From Hierarchies of Norm to Moral Polyphony: Reconstructing Moral Philosophy Beyond Rawls, Habermas, and Kohlberg through the Setiawan Framework
Abstract:
Contemporary moral philosophy often oscillates between idealism and reductionism, between Rawlsian justice, Habermasian communicative ethics, and Kohlberg's developmental stages. Each of these models, while influential, struggles to fully capture the complex entanglement of individual conscience, institutional authority, and sociopolitical hegemony. This paper proposes a novel theoretical reconstruction based on the "Setiawan Moral Hierarchy," a layered framework that integrates individual morality, social consensus, institutional authority, hegemonic moral systems, and transcendent values. By comparing this model to established Western frameworks, we demonstrate its superiority in navigating moral ambiguity, social manipulation, and ideological conflicts. Furthermore, we explore its applicability in contemporary issues such as political polarization, digital ethics, climate justice, and moral education. The Setiawan model offers not only a descriptive matrix but also a normative architecture that could reshape how we understand, teach, and practice ethics in the 21st century.
Keywords: Moral philosophy, Setiawan hierarchy, Rawls, Habermas, Kohlberg, hegemony, transcendent ethics, moral conflict, ethical pluralism
Outline:
1. Introduction
Background: Limitations of the classical moral framework
The urgency of reconstruction in the context of the 21st century
Research objectives and contributions
2. Literature Review
a. John Rawls and the Theory of Justice