DESERT (PHILOSOPHY)

'Desert' in philosophy is the condition of being deserving of something, whether good or bad. It is related to justice, revenge, blame, punishment and many topics central to moral philosophy. In ordinary usage, to deserve is to earn or merit a reward; in philosophy, the distinction is drawn in the term desert to include the case that that which one receives as one's just deserts may well be unwelcome, or a reward. For example, if I scratch off a winning lottery ticket, I may be ''entitled'' to the money, but I do not necessarily ''deserve'' it in the same way I deserve $5 for mowing a lawn, or a round of applause for performing a solo.
A general formula for ''desert claims'' is this: ''Thing 'A' deserves 'X' in virtue of 'Y'.'' For example, ''I (A) deserve a good grade on my test (X) because I studied hard (Y)''; ''Cincinnati (A) deserves to be praised (X) because it is a pretty city (Y).'' Some authors have added a further criteria, qualifying 'Y'. That is, Agent A deserves X in virtue of Y ''if and only if A is responsible for Y (or, alternatively, if A is also deserving of Y)''. For example, I do not deserve respect simply because I am a human being, because I am not responsible for being a human being (Y) -- arguments such as this are understandably contentious. Alternatively, if I use steroids to win in a footrace, I do not deserve to win because I do not deserve my increased physical abilities.

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Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy