Two kinds of struggle

Adam lost his innocence and acquired a taste both for good and for evil. Yet he ate the forbidden fruit and after, it was clear what was good and what ought to be done.

According to this vision of our moral predicament, there are no gaps in our moral knowledge requiring completion through inquiry as there are gaps in our scientific knowledge. We may be ignorant of the consequences of our choices; but given any conjectured consequence, there is no doubt about its value. The remedy for our ignorance of consequences is, indeed, to be found either in scientific inquiry or in better decision theory. Aside from these aids to conduct, however, the best that can be done for Fallen Man is to institute a regimen of character building designed to strengthen his will. Moral problems are problems of moral training and therapy. There is no need for moral inquiry because there is no dearth of knowledge of good and evil.

To claim that we know everything there is to know about nature is quixotic arrogance. The results of science offer knowledge of some things but insist on our ignorance about others. In my view, the same holds for knowledge of good and evil. Our knowledge is fragmentary and incomplete. As in science, it is open to revision and improvement, and no amount of therapy will indicate how we should proceed. No doubt we have a taste for good and for evil.