Hare and Prescriptivism
R.M. Hare developed prescriptivism: moral statements are prescriptions or imperatives rather than factual assertions. 'You ought to keep promises' prescribes promise-keeping universally. Prescriptivism treats moral language as action-guiding while maintaining logical structure.
Real World
When a judge sentences a criminal, the statement 'You ought to serve five years' functions prescriptively — it doesn't describe a fact about the world but issues a universal directive backed by consistent moral reasoning, illustrating Hare's point about prescriptive language.
Exam Focus
Contrast prescriptivism with emotivism by emphasising Hare's universalisability requirement — this distinction is frequently tested and often muddled.
How well did you know this?