Philosopher: Both the consequences and the motives of human actions ha...
The philosopher's argument states that both the consequences and the motives of human actions have an impact on the moral worth of those actions. Additionally, the philosopher claims that to be a moral agent, one must have free will because without free will, one cannot desire to conform to a principle.
In evaluating the assumptions made by the philosopher, let's analyze each option:
(A) one cannot be a moral agent if one lacks a concern for the consequences of actions: This assumption is not explicitly stated in the philosopher's argument. The argument focuses on the importance of both consequences and motives, but it does not specify that lacking a concern for consequences excludes someone from being a moral agent.
(B) desiring to conform to a principle requires free will: This assumption aligns with the philosopher's argument. The philosopher states that one must have free will to be a moral agent because without free will, one cannot desire to conform to a principle. This assumption is necessary for the philosopher's argument to hold.
(C) nobody who acts without taking the consequences of the action into consideration is free: This assumption is not directly supported by the philosopher's argument. While the argument acknowledges the significance of consequences, it does not explicitly claim that not considering consequences negates freedom.
(D) it is impossible to have desires without also being a moral agent: This assumption goes beyond the scope of the philosopher's argument. The argument focuses on the relationship between consequences, motives, free will, and moral worth, but it does not make a direct connection between desires and moral agency.
(E) it is impossible to perform morally worthy actions without at some time conforming to a principle: This assumption is not explicitly stated in the philosopher's argument. The argument emphasizes the importance of conforming to a principle for moral agency, but it does not claim that one cannot perform morally worthy actions without conforming to a principle at some point.
Therefore, the correct assumption, based on the philosopher's argument, is (B) desiring to conform to a principle requires free will. This assumption is necessary for the philosopher's argument that free will is essential for moral agency because it enables the desire to conform to a principle.