gjm comments on Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality discussion thread, part 7 - Less Wrong

7 Post author: Unnamed 14 January 2011 06:49AM

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Comment author: gjm 28 January 2011 11:09:20PM 5 points [-]

That must be the first time anyone has ever called Draco Malfoy a virtue ethicist. Probably the last, too.

Comment author: TobyBartels 29 January 2011 02:14:30AM *  5 points [-]

Just because his values don't match yours doesn't mean that he's not ethical.

Whether for good or evil, evarybody in canon is a virtue ethicist. (Presumably because Rowling knows no other ethics.)

Comment author: gjm 29 January 2011 09:38:06AM 4 points [-]

For the avoidance of doubt, I wasn't disagreeing that one could categorize Draco that way. I just thought the incongruity of it was striking.

(To me, canon!Voldemort doesn't seem like much of a virtue ethicist even in the relevantly expanded sense. More of a consequentialist.)

Comment author: wedrifid 31 January 2011 07:30:26AM *  3 points [-]

To me, canon!Voldemort doesn't seem like much of a virtue ethicist even in the relevantly expanded sense. More of a consequentialist.

I had the same impression. I think it was Eliezer's-characaturization-of-canon!Voldemort that was the virtue ethicist. Voldemort harnessed, encouraged and exploited a form of virtue ethics in others to reinforce his own power. Tom Riddle was perhaps more of a virtue ethicist. As they say, power corrupts - it even corrupts away virtue systems that were fairly abominable to begin with.

I did upvote the grandparent despite this possible exception.

Comment author: Desrtopa 31 January 2011 02:48:37AM 3 points [-]

(To me, canon!Voldemort doesn't seem like much of a virtue ethicist even in the relevantly expanded sense. More of a consequentialist.)

How so?