using his ethics of belief will leave no individual feeling powerless or scared. He says that, “This sense of power is the highest and best of pleasures when the belief on which it is founded is a true belief, and has been fairly earned by