Objections
I. It’s not important. Critics of care ethics say that even if care is a moral virtue, it is less essential than justice, it is better to act justly because of a general moral
principle as they are more reliable than feelings, also stressing the importance of impartiality (all should know that one child is not more important than any other).
II. It’s already part of ethics. Other critics claim that benevolence is already incorporated into our morality; ideas like maximizing aggregate good come from it. However, even if all parents subscribe to certain moral principles, only the caring one will efficiently carry them out, because of awareness to the real needs and interests of the child.
III. Traditional ethics is enough. Some say that a formal sense of duty is enough for moral action. However, caring implies more and that is more fully a morally worthy action.
IV. Feminist critique points out that even if women are better at caring, it would be bad politically, socially and ethically to represent it that way. They are worried this might promote a view that women are ‘in charge of caring’ or worse, that women should put caring before their own interests.
V. Disempowering women. …
