William Clifford Ethics Of Belief Summary

In the “Ethics of Belief,” William Clifford argues against pragmatic justification for religious belief in saying that “it is wrong always, everywhere, and for anyone to believe anything upon insufficient evidence.” Clifford provides a thought experiment exemplifying the immorality of belief without sufficient evidence with an allegory about a parsimonious ship owner, who refrains from shelling out for necessary repairs his ship needs. Suppressing his doubts, he forms a genuine belief that his ship is sea-worthy, rather than going through the costly process of checking it and making the necessary repairs; as Clifford put it, “he got his insurance-money when she went down mid-ocean and told no tales” Clifford explains that the negligent ship owner is culpable for the accident, not because his belief that the ship was sound turned out to be false, but because his reasoning was based on emotions instead of the evidence before him. He was not justified in his belief so he is responsible for the lives lost with the ship. According to Clifford, even if the ship had survived the voyage and had been able to safely sail for many years to come, the owner would have been just as liable for his belief since it was founded on upon insufficient evidence. The lack of negative outcome does not absolve the owner of his negligence, but only hides the fact. The problem lies not in the conclusion he came to, but in the biased assessment with which he formed.