Graveside and Other Asymmetrical Promises

• Published in: Social theory and practice Vol. 44; no. 4; pp. 469 - 483
• Main Author: Albrecht, Ingrid V.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Tallahassee Department of Philosophy, Florida State University 01-10-2018; Florida State University
• Subjects: Accounts; Asymmetry; Ethics; Moral development; Moral responsibility; Morality; Personal development; Theory
• ISSN: 0037-802X; 2154-123X
• DOI: 10.5840/soctheorpract201891344

People who make graveside promises consider themselves bound by them, which raises the question of whether a promise can morally obligate a promisor directly to a promisee who cannot acknowledge the promise. I show that it can by using the theoretical framework provided by "transaction accounts" of promising. Paradigmatically, these accounts maintain that the creation of a promissory obligation requires that the promisee consent to the promise. I extend these accounts to capture promises made by proxy and self-promises, and conclude that we can make promises to absent promisees when we bear responsibility for their moral and personal development.