INTEODUGTIOlSr 11

Moral Obligation, Duty, Free Will. — Moral obliga-
tion expresses the conscious relation of an agent to a
law which he believes is the best to obey under the
given circumstances, and which it is possible for him
to obey. We say that the agent " ought " to obey
such a law, and this is equivalent to saying that it
is his " duty " to obey it. " Duty " and " moral
obligation " commonly (though not necessarily) imply
the existence of temptations to go wrong. To do
one's duty is to prefer the higher good to the lower,
as determined by the ethical scale ; it means action
in accordance with what is best, in so far as this
is possible and can be ascertained by the agent. Tf
we agree to define elementary freedom of the will
as the power normally possessed in some degree by
human beings of subordinating impulses and lower
goods to higher goods, then every system of Ethics
presupposes freedom in this elementary sense, since
conduct or deliberate action would be impossible
without it.
It was remarked that actions subjectively right
and actions objectively right do not prima facie coincide.
There are indeed many cases which seem to prove that
the moral judgments of individuals are mistaken.
