Ethics and moral philosophy Books
Oxford University Press, USA The Morality of Happiness
Book SynopsisTo understand ancient ethics we must exmaine the basic structure of ancient ethical theory. Here, Julia Annas brings together the results of a wide-ranging study of ancient ethical philosophy, and makes it easily accessible to anyone with an interest in ancient or modern ethics.Trade Reviewthis is an important book. Many of Annas's claims will provoke scholarly controversy for some time to come; in the meantime, the book will be a tremendous help to those who want to understand the development of ancient ethics as a whole. * Times Higher Educational Supplement *
£65.55
Oxford University Press Loyalty
Book SynopsisThis book is an important contribution to the public debate on morality, politics, and the law, and is unique in its exploration of loyalty and its role in our personal and national identity.Trade Review'George Fletcher writes with a rare combination of legal knowledge, theoretical sophistication, and common sense. His remarkable feel for the place of loyalty in everyday life makes this a book that should figure importantly in contemporary moral, political, and constitutional debates.' Michael Walzer, Princeton University'George Fletcher has made a notable contribution to the continuing debate about the relationship of the impersonal requirements of justice to the particular demands of those ties and loyalties which bond us to those to whom we are closest. His is a book rich in illuminating examples and in rewarding insights.' Alasdair Macintyre, University of Notre Dame'In LOYALTY, George Fletcher brings to life a subject that liberal, legal and political theory has barely recognized. The theme of loyalty, he convincingly demonstrates, is a hidden thread running through a wide range of seemingly unrelated issues.' Mary Ann Glendon, Harvard Law School`Loyalties are not only a value to us, they define us. This thesis is developed and defended with great force by Professor Fletcher, and applied with ingenuity.' Sidney Morgenbesser, Columbia University`This challenging and densely packed extended essay ... thoroughly dissects the concept of loyalty' Timothy Hunter, Cleveland Plain Dealer 14/2/93`One suspects LOYALTY will win Fletcher an enduring audience which is just the sort he might want. Carlin Romano, Philadelphia Inquirer 14/2/93`presents clearly and vigorously an important range of moral problems ... he commands plenty of good, thought-provoking examples of those commitments and the clashes they give rise to, and he handles them effectively ... he says much that is valuable about the idea of actions as communications rather than mere causes of results.' Mary Midgley, Times Literary Supplement'George Fletcher ... offers a lively account of the loyalties which he thinks resist impartialist analysis. His book is insightful, and replete with challenging case studies ... his essay is undoubtedly an overall success.' Times Higher Education Supplement'One fascinating aspect about Fletcher's Loyalty is that it raises a number of questions that lawyers and philosophers can continue debating at length ... The issue of oaths in general, and loyalty oaths in particular, is just one of a great variety of topics raised by George Fletcher ... The arguments in this essay are well worth considering in detail. Fletcher's final plea for reasoned discourse "across time, across space, and across culture" transcending our roots in loyal relationships is an invitation to do exactly that.' B. Sharon Byrd, University of Augsburg, Law and Philosophy 13:1994
£14.99
Oxford University Press Living High and Letting Die
Book SynopsisBy contributing a few hundred dollars to a charity like UNICEF, a prosperous person can ensure that fewer poor children die, and that more will live reasonably long, worthwhile lives. Even when knowing this, however, most people send nothing, and almost all of the rest send little. What is the moral status of this behavior? To such common cases of letting die, our untutored response is that, while it is not very good, neither is the conduct wrong. What is the source of this lenient assessment? In this contentious new book, one of our leading philosophers argues that our intuitions about ethical cases are generated not by basic moral values, but by certain distracting psychological dispositions that all too often prevent us from reacting in accord with our commitments. Through a detailed look at how these tendencies operate, Unger shows that, on the good morality that we already accept, the fatally unhelpful behavior is monstrously wrong. By uncovering the eminently sensible ethics thatTrade Review"A major work of fundamental importance both to moral philosophy and to the poor of this world....Important in a practical way, as well as in an academic way."--Peter Singer, Monash University and author of Animal Liberation"A terrifically powerful piece of work, and its publication will make a nuclear-sized explosion."--Jonathan Bennett, Syracuse University"Unger challenges our moral beliefs with arguments that are always powerful, and often original. Everyone who can understand these arguments ought, I believe, to read and think about this book."--Derek Parfit, Oxford UniversityOne of the most significant works of ethics published this decade. * Peter Singer, London Review of Books *Table of Contents1: Illusions of Innocence: An Introduction 2: Living High and Letting Die: A Puzzle About Behavior Toward People in Great Need 3: Living High, Stealing and Letting Die: The Main Truth of Some Related Puzzles 4: Between Some Rocks and Some Hard Places: On Causing and Preventing Serious Loss 5: Between Some Harder Rocks and Rockier Hard Places: On Distortional Separating and Revelatory Grouping 6: Living High and Letting Die Reconsidered: On the Costs of a Morally Decent Life 7: Metaethics, Better Ethics: From Complex Semantics to Simple Decency
£31.34
Oxford University Press Inequality
Book SynopsisLarry Temkin examines the concepts of equality and inequality, and addresses one particular question in depth: when is one inequality worse than another? He shows that there are many different factors underlying and influencing our egalitarian judgments and that the notion of inequality is surprisingly complex. He looks at inequality as applied to individuals and to groups, and considers whether inequality matters more in a poor society than a rich one. The arguments of non-egalitarians are also examined. Temkin presents a new way of thinking about equality and inequality which challenges the assumptions of philosophers, welfare economists, and others concerned with these notions on a practical as well as a theoretical level.Trade Reviewdense but brilliant and fascinating book. * Times Literary Supplement *
£43.69
Oxford University Press, USA Moral Knowledge and Ethical Character
Book SynopsisThis book presents an ethical theory that uniquely integrates naturalistic and rationalistic elements. Robert Audi develops his theory in four areas: moral epistemology, the metaphysics of ethics, moral psychology, and the foundations of ethics. Comprising both new and published work, the book sets forth a moderate intuitionism, clarifies the relation between reason and motivation, constructs a theory of intrinsic value and its place in moral obligation, and presents a sophisticated account of moral justification. The concluding chapter articulates a new normative framework built from both Kantian and intuitionist elements. Connecting ethics in novel ways to both the theory of value and the philosophy of action, the essays explore topics such as ethical intuition, reason and judgement, and virtue. Audi also considers major views in the history of ethics, including those of Aristotle, Hume, Kant, Mill, Moore, and W. D. Ross, and engages contemporary work on autonomy, responsibility, objectivity, reasons, and other issues. Clear and conceptually rich, this book makes vital reading for students and scholars of ethics.
£130.00
Oxford University Press Inc Morality Mortality Volume I Death and Whom to Save From It
Book SynopsisWhy is death bad for us, even on the assumption that it involves the absence of experience? Whom should we save from death if we cannot save everyone? Kamm considers these questions, critically examining some answers other philosophers have given.Trade ReviewThis is an intellectually challenging work which raises and discusses issues which should be widely debated, not only by specialists but by the public at large. * Journal of the Institute of Health Education *Kamm is probably the most sophisticated deontologist writing on normative issues today. * Shelley Kagan, University of Illinois *
£39.09
Oxford University Press Thinking Like an Engineer
Book SynopsisMichael Davis, a leading figure in the study of professional ethics, offers here both a compelling exploration of engineering ethics and a philosophical analysis of engineering as a profession. After putting engineering in historical perspective, Davis turns to the Challenger space shuttle disaster to consider the complex relationship between engineering ideals and contemporary engineering practice. Here, Davis examines how social organization and technical requirements define how engineers should (and presumably do) think. Later chapters test his analysis of engineering judgement and autonomy empirically, engaging a range of social science research including a study of how engineers and managers work together in ten different companies.Trade ReviewFor those interested in the problematical ethics of engineers and engineering managers, this is a book worthy of contemplation. * Technology and Culture *
£79.80
Oxford University Press Inc Ethics
Book SynopsisEthics: Classical Western Texts in Feminist and Multicultural Perspectives offers students a unique introduction to ethics by integrating the historical development of Western moral philosophy with both feminist and multicultural approaches. Engaging and accessible, it provides an introductory sampling of several of the classical works of the Western tradition in ethics and then situates these readings within feminist and multicultural perspectives so that they can be better understood and evaluated in our contemporary environment. While some of the non-Western works parallel the views defended in the Western works (e.g., Confucius''s work echoes that of Plato or Aristotle), others question the Western perspectives (e.g., American Indian works provide an interesting challenge to Western moral philosophy). Confucius, Jorge Valadez, Ward Churchill, Moshoeshoe II, and Eagle Man present multicultural perspectives to the works of Plato, Aristotle, Hume, Kant, Nietzsche, Sartre, Rawls, MacInTrade Review"Interested and broad-based approach to ethics."--Ursula Raynor, St. Martin's CollegeTable of ContentsPreface ; General Introduction ; I. PLATO ; 1. Plato, The Republic ; 2. Julia Annas, Plato's Republic and Feminism ; 3. Confucius, The Analects ; II. ARISTOTLE AND MUSONIUS RUFUS ; 4. Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics ; 5. Aristotle, Politics ; 6. Musonius Rufus, Discourses ; 7. Eve Browning Cole, Women, Slaves, and the Love of Toil ; 8. Chuang Tzu, The Book of Chuang Tzu ; III. AUGUSTINE ; 9. Augustine, The City of God ; 10. Augustine, The Confessions ; 11. Rosemary Radford Ruether, Misogynism and Virginal Feminism in the Fathers of the Church ; 12. Jorge Valadez, Pre-Columbian Philosophical Perspectives ; IV. AQUINAS AND CHRISTINE DE PIZAN ; 13. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Contra Gentiles ; 14. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica ; 15. Christine de Pizan, The Book of the City of Ladies ; 16. Eleanor McLaughlin, Equality of Souls, Inequality of Sexes ; 17. Maimonides, Guide for the Perplexed ; V. HUME ; 18. David Hume, Treatise on Human Nature ; 19. Annette C. Baier, Hume, the Women's Moral Theorist? ; 20. Ewe Proverbs ; VI. KANT ; 21. Immanuel Kant, Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysics of Morals ; 22. Immanuel Kant, On the Sublime and the Beautiful ; 23. Rae Langton, Maria von Herbert's Challenge to Kant ; 24. Bhagavad Gita ; VII. MILL AND HARRIET TAYLOR ; 25. John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism ; 26. John Stuart Mill, The Subjection of Women ; 27. Harriet Taylor, The Enfranchisement of Women ; 28. Maria H. Morales, Utility and Perfect Equality ; 29. Mo Tzu, Universal Love ; VIII. NIETZSCHE ; 30. Friedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil ; 31. Kathryn Pyne Addelson, Nietzsche and Moral Change ; 32. Mervyn Sprung, Nietzsche's Trans-European Eye ; IX. SARTRE AND DE BEAUVOIR ; 33. Jean-Paul Sartre, Existentialism Is a Humanism ; 34. Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex ; 35. Elizabeth V. Spelman, Simone de Beauvoir and Women: Just Who Does She Think "We" Is? ; 36. Eagle Man, We Are All Related ; X. RAWLS AND HARE ; 37. John Rawls, A Theory of Justice ; 38. R.M. Hare, The Structure of Ethics and Morals ; 39. Lynne S. Arnault, The Radical Future of Hare's Moral Theory ; 40. Ward Churchill, Perversions of Justice: A Native-American Examination of the Doctrine of U.S. Rights to Occupancy in North America ; XI. MACINTYRE AND NUSSBAUM ; 41. Alasdair MacIntyre, The Nature of Virtues ; 42. Martha Nussbaum, Non-Relative Virtues: An Aristotelian Approach ; 43. Susan Okin, Whose Traditions? ; 44. Xiaorong Li, Gender Inequality in China and the Cultural Relativism ; XII. GEWIRTH AND KORSGAARD ; 45. Alan Gewirth, The Justificatory Argument for Human Rights ; 47. James P. Sterba, The Justification of Morality and the Behavior of Women ; 48. Moshoeshoe II, Harmony with Nature and Indigenous African Culture ; XIII. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. AND CAROL GILLIGAN ; 49. Martin Luther King, Jr., Letter from Birmingham City Jail ; 50. Martin Luther King, Jr., I Have a Dream ; 51. Carol Gilligan, Moral Orientation and Moral Development ; Concluding Feminist and Multicultural Postcript ; Each section opens with an Introduction and concludes with Recommended Readings
£129.99
Oxford University Press Inc Morality Mortality Volume II Rights Duties and Status
Book SynopsisKamm explores questions of life and death as illustrations of general issues in moral theory. Resuming her development of non- consequentialist ethical theory and its application to practical ethical problems, she explores the distinction between killing and letting die, between harming and not aiding, and between intending and foreseeing harm.Trade Review"Kamm's book is a brilliant and powerful defense of the deontological perspective concerning the morality of killing. It is arguably the most impressive book-length treatment of substantive ethics since Derek Parfit's Reasons and Persons was published over a decade ago...[H]er painstakingly meticulous case method yields a wealth of important insights."--Ethics"...an impressive display of Francis Kamm's talent for discerning hard-to-see but morally salient differences between apparently similar cases. This, in conjunction with its several theoretical innovations, make the book well worth reading."--The Philosophical Review
£45.12
Oxford University Press Finite and Infinite Goods
Book SynopsisRenowned scholar Robert Adams explores the relation between religion and ethics through a comprehensive philosophical account of a theistically-based framework for ethics. Adams'' framework begins with the good rather than the right, and with excellence rather than usefulness. He argues that loving the excellent, of which adoring God is a clear example, is the most fundamental aspect of a life well lived. Developing his original and detailed theory, Adams contends that devotion, the sacred, grace, martyrdom, worship, vocation, faith, and other concepts drawn from religious ethics have been sorely overlooked in moral philosophy and can enrich the texture of ethical thought.Trade ReviewFinite and Infinite Goods is a work that every Christian philosopher and theologian concerned with ethics simply must read. It has been a long time since I have read a book with such a bold and original vision, coupled with careful argument and insightful reflection on particular problems and issues. * Books & Culture *one of the two most important books in moral philosophy of the last quarter century. * Theology Today *Table of ContentsPART ONE: THE NATURE OF THE GOOD; PART TWO: LOVING THE GOOD; PART THREE: THE GOOD AND THE RIGHT; PART FOUR: THE EPISTEMOLOGY OF VALUE
£62.70
Oxford University Press Suffering and Moral Responsibility
Book SynopsisIn this original study, Jamie Mayerfeld undertakes a careful inquiry into the meaning and moral significance of suffering. Understanding suffering in hedonistic terms as an affliction of feeling, he addresses difficulties associated with its identification and measurement. He then turns to an examination of the duty to relieve suffering: its content, its weight relative to other moral considerations, and the role it should play in our lives. Among the claims defended in the book are that suffering needs to be distinguished from both physical pain and the frustration of desire, that interpersonal comparisons of the intensity of happiness and suffering are possible, that several psychological processes hinder our awareness of other people''s suffering, and that the prevention of suffering should often be pursued indirectly. Mayerfeld concludes his discussion by arguing that the reduction of suffering is morally more important than the promotion of happiness, and that most of us greatly uTrade ReviewThe style and structure of the book is commendably straightforward ... many valuable and interesting points may be found in the argument. * Religious Studies *... provocative and insightful ... This book would work well in a graduate ethics course. * Choice *Table of Contents1. Introduction ; 2. The Meaning of Suffering ; 3. The Measurement of Suffering ; 4. The Moral Significance of Suffering ; 5. The Duty to Relieve Suffering ; 6. The Moral Asymmetry of Happiness and Suffering ; 7. Trade-offs Internal to the Duty to Relieve Suffering ; 8. The Limits of the Duty to Relieve Suffering ; Notes ; Bibliography ; Index
£34.19
Oxford University Press Virtue Vice and Value
Book SynopsisWhat are virtue and vice, and how do they relate to other moral properties such as goodness and rightness? Thomas Hurka defends a distinctive perfectionist view according to which the virtues are higher-level intrinsic goods, ones that involve morally appropriate attitudes to other, independent goods and evils. He develops this highly original view in detail and argues for its superiority over rival views, including those given by virtue ethics.Trade Review"This book will be the best book on virtue since Aristotle. It will be to virtue what Sidgwick was to utilitarianism."-Brad Hooker, University of Reading
£69.35
Oxford University Press Kants Impure Ethics
Book SynopsisThis is the first book-length study in any language to examine in detail and critically assess the second part of Kant''s ethics--an empirical, impure part, which determines how best to apply pure principles to the human situation. Drawing attention to Kant''s under-explored impure ethics, this revealing investigation refutes the common and long-standing misperception that Kants ethics advocates empty formalism. Making detailed use of a variety of Kantian texts never before translated into English, author Robert B. Louden reassesses the strengths and weaknesses of Kantian ethics as a whole, once the second part is re-admitted to its rightful place within Kant''s practical philosophy.Trade Review"Anyone interested in investigating the empirical aspects of Kant's ethics will need to consult Louden and Wood. They both present richly detailed portrayals and discuss many themes."--International Philosophical QuarterlyTable of ContentsINTRODUCTION; FIELDS OF IMPURITY; CONCLUSION
£39.42
Oxford University Press The Ethics of Killing
Book SynopsisThis magisterial work is the first comprehensive study of the ethics of killing, where the moral status of the individual killed is uncertain. Drawing on philosophical notions of personal identity and the immorality of killing, McMahan looks carefully at a host of practical issues, including abortion, infanticide, the killing of animals, assisted suicide, and euthanasia.Trade ReviewWith a careful application of metaphysics to ethics, McMahan has developed a field of argument that has been insufficiently explored, and in so doing, created a whole new structure for the debates surrounding abortion and euthanasia. This makes this a novel and, at times, exciting book. * Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *McMahan's book is outstanding within the present literature in virtue of its breadth, succinctness, and argumentative erudition. The two dominant qualities of the book are, first, an extraordinary care for argumentative fairness and balance, and second, a new interest in bringing applied ethics into helpful contact with its so far neglected philosophical foundations. * Deutsche Zeitschrift fur Philosophie *McMahan is one of America's finest contemporary moral theorists...[His] long-awaited book combines a close attention to real-life moral issues with a solid insight into foundational matters of metaphysics and ethical theory. It is always well-argued, sophisticated and very interesting. The Ethics of Killing is an excellent book and deserves close study. I recommend it to anyone who, for professional or existential reasons, is interested in the topics it tackles. And who is not for the latter reasons? * Nordic Journal of Philosophy *An enormously rich contribution to personal identity theory, ethical theory, and applied ethics. [Each of the five hefty chapters] could be a short book of scholarly significance...Chapter 2 presents the most probing investigation of the harm of death of which I am aware. * David DeGrazia, Philosophy and Public Affairs *Publication of this book is a welcome event. McMahan's discussions involve analyses of more alternative views than, I suspect, anyone other than McMahan has ever imagined. The Ethics of Killing is detailed, careful, comprehensive, and innovative. [It] is an example of philosophy at the highest level. It is a genuine pleasure to have the opportunity to read such a probing, careful, analytical, honest, and utterly wonderful book. I recommend it highly. It would not be unreasonable to make it required reading for any graduate student (or anyone else) who needs to understand the nature of first-class philosophical thought. * Ethics *Wide range of issues ... richness in details ... an excellent book and deserves close study. I recommend it to anyone who, for professional or existential reasons, is interested in the topics it tackles. * Kasper Lippert-Rasmussen, University of Copenhagen, Sats: Nordic Journal of Philosopy *McMahan is one of America's finest contemporary moral theorists ... The book is well-argued, sophisticated and very interesting. * Kasper Lippert-Rasmussen, University of Copenhagen, Sats: Nordic Journal of Philosopy *The thoroughness and comprehensiveness with which he [McMahan] has worked out these ideas is deeply impressive. The presentation is throughout so lucid that non-specialists should be able to profit greatly from the book ... There could be no better proof of the vitality of the subject of death and killing than this monumental book. * Ingmar Persson, Times Literary SupplementIngmar Persson, Times Literary Supplement *The Ethics of Killing is applied ethics at its best. From now on, anyone who is serious about getting to the bottom of issues like abortion, infanticide, brain death, euthanasia and the killing of nonhuman animals will have to take account of the novel and ingenious theory presented in Jeff McMahan's lucidly-written, rigorously-argued book. * Peter Singer, Princeton University *McMahan is one of America's finest contemporary moral theorists... always well-argued, sophisticated and very interesting... it is an excellent book and deserves close study. I recommend it to anyone who, for professional or existential reasons, is interested in the topics it tackles. * Kasper Lippert-Rasmussen, Nordic Journal of Philosophy,Vol. 3, No. 2, 2002 *[McMahan's] language is clear and the arguments well presented ... recommended reading for anyone who wants to be informed about the arguments surrounding issues at the margins of life, whether they ultimately agree or disagree with what he has to say. * Bulletin of Medical Ethics *
£52.25
Oxford University Press The Birth of Bioethics
Book SynopsisBioethics represents a dramatic revision of the centuries-old ethics that governed the behaviour of physicians and their relationships with patients. Those ethics were challenged in the years after World War II by remarkable advances in biomedical science and medicine that raised questions about the defintion of death, the use of life-support systems, organ transplantation, and reproductive manipulation. In response, philosophers and theologians, lawyers and social scientists joined with physicians and scientists to rethink and revise the old standards. Governments established commissions to recommend policies. Courts heard arguments and legislatures passed laws. This book is the first broad history of the growing field of bioethics. Covering the period 1947-1987, it examines the origin and evolution of the debates over human experimentation, genetic engineering, organ transplantation, termination of life-sustaining treatment, and new reproductive technologies. It assesses the contributions of philosophy, theology, law and the social sciences to the expanding discourse of bioethics. Written by one of the fields founders, it is based on extensive archival research into resources that are difficult to obtain and on interviews with many leading figures. A very readable account of the development of bioethics, the book stresses the history of ideas but does not neglect the social and cultural context and the people involved.Trade ReviewFrom reviews of the Hardback:Bioethics, Albert Jonsen observes in the introduction to his important, highly personal, and readable book, did not begin with a bang. But what becomes very clear as one reads his recollections of the origins of the field, is that it did not begin with people prone to emit whimpers... Jonsen brings an elephantine memory and a deft pen to telling the story of what happened when the first theologians, philosophers, and physicians found themselves out on these ethical frontiers of medicine without much in the way of intellectual tools to help them. * The Journal of the American Medical Association *In The Birth of Bioethics Jonsen has written an in-depth review of bioethics, including a historical analysis of the field... This material should inform even sophisticated readers... Jonsen's depictions of the pioneers in bioethics whom he knew and worked with are vivid... Jonsen's unique insights, infused by the compassion he obviously feels, recommend this book strongly. * The New England Journal of Medicine *An intensely interesting history that will provoke many critical and constructive responses... it is a singular success. * Medical Humanities Review *... the book rarely fails to be both informative and engaging. It surely must be read by anyone interested in the transformation of traditional medical ethics in the last half of this century into the wide-ranging, multidisciplinary enterprise of Bioethics. * Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy *Jonsen's richly detailed narrative in a valuable vantage point for understanding and welcoming these dialogues. * Bulletin of the History of Medicine *Table of ContentsPART I: BIOETHICAL BEGINNINGS: THE PEOPLE AND PLACES ; 1. Great Issues of Conscience: Medical Ethics before Bioethics ; 2. The Theologians: Rediscovering the Tradition ; 3. The Philosophers: Clarifying the Concepts ; 4. Commissioning Bioethics: The Government in Bioethics, 1974-1983 ; PART II: BIOETHICAL BEGINNINGS: THE PROBLEMS ; 5. Experiments Perilous: The Ethics of Research with Human Subjects ; 6. Splicing Life: Genetics and Ethics ; 7. The Miracle of Modern Medicine: The Ethics of Organ Transplantation and Artificial Organs ; 8. Who Should Live? Who Should Die? The Ethics of Death and Dying ; 9. O Brave New World! The Ethics of Human Reproduction ; PART III: DISCIPLINE, DISCOURSE AND ETHOS ; 10. Bioethics as a Discipline ; 11. Bioethics as a Discourse ; 12. Bioethics - American and Elsewhere
£58.90
Oxford University Press Inc Moral Demands in Nonideal Theory
Book SynopsisIs there a limit to the legitimate demands of morality? In particular, is there a limit to people''s responsibility to promote the well-being of others, either directly or via social institutions? Utilitarianism admits no such limit, and is for that reason often said to be an unacceptably demanding moral and political view. In this original new study, Murphy argues that the charge of excessive demands amounts to little more than an affirmation of the status quo. The real problem with utilitarianism is that it makes unfair demands on people who comply with it in our world of nonideal compliance. Murphy shows that this unfairness does not arise on a collective understanding of our responsibility for others'' well being. Thus, according to Murphy, while there is no general problem to be raised about the extent of moral demands, there is a pressing need to acknowledge the collective nature of the demands of beneficence.Trade Review"Readers will learn much by workings through Murphy's book. It advances discussion on several important topics regarding benificence."--Thaddues Metz, Philosophical Review
£37.52
Oxford University Press Morality
Book SynopsisBernard Gert''s classic work Morality, in which he argues his distinctive and comprehensive moral theory, is now in its sixth edition. Gert argues that morality is an informal system that does not provide answers to every moral question but does always limit the range of morally acceptable options and so explains why some moral questions cannot be resolved. Gert describes the two-step procedure that is used in moral decisions and judgments, and he shows that moral rules cannot be understood independently of the system in which they are embedded. Although his moral theory is sophisticated, it is presented with a clarity that will appeal to undergraduate and graduate students alike, as well as anyone with a general interest in applied ethics. In this new edition, Gert perfects the consistency of his views by presenting his argument in greater detail; he also revises the text in light of a critical book and two symposia dedicated to his theory that have surfaced since the book''s last pu
£45.12
Oxford University Press Inc Burdened Virtues
Book SynopsisLisa Tessman''s Burdened Virtues is a deeply original and provocative work that engages questions central to feminist theory and practice, from the perspective of Aristotelian ethics. Focused primarily on selves who endure and resist oppression, she addresses the ways in which devastating conditions confronted by these selves both limit and burden their moral goodness, and affect their possibilities of flourishing. She describes two different forms of moral trouble prevalent under oppression. The first is that the oppressed self may be morally damaged, prevented from developing or exercising some of the virtues; the second is that the very conditions of oppression require the oppressed to develop a set of virtues that carry a moral cost to those who practice them - traits that Tessman refers to as burdened virtues. These virtues have the unusual feature of being disjoined from their bearer''s own well being. Tessman''s work focuses on issues that have been missed by many feminist moralTrade ReviewThis book is as much a contribution to feminist moral and political thought and theories of oppositional politics as it is to virtue ethics and moral psychology. * Nancy E. Snow, Mind Journal *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Moral Trouble: 1. Regretting the Self One Is: 2. The Damage of Moral Damage: 3. The Ordinary Vices of Domination: 4. Between Indifference and Anguish: 5. The Burden of Political Resistance: 6. Dangerous Loyalties: Conclusion: Eudaimonistic Virtue Ethics under Adversity: Works Cited: Index:
£33.72
Oxford University Press Unprincipled Virtue
Book SynopsisNomy Arpaly rejects the model of rationality used by most ethicists and action theorists. Both observation and psychology indicate that people act rationally without deliberation, and act irrationally with deliberation. By questioning the notion that our own minds are comprehensible to us--and therefore questioning much of the current work of action theorists and ethicists--Arpaly attempts to develop a more realistic conception of moral agency.Trade Review"I felt sure I would like Nomy Arpaly's book when I opened it to the first page and saw John LeCarré's name in the first sentence. I was not disappointed. Arpaly uses an engaging mix of literary examples and rigorous analysis to present and argue for a variety of interesting claims relating to virtue. Arpaly has something novel and interesting to say about autonomy, agency, moral worth, and virtue. This is an excellent book, and one of the best I've read recently."--Julia Driver, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews
£25.17
Oxford University Press The Ethics of Care
Book SynopsisVirginia Held assesses the ethics of care as a promising alternative to the familiar moral theories that serve so inadequately to guide our lives. The ethics of care is only a few decades old, yet it is by now a distinct moral theory or normative approach to the problems we face. It is relevant to global and political matters as well as to the personal relations that can most clearly exemplify care. This book clarifies just what the ethics of care is: what its characteristics are, what it holds, and what it enables us to do. It discusses the feminist roots of this moral approach and why the ethics of care can be a morality with universal appeal. Held examines what we mean by care, and what a caring person is like. Where other moral theories demand impartiality above all, the ethics of care understands the moral import of our ties to our families and groups. It evaluates such ties, focusing on caring relations rather than simply on the virtues of individuals. The book proposes how suchTrade Review"Virginia Held's theory of care is no less substantial than John Rawls' theory of justice. Her probing and engaging analysis of caring values, virtues, actions, and attitudes will become a classic in moral theory."--Rosemarie Tong, The University of North Carolina at CharlotteTable of ContentsPart I Care and Moral Theory 1: The Ethics of Care as a Moral Theory 2: Care as Practice and Value 3: The Caring Person 4: Justice, Utility, and Care 5: Liberalism and the Ethics of Care 6: Caring Relations and Principles of Justice 7: Care and the Extension of Markets 8: Civil Society, Rights, and the Presumption of Care 9: Power, Care and The Reach of Law 10: Care and Justice in the Global Context
£97.38
Oxford University Press Emotional Truth
Book SynopsisThe word truth retains, in common use, traces of origins that link it to trust, troth, and truce, connoting ideas of fidelity, loyalty, and authenticity. The word has become, in contemporary philosophy, encased in a web of technicalities, but we know that a true image is a faithful portrait; a true friend a loyal one. In a novel or a poem, too, we have a feel for what is emotionally true, though we are not concerned with the actuality of events and characters depicted. To have emotions is to care about certain things: we can wonder whether those things are really worth caring about. We can wonder whether our passions reflect who we are, and whether they constitute fitting responses to the vicissitudes of life. So there are two aspects to emotional truth: how well an emotion reflects the threats and promises of the world, and how well it reflects our own individual nature. That is the starting point of this book, which looks first at the analogies and disanalogies between strict propositional truth and a looser, generic sense of truth. As applied to emotions, generic truth is closer to those original meanings: as in a portrait''s fidelity or friend''s loyalty. Taken in this sense, the notion of emotional truth opens up large vistas on areas of life essential to our existence as social beings, and to our concerns with beauty, morality, love, death, sex, knowledge, desire, coherence, and happiness. Each of those topics illustrates some facet of the dominant theme of the book: the crucial but often ambivalent role of our emotions in grounding and yet also sometimes undermining our values. Emotions act, in holistic perspective, as ultimate arbiters of values where different and independently justified standards of value compete.Trade ReviewWhether it is in the discussion of emotions in experiences of art, the way that emotions factor into explaining self-love and self-hate, or their role in relationships of love and friendship, [the author] eschew[s] simple metaphors and offer[s] detailed analysis complete with helpful diagrams and summaries that illustrate a sustained and intimate engagement with these complex and engaging topics.The essays, all written with Sousan flair and trademark themes, range widely over topics in emotion theory. * Robert C. Roberts, Mind *Table of ContentsPART I ; TRUTH, COHERENCE, AND RATIONALITY ; PART II ; PART III ; PART IV
£87.40
Oxford University Press Structures of Agency
Book SynopsisThis is a collection of published and unpublished essays by distinguished philosopher Michael E. Bratman of Stanford University. They revolve around his influential theory, know as the planning theory of intention and agency. Bratman''s primary concern is with what he calls strong forms of human agency--including forms of human agency that are the target of our talk about self-determination, self-government, and autonomy. These essays are unified and cohesive in theme, and will be of interest to philosophers in ethics and metaphysics.
£38.94
Oxford University Press Animal Rights
Book SynopsisExploring the legal and political issues that underlie the campaign for animal rights and the opposition to it, and addressing ethical questions, this book offers perspectives on animal rights and welfare. It shows that whatever one's ultimate conclusions, the relationship between human beings and nonhuman animals is fundamentally rethought.Trade Review"Eloquent essays."--The Atlantic Monthly"...a wide range of thought-provoking responses....an accessible survey of the major ideas in this intellectually challenging debate."--The Federal Lawyer"Our society is in the midst of a major debate over animal rights, our duties, and the legal status of animals. This new compilation of essays has profoundly contributed to this debate.... Animal Rights is an incredible resource introducing readers to the basic issues in animal rights and highlighting directions animal advocates may go..."--Animal Law"This collection of essays provides a fine introduction to a number of difficult and controversial questions. It is particularly strong in its treatment of the philosophical and legal issues that surround animal rights."--Science"These 14 skillfully edited, high quality, and nicely balanced essays present a wide range of legal, political, and ethical perspectives on animal rights, and include some well-arranged sequences of competing arguments.... Recommended."--Choice"An important and thought-provoking work. Sunstein and Nussbaum illuminate issues that have the power to unite or divide those of us who care deeply about animals. By fostering better understanding, their book can help light the pathway to common ground."--Kathryn S. Fuller, President, World Wildlife Fund-US"Happily, the emerging field of animal rights has reached a point mature enough to call for a wide-angle overview of its many facets, with carefully chosen contributions from its founders and most accomplished activists to the writings of its most thought-provoking philosophers. This superbly conceived collection of essays not only meets that need but explores the deepest connections between the protection of non-human species and the frontiers of human rights. Edited with grace by Cass Sunstein and Martha Nussbaum, two leading scholars who contribute their own brilliant chapters to this seminal volume, this is a veritable hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy of animal rights and animal welfare. Anyone genuinely concerned about the creatures who are our kin will have to read this book from cover to cover."--Laurence H. Tribe, Tyler Professor of Constitutional Law, Harvard Law School"An impressive collection: essential reading for anyone interested in the debates over animal rights, and indeed for anyone who cares about how humans treat animals."--George Pitcher, Professor of Philosophy, Emeritus, Princeton University"Edited by a distinguished legal scholar and one of the most important philosophers of our day, this volume offers a remarkably fresh collection of essays exploring our relationship--moral, legal, social, and epistemological--to nonhuman animals. A creative tension emerges from the exchange of competing and often ingenious arguments. Readers will profit from a wealth of empirical data about animals' capacities and existing practices and institutions of animal use. The book is perhaps most distinctive in its examination of animals in relation to the law, several authors providing concrete suggestions for legal reform. Animal Rights: Current Debates and New Directions is an excellent choice for law school and applied ethics courses." --David DeGrazia, author of Taking Animals SeriouslyTable of ContentsPART I: CURRENT DEBATES; PART II: NEW DIRECTIONS
£23.39
Oxford University Press Moral Understandings A Feminist Study in Ethics Studies in Feminist Philosophy
Book SynopsisThis is a revised edition of Walker''s well-known book in feminist ethics first published in 1997. Walker''s book proposes a view of morality and an approach to ethical theory which uses the critical insights of feminism and race theory to rethink the epistemological and moral position of the ethical theorist, and how moral theory is inescapably shaped by culture and history. The main gist of her book is that morality is embodied in practices of responsibility that express our identities, values, and connections to others in socially patterned ways. Thus ethical theory needs to be empirically informed and politically critical to avoid reiterating forms of socially entrenched bias. Responsible ethical theory should reveal and question the moral significance of social differences. The book engages with, and challenges, the work of contemporary analytic philosophers in ethics. This is a revised edition of Walker''s well-known book in feminist ethics first published in 1997. Walker''s book proposes a view of morality and an approach to ethical theory which uses the critical insights of feminism and race theory to rethink the epistemological and moral position of the ethical theorist, and how moral theory is inescapably shaped by culture and history. The main gist of her book is that morality is embodied in practices of responsibility that express our identities, values, and connections to others in socially patterned ways. Thus ethical theory needs to be empirically informed and politically critical to avoid reiterating forms of socially entrenched bias. Responsible ethical theory should reveal and question the moral significance of social differences. The book engages with, and challenges, the work of contemporary analytic philosophers in ethics.Table of ContentsPREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION ; PREFACE THE FIRST EDITION ; PART ONE. THE MIS-EN-SCENE: MORAL PHILOSOPHY NOW ; 1. The Subject of Moral Philosophy, with Postscript, 2007 ; 2. Where Do Moral Theories Come From? Henry Sidgwick and Twentieth Century Ethics ; PART TWO. CLEARER VIEWS: AN EXPRESSIVE-COLLABORATIVE MODEL ; 3. Authority and Transparency; The Examples of Feminist Skepticism ; 4. Charting Responsibilities: From Established Coordinates to Terra Incognita ; PART THREE. SELF- (AND OTHER) PORTRAITS: WHO ARE WE, AND HOW DO WE KNOW? ; 5. Picking Up Pieces: Lives, Stories and Integrity ; 6. Career Selves: Plans, Projects, and Plots in "Whole Life ethics" ; 7. Made A Slave, Born a Woman: Knowing Others' Places ; 8. Unnecessary Identities: Representational Practices and Moral Recognition ; PART FOUR: TESTING SIGHT LINES ; 9. The Politics of Transparency and the Moral Work of Truth ; 10. Peripheral Visions, Critical Practice ; EPILOGUE: SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT MORAL UNDERSTANDINGS ; NOTES ; BIBLIOGRAPHY
£45.12
Oxford University Press The Fundamentals of Ethics
Book SynopsisIn The Fundamentals of Ethics, author Russ Shafer-Landau employs a uniquely engaging writing style to introduce students to the essential ideas of moral philosophy. Offering more comprehensive coverage of the good life, normative ethics, and metaethics than any other text of its kind, this book also addresses issues that are often omitted from other texts.Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ; A Note on the Companion Volume ; A Note to Readers ; INTRODUCTION ; The Lay of the Land ; Ethical Starting Points ; Moral Reasoning ; The Role of Moral Theory ; Looking Ahead ; PART I: THE GOOD LIFE ; 1. Hedonism: Its Powerful Appeal ; Happiness and Intrinsic Value ; The Attractions of Hedonism ; There Are Many Models of a Good Life ; Personal Authority and Well-Being ; Misery Clearly Hampers A Good Life; Happiness Clearly Improves It ; The Limits of Explanation ; Rules of the Good Life-And Their Exceptions ; Happiness is What We Want For Our Loved Ones ; 2. Is Happiness All That Matters? ; The Paradox of Hedonism ; Evil Pleasures ; The Two Worlds ; False Happiness ; The Importance of Autonomy ; Life's Trajectory ; Unhappiness as a Symptom of Harm ; Conclusion ; 3. Getting What You Want ; A Variety of Good Lives ; Personal Authority ; Avoiding Objective Values ; Motivation ; Justifying the Pursuit of Self-Interest ; Knowledge of the Good ; 4. Problems for the Desire Theory ; Getting What You Want May Not be Necessary for Promoting Your Good ; Getting What You Want May Not be Sufficient for Promoting Your Good ; Desires Based on False Beliefs ; Ignorance of Desire Satisfaction ; Disinterested and Other-Regarding Desires ; Passing Fancies ; Disappointment ; Impoverished Desires ; The Paradox of Self-Harm ; The Fallibility of Our Deepest Desires ; Conclusion ; PART II: DOING THE RIGHT THING ; 5. Morality and Religion ; Three Assumptions about Religion and Morality ; God and Moral Motivation ; God as the Creator of Morality ; Religion as a Source of Moral Guidance ; Conclusion ; 6. Natural Law Theory ; The Theory and Its Attractions ; Two Conceptions of Human Nature ; Human Nature is What is Innately Human ; Human Nature is What All Humans Have in Common ; Natural Purposes ; The Argument from Humanity ; Conclusion ; 7. Psychological Egoism ; Egoism and Altruism ; The Argument from Our Strongest Desires ; The Argument from Expected Benefit ; The Argument from the Avoidance of Misery ; Two Egoistic Strategies ; Letting the Evidence Decide ; Conclusion ; 8. Ethical Egoism ; Why Be Moral? ; Two Popular Arguments for Ethical Egoism ; The Best Argument for Ethical Egoism ; Three Problems for Ethical Egoism ; Conclusion ; 9. Consequentialism: Its Nature and Attractions ; The Nature of Consequentialism ; Its Structure ; Maximizing Goodness ; Moral Knowledge ; Actual vs. Expected Results ; Assessing Actions and Intentions ; The Attractions of Utilitarianism ; Impartiality ; The Ability to Justify Conventional Moral Wisdom ; Conflict Resolution ; Moral Flexibility ; The Scope of the Moral Community ; 10. Consequentialism: Its Difficulties ; Measuring Well-Being ; Utilitarianism is Very Demanding With Respect To ; Deliberation ; Motivation ; Action ; Impartiality ; No Intrinsic Wrongness (or Rightness) ; The Problem of Justice ; Potential Solutions to the Problem of Justice ; Rule Consequentialism ; Conclusion ; 11. The Kantian Perspective: Fairness and Justice ; Consistency and Fairness ; The Principle of Universalizability ; Morality and Rationality ; Assessing the Principle of Universalizability ; Integrity ; Kant on Absolute Moral Duties ; 12. The Kantian Perspective: Autonomy and Respect ; The Principle of Humanity ; The Importance of Rationality and Autonomy ; The Good Will and Moral Worth ; Vagueness ; Determining Just Deserts ; Are We Autonomous? ; Moral Luck ; The Scope of the Moral Community ; Conclusion ; 13. The Social Contract Tradition: Theory and Attractions ; The Lure of Proceduralism ; The Background of the Social Contract Theory ; The Prisoner's Dilemma ; Cooperation and the State of Nature ; The Advantages of Contractarianism ; More Advantages: Morality and the Law ; 14. The Social Contract Tradition: Problems and Prospects ; Why Be Moral? ; The Role of Consent ; Disagreement among the Contractors ; The Scope of the Moral Community ; Conclusion ; 15. Ethical Pluralism and Absolute Moral Rules ; The Structure of Moral Theories ; Are There Any Absolute Moral Rules? ; Preventing Catastrophes ; The Doctrine of Double Effect ; Is Moral Absolutism Irrational? ; Moral Conflict and Contradiction ; The Doctrine of Doing and Allowing ; Conclusion ; 16. Ethical Pluralism: Prima Facie Duties and Ethical Particularism ; Ross's Ethic of Prima Facie Duties ; The Attractions of Ross's View ; Knowing the Fundamental Moral Rules ; Knowing the Right Thing To Do ; Ethical Particularism ; Conclusion ; 17. Virtue Ethics ; The Standard of Right Action ; Moral Complexity ; Moral Understanding ; Moral Education ; The Nature of Virtue ; Virtue and the Good Life ; Objections ; Tragic Dilemmas ; Does Virtue Ethics Offer Adequate Moral Guidance? ; Is Virtue Ethics Too Demanding? ; Who Are The Moral Exemplars? ; Conflict and Contradiction ; The Priority Problem ; Conclusion ; 18. The Ethics of Feminism ; The Elements of Feminist Ethics ; Moral Development ; Women's Experience ; The Ethics of Care ; The Importance of Emotions ; Against Unification ; Against Impartiality and Abstraction ; Against Competition ; Downplaying Rights ; Challenges for Feminist Ethics ; PART III: THE STATUS OF MORALITY ; 19. Ethical Relativism ; Moral Skepticism ; Two Kinds of Ethical Relativism ; Some Implications of Ethical Subjectivism and Cultural Relativism ; Moral Infallibility ; Moral Equivalence ; No Intrinsic Value ; Questioning Our Own Commitments ; Moral Progress ; Contradiction and Disagreement ; Ideal Observers ; Conclusion ; 20. Moral Nihilism ; Moral Skepticism ; Expressivism ; Error Theory ; Conclusion ; 21. Ten Arguments against Moral Objectivity ; (1) Objectivity Requires Absolutism ; (2) All Truth is Subjective ; (3) Equal Rights Entail Equal Plausibility ; (4) Moral Objectivity Supports Dogmatism ; (5) Moral Objectivity Supports Intolerance ; (6) Moral Disagreement Undermines Moral Objectivity ; (7) Atheism Undermines Moral Objectivity ; (8) The Absence of Categorical Reasons Undermines Moral Objectivity ; (9) Moral Motivation Undermines Moral Objectivity ; (10) Values Have No Place In A Scientific World ; Conclusion ; References ; Suggestions for Further Reading ; Glossary ; Index
£148.19
Oxford University Press The Variety of Values
Book SynopsisFor over thirty years Susan Wolf has been writing about moral and nonmoral values and the relation between them. This volume collects Wolf''s most important essays on the topics of morality, love, and meaning, ranging from her classic essay Moral Saints to her most recent The Importance of Love.Wolf''s essays warn us against the common tendency to classify values in terms of a dichotomy that contrasts the personal, self-interested, or egoistic with the impersonal, altruistic or moral. On Wolf''s view, this tendency ignores or distorts the significance of such values as love, beauty, and truth, and neglects the importance of meaningfulness as a dimension of the good life. These essays show us how a self-conscious recognition of the variety of values leads to new understandings of the point, the content, and the limits of morality and to new ways of thinking about happiness and well-being.Trade ReviewThe Variety of Values is a valuable contribution to contemporary ethics suitable for both professional philosophers and a more general readership. * Lucas Scripter, The Philosophical Quarterly *Table of Contents1. Introduction ; Part I: Moral and Nonmoral Values ; 2. Moral Saints ; 3. Morality and Partiality ; 4. Morality and the View From Here ; 5. Good-for-Nothings ; Part II: Meaning in Life ; 6. The Meanings of Lives ; 7. Happiness and Meaning: Two Aspects of the Good Life ; 8. Meaning and Morality ; Part III: Love ; 9. One Thought Too Many: Love, Morality, and the Ordering of Commitment ; 10. Loving Attention: Lessons in Love from The Philadelphia Story ; 11. The Importance of Love ; Part IV: The Concept of Duty ; 12. Above and Below the Line of Duty ; 13. The Role of Rules ; 14. Moral Obligations and Social Commands
£61.75
Oxford University Press The Paradise of God
Book SynopsisIt has become a commonplace that Biblical religion bears a heavy share of responsibility for our past negligence towards the environment. In this provocative book, Norman Wirzba argues that the Biblical doctrine of creation actually holds the key to a true understanding of our place in the environment and our responsibility toward it. Wirzba contends that an adequate response to environmental destruction depends on a new formulation of ourselves as part of a larger whole, rather than as radically free individuals. Drawing on the work of biblical scholars, ecologists, agrarians, philosophers, theologians, and cultural critics, Wirzba presents a compelling vision of a new religious environmentalism.
£45.12
Oxford University Press Justice
Trade ReviewMichael Sandel is one of the most popular and influential college professors in America. For more than twenty years, hundreds of students at a time have packed into a Harvard University lecture hall to hear his discourses on justice; and hundreds have streamed out feeling a surprisingly personal connection with their gifted teacher. This book reveals Sandel's secret recipe for enthralling students with timeless questions of law, justice, and morality in a decidedly contemporary context. * Anita L. Allen, Professor of Philosophy and Henry R. Silverman Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania Law School *This thoughtful, stimulating, and convenient collection brings a range of classic moral and political philosophers * from Aristotle to John Stuart Millto bear on a range of contemporary controversies about justice. It invites readers to discover how their views on contemporary questions might be clarified, deepened and challenged by an encounter with enduring debates in moral and political philosophy.Russell Muirhead, Associate Professor, Department of Government, University of Texas at Austin *This outstanding collection successfully blends historical and contemporary thought, on issues of theoretical and practical importance, to illuminate the main problems of justice. It is accessible to undergraduates in philosophy, with breadth and depth enough to engage the experienced philosophical reader hoping to rethink some central debates. * Michele Moody-Adams, Director and Hutchinson Professor of Ethics and Public Life, Cornell University *Table of ContentsI. INTRODUCTION: DOING THE RIGHT THING ; The Queen v. Dudley and Stephens (1884)(The lifeboat case) ; II. UTILITARIANISM ; Principles of Morals and Legistlation ; Utilitiarianism ; III. LIBERTARIANISM ; Free to Choose ; Anarchy, State, and Utopia ; The Constitution of Liberty ; IV. LOCKE: PROPERTY RIGHTS ; Second Treatise of Government ; V. MARKETS AND MORALS: SURROGATE MOTHERHOOD, MILITARY SERVICE ; Tragic Choices ; Battle Cry of Freedom ; "All Go Down Together" ; In the Matter of Baby 'M' (1987) ; In the Matter of Baby 'M' (1988, N.J.Supreme Court) ; "Is Women's Labor a Commodity?" ; VI. KANT: FREEDOM AS AUTONOMY ; Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals ; "On the Supposed Right to Lie" ; VII. RAWLS: JUSTICE AS FAIRNESS ; A Theory of Justice ; VIII. DISTRIBUTIVE JUSTICE: EQUALITY, ENTITLEMENT, AND MERIT ; A Theory of Justice ; Anarchy, State, and Utopia ; IX. AFFIRMATIVE ACTION: REVERSE DISCRIMINATION? ; "Racial Discrimination or Righting Past Wrongs?" ; Hopwood v. State of Texas (1996) ; Grutter v. Bollinger (2003) ; "Bakke's Case: Are Quotas Unfair?" ; "Double Reverse Discrimination" ; "Proxy War: Liberals Denounce Racial Profiling. Conservatives Denounce Affirmative Action. What's the Difference?" ; X. ARISTOTLE: JUSTICE AND VIRTUE ; The Politics ; Nichomachean Ethics ; XI. ABILITY, DISABILITY, AND DISCRIMINATION: CHEERLEADERS AND GOLF CARTS ; "A Safety Blitz; Texas Cheerleader Loses Status" ; "Honor and Resentment" ; "Sorry, Free Rides Not Right" ; "Keep the PGA on Foot" ; PGA Tour, Inc. v. Martin (2000) ; XII. JUSTICE, COMMUNITY, AND MEMBERSHIP ; After Virtue ; Democracy's Discontent ; Spheres of Justice ; XIII. MORAL ARGUMENT AND LIBERAL TOLERATION ; Moral Liberalism ; "Political Liberalism" ; XV. MORALITY AND LAW: SAME-SEX MARRIAGE, FOR AND AGAINST ; Goodridge v. Dept. of Public Health (2003) ; "Abolish Marriage" ; "Law, Morality, and 'Sexual Orientation'" ; "Homosexuality and the Conservative Mind" ; "Universalism, Liberal Theory, and the Problem of Gay Marriage"
£37.04
Oxford University Press My Way
Book SynopsisThis is a selection of essays on moral responsibility that represent the major components of John Martin Fischer''s overall approach to freedom of the will and moral responsibility. The collection exhibits the overall structure of Fischer''s view and shows how the various elements fit together to form a comprehensive framework for analyzing free will and moral responsibility. The topics include deliberation and practical reasoning, freedom of the will, freedom of action, various notions of control, and moral accountability. The essays seek to provide a foundation for our practices of holding each other (and ourselves) morally and legally accountable for our behavior. A crucial move is the distinction between two kinds of control. According to Fischer, regulative control involves freedom to choose and do otherwise (alternative possibilities), whereas guidance control does not. Fischer contends that guidance control is all the freedom we need to be morally responsible agents. Further, heTrade ReviewThe essays in this volume, together with Fischer's other pieces, have played a major role in shaping the contemporary debate in the metaphysics of free will...one can ill afford to ignore the wealth of wisdom in the story of responsibility that Fischer carefully crafts. * Ishtiyaque Haji Ethical Perspectives *Whether or not one ultimately agrees with the relevant positions that Fischer defends, one can ill afford to ignore the wealth of wisdom in the story of responsibility that Fischer carefully crafts * Ishtiyaque Haji, Ethical Perspectives *Table of Contents1: Introduction: A Framework for Moral Responsibility 2: Responsibility and Alternative Possibilities 3: Responsiveness and Moral Responsibility 4: Responsibility for Omissions (with Mark Ravizza) 5: Responsibility and Self-Expression 6: Frankfurt-Style Compatibilism 7: Responsibility and Agent-Causation 8: The Transfer of Nonresponsibility 9: Transfer Principles and Moral Responsibility (with Eleanore Stump)
£28.49
Oxford University Press, USA The Human Use of Animals Case Studies in Ethical Choice
Book SynopsisThe Human Use of Animals presents case studies that look at the practical and ethical issues arising from the human use of animals. The case studies report the facts about some of the most compelling and difficult issues that confront society today in the human use of animals. Each case study combines the facts of the case with analysis of ethical issues.Table of ContentsPART I. INTRODUCTION; PART II. FARM ANIMALS; PART III. ANIMALS FOR ENTERTAINMENT; PART IV. COMPANION ANIMALS; PART V. RELIGIOUS USES OF ANIMALS; PART VI. ENDANGERED SPECIES; PART VII. BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH AND COSMETIC TESTING; PART VIII. BEHAVIORAL RESEARCH; PART IX. WILDLIFE RESEARCH; PART X. EDUCATIONAL USES OF ANIMALS
£48.99
Oxford University Press Moral Skepticisms
Book SynopsisSinnott-Armstrong here provides an extensive survey of the difficult subject of moral beliefs. He covers theories that grapple with questions of morality such as naturalism, normativism, intuitionism, and coherentism. He then defends his own theory that he calls moderate moral skepticism, which is that moral beliefs can be justified, but not extremely justified.Trade ReviewSinnott-Armstrong's aim is to determine whether, how, and to what extent our moral beliefs can be justified. His discussion of these issues is remarkably clear, thorough, and solid... Given its philosophical rigor and insight and the import of the issues it deals with, I highly recommend this book not solely to those interested in moral epistemology but to anyone concerned with epistemology in general. * Diego E. Muchuca, Philosophy in Review *Table of ContentsPART I: ISSUES; PART II: THEORIES
£28.02
Oxford University Press, USA The Moral Skeptic Studies In Feminist Philosophy Studies in Feminist Philosophy Series
Book SynopsisThis book challenges assumptions that philosophers traditionally have made in setting out the demands of the skeptic who asks, "Why be moral?" It aims to show the ways in which philosophers should broaden, narrow, and otherwise fine-tune the skeptic's position so that a defeat of skepticism is complete.Trade ReviewAnita Superson's The Moral Skeptic is an impressive book in many ways. It covers a great number of important topics in contemporary ethics in a thorough way and from a novel feminist perspective.... Superson manages to cover all this ground with expertise and also weave an interesting narrative thread through the whole book.... Superson's book is clearly written and well structured. * Jussi Suikkanen, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ; Preface ; 1. Introduction ; 2. The Self-Interest Based Contractarian Response to the Skeptic ; 3. A Feminist Ethics Response to the Skeptic ; 4. Deformed Desires ; 5. Self-Interest Versus Morality ; 6. The Amoralist ; 7. The Motive Skeptic ; 8. The Interdependency Thesis
£26.12
Oxford University Press Inc The Six Perfections
a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.
£37.04
Oxford University Press, USA Desire Practical Reason and the Good
Book SynopsisMost philosophers working in moral psychology and practical reason think that either the notion of good or the notion of desire have central roles to play in our understanding of intentional explanations and practical reasoning. However, philosophers disagree sharply over how we are supposed to understand the notions of desire and good, how these notions relate, and whether both play a significant and independent role in practical reason. In particular, the Guise of the Good thesis - the view that desire (or perhaps intention, or intentional action) always aims at the good - has received renewed attention in the last twenty years. Can one have desire for things that the desirer does not perceive to be good in any, or form intentions to act in way that one does not deem to be good? Does the notion of good play any essential role in an account of deliberation or practical reason? Moreover, philosophers also disagree about the relevant notion of good. Is it a purely formal notion, or doesTrade ReviewThe nine papers are impressive by their elaborate analysis. They are stimulating insofar as taken together they present a broad range of approaches to the topic, and the arguments are developed in a detailed way. * Robert Zaborowski, Bryn Mawr Classical Review *Table of Contents1. Sergio Tenenbaum (University of Toronto), Introduction ; 2. Matt Evans (New York University), A Partisan Guide to Socratic Intellectualism. ; 3. Rachel Barney (University of Toronto), Plato on the Desire for the Good. ; 4. Jessica Moss (University of Oxford), Aristotle's non-trivial, non-insane view that everyone always desires things under the guise of the good. ; 5. Kieran Setiya (University of Pittsburgh), Sympathy for the Devil. ; 6. Joseph Raz (University of Oxford), The Guise of the Good ; 7. Sebastian Rodl (University of Basel), The Form of the Will ; 8. Matthew Boyle and Doug Lavin (Harvard University), Goodness and Desire. ; 9. Sergio Tenenbaum (University of Toronto), Good and Good For. ; 10. Phil Clark (University of Toronto), Aspects, Guises, Species, and Knowing Something to be Good.
£87.40
Oxford University Press Buddhist Warfare
Book SynopsisBuddhism has played a significant role in the current global rise in religious nationalism and violence, but the violent aspects of Buddhist tradition have been neglected in the outpouring of academic analyses and case studies of this disturbing trend. This book offers eight essays examining the dark side of a tradition often regarded as the religion of peace. The authors note the conflict between the Buddhist norms of non-violence and the prohibition of the killing of sentient beings and acts of state violence supported by the Buddhist community (sangha), acts of civil violence in which monks participate, and Buddhist intersectarian violence. They consider contemporary and historical cases of Buddhist warfare from a wide range of traditions - Tibetan, Mongolian, Japanese, Chinese, Sri Lankan, and Thai - critically examining both Buddhist textual sources justifying violence and Buddhist actors currently engaged in violence. They draw not only on archival material but interviews with thTrade ReviewThe book...presents a uniquely Buddhist "heart of darkness" * Katherine Wharton, Times Literary Supplement *Table of Contents1. Buddhism and War ; 2. Making Merit through Warfare ; 3. Sacralized Warfare: The Fifth Dalai Lama and the Discourse of Religious Violence ; 4. Corporal Punishment during Mongolia's Theocratic Period ; 5. A Buddhological Critique of 'Soldier Zen' in Wartime Japan ; 6. Buddhist Monks in China during the Korean War ; 7. Sermons to Soldiers in the Sri Lankan Army ; 8. Militarizing Buddhism: Violence in Southern Thailand ; Concluding Remarks: Afterthoughts
£38.47
Oxford University Press Climate Ethics Essential Readings Essential Readings Essential Readings
Book SynopsisThis collection gathers a set of seminal papers from the emerging area of ethics and climate change. Topics covered include human rights, international justice, intergenerational ethics, individual responsibility, climate economics, and the ethics of geoengineering. Climate Ethics is intended to serve as a source book for general reference, and for university courses that include a focus on the human dimensions of climate change. It should be of broad interest to all those concerned with global justice, environmental science and policy, and the future of humanity.Table of ContentsNOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS; ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS; PREFACE; A. OVERVIEW; B. THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM; C: GLOBAL JUSTICE AND FUTURE GENERATIONS; D: POLICY RESPONSES TO CLIMATE CHANGE; E. INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY; REFERENCES; INDEX
£49.40
British Academy Henry Sidgwick
a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.
£103.86
British Academy Free Will and Modern Science
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£34.89
Oxford University Press Morality Competition and the Firm
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£33.72
Oxford University Press The Birth of Ethics
Book SynopsisImagine a human society, perhaps in pre-history, in which people were generally of a psychological kind with us, had the use of natural language to communicate with one another, but did not have any properly moral concepts in which to exhort one another to meet certain standards and to lodge related claims and complaints. According to The Birth of Ethics, the members of that society would have faced a set of pressures, and made a series of adjustments in response, sufficient to put them within reach of ethical concepts. Without any planning, they would have more or less inevitably evolved a way of using such concepts to articulate desirable patterns of behavior and to hold themselves and one another responsible to those standards. Sooner or later, they would have entered ethical space. While this central claim is developed as a thesis in conjectural history or genealogy, the aim of the exercise is philosophical. Assuming that it explains the emergence of concepts and practices that areTrade ReviewThe Birth of Ethics is a magesterial contribution to the study of language and morality. * Alex Miller, International Journal of Philosophical Studies *The Bith of Ethics is a remarkably ambitious and innovative work by one of Australia's most eminent philosophers...: The ultimate success of a book that seeks to change the methods of moral philosophy can only be judged many years after publication. The Birth of Ethics aims to clear a tenable path that leads away from moral scepticism, and for that reason, I believe, it deserves attention. * David Neil, Australian Book Review *Pettit contends that morality is essential for human self-realization as persons. In this regard, his own speculation about the genealogy of morals is markedly different from a long line of philosophical speculations about the origin or morals traceable to Plato and routed through standard relativistic and conventionalist theories ... Recommended. * C. S. Johnson, CHOICE *A very interesting, stimulating and thought-provoking account of the possible origins of morality. * Harry Witzthum, Metapsychology *The book is conceptually rich. Any moral philosopher will find much to ponder here ... Pettit is here trying out a novel, multifaceted, and systematic approach to ethics, from which moral philosophers, whether or not they are ultimately persuaded, will have much to learn. * David Phillips, Notre Dame Philosophical Review *Table of ContentsEditor's Introduction: The View from Erewhon Kinch Hoekstra Introduction: The Guiding Ideas Chapter 1. Reconstructing Morality Chapter 2. Ground Zero Chapter 3. Committing to Others Chapter 4. Committing with Others Chapter 5. Discovering Desirability Chapter 6. Discovering Responsibility Chapter 7. Morality Reconstructed Conclusion: The Claims in Summary Michael Tomasello and Philip Pettit: An Exchange Michael Tomasello & Philip Pettit Commentary on Philip Pettit's The Birth of Ethics Michael Tomasello Reply to Michael Tomasello's Commentary Philip Pettit References Index
£22.79
Oxford University Press Liberalism and Distributive Justice
Book SynopsisSamuel Freeman is a leading political philosopher and one of the foremost authorities on the works of John Rawls. Liberalism and Distributive Justice offers a series of Freeman''s essays in contemporary political philosophy on three different forms of liberalism--classical liberalism, libertarianism, and the high liberal tradition--and their relation to capitalism, the welfare state, and economic justice.Trade ReviewThis is an excellent book that advances our understanding of the liberal project in general and the Rawlsian liberal project in particular. It will be of great benefit to anyone interested in liberalism, justice, and the political philosophy of John Rawls. * Collis Tahzib, The University of Southern California, Ethics *[These] essays are of admirable clarity, arguing for their positions in meticulous detail. For those interested in a comprehensive overview of Freeman's understanding of Rawlsian justice, the collection is likely to be an extremely valuable resource, not least for teaching. * Lisa Herzog, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *The papers in Liberalism and Distributive Justice usually begin from an interpretative question about Rawls; but that is rarely where they end up. The core of the book takes forward the Rawlsian project by seriously engaging with its aim: the development of a realistically utopian private property system that is not capitalist...Given the extent of the secondary literature on Rawls the comparative neglect of this topic has been surprising. * Alan Thomas, Philosophy and Public Issues *Sam Freeman makes a novel argument for property-owning democracy over welfare-state capitalism...which is a proposed friendly amendment to Rawls's conception of fair equality of opportunity * William Edmundson, Philosophy and Public Issues *Samuel Freeman's Liberalism and Distributive Justice addresses and corrects a number of confusions that have characterized accounts of Rawlsian justice and provides the foundations for a clear understanding of the logic underlying justice as fairness. * Alexander Kaufman, Philosophy and Public Issues *Table of ContentsAbbreviations Introduction Part I: Liberalism, Libertarianism, and Economic Justice 1. Capitalism in the Classical and High Liberal Traditions 2. Illiberal Libertarians: Why Libertarianism is not a Liberal View Part II: Distributive Justice and the Difference Principle 3. Rawls on Distributive Justice and the Difference Principle 4. Property-Owning Democracy and the Difference Principle 5. Private Law and Rawls's Principles of Justice Part III: Liberal Institutions and Distributive Justice 6. The Social and Institutional Bases of Distributive Justice 7. The Basic Structure of Society as The Primary Subject of Justice 8. Ideal Theory and the Justice of Institutions 9. Constructivism, Facts, and Moral Justification References Index
£24.99
Oxford University Press The Collected Works of Jeremy Bentham An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation
Book SynopsisOne of the earliest and best-known of Bentham's works, the Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation sets out a profound and innovative philosophical argument. This definitive edition includes both the late H. L. A. Hart's classic essay on the work and a new introduction by F. Rosen.Trade ReviewDr Schofield's editorial work is exemplary, and greatly assists the reader. The editor's labours and scholarship are much to our profit. These writings add significantly to our knowledge of Bentham ... the paperback reissue of the definitive text of the Collected Works edition is very welcome. * Peter Nicholson, University of York, Political Studies, Vol. 45, No. 1, March '97 *
£91.20
Oxford University Press The Rights of War and Peace
Book SynopsisThe Rights of War and Peace is the first fully historical account of the formative period of modern theories of international law. It sets the scene with an extensive history of the theory of international relations from antiquity down to the seventeenth century. Professor Tuck then examines the arguments over the moral basis for war and international aggression, and links the debates to the writings of the great political theorists such as Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and Kant. This is not only an account of international law: as Professor Tuck shows, ideas about inter-state relations were central to the formation of modern liberal political theory, for the best example of the kind of agent which liberalism presupposes was provided by the modern state. As a result, the book illuminates the presuppositions behind much current political theory, and puts into a new perspective the connection between liberalism and imperialism.Trade ReviewIn often dazzling displays of how to combine theoretical acumen and historical scholarship, Tuck has vastly enriched our understanding of his subjects * Mind *Fascinating new book ... Tuck's thesis, argued with great historical erudition and philosophical subtlety, is persuasive ... a rich and stimulating book * Bhikhu Parekh, Times Literary Supplement *Recommended for anyone interested in the history of international law * Choice *Table of ContentsPreface ; Introduction ; 1. Humanism ; 2. Scholasticism ; 3. Hugo Grotius ; 4. Thomas Hobbes ; 5. Samuel Pufendorf ; 6. From Locke to Vattel ; 7. Rousseau and Kant ; Conclusion ; Index
£107.50
Clarendon Press A System of Social Science Papers Relating to Adam Smith
Book SynopsisThis edition of Andrew Skinner's essays has been updated to take account of his latest thinking on Adam Smith's system of social and moral science and his experience of teaching Smith to a student audience.
£275.00
Clarendon Press Willing and Nothingness Schopenhauer as Nietzsches Educator
Book SynopsisThis text illuminates Nietzsche's philosophy by examining his relationship with Schopenhauer. The eight essays examine Nietzsche's changing conceptions in response to the work of the thinker he called his "great teacher". Also provided is a critical piece Nietzsche wrote about Schopenhauer in 1868.Trade Review...this book teaches us that there is still much more to discover about Nietzsche...and provides new perspectives on his work. * Ruth Abbey, New Nietzsche Studies *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; 1. Schopenhauer as Nietzsche's Educator ; 2. On Knowledge, Truth, and Value: Nietzsche's Debt to Schopenhauer and the Development of his Empiricism ; 3. Schopenhauer and Nietzsche on the Redemption of Life through Art ; 4. Nietzsche's Use and Abuse of Schopenhauer's Moral Philosophy for Life ; 5. Schopenhauer and Nietzsche: Temperament and Temporality ; 6. Schopenhauer and Nietzsche: Honest Atheism, Dishonest Pessimism ; 7. Self and Morality in Schopenhauer and Nietzsche ; 8. The Paradox of Fatalism and Self-Creation in Nietzsche ; Appendix 1: Friedrich Nietzsche 'On Schopenhauer' ; Appendix 2: Nietzsche's References to Schopenhauer ; Notes on the Contributors ; Bibliography ; Index
£147.50
Clarendon Press Epistemic Injustice
Book SynopsisIn this exploration of new territory between ethics and epistemology, Miranda Fricker argues that there is a distinctively epistemic type of injustice, in which someone is wronged specifically in their capacity as a knower. Justice is one of the oldest and most central themes in philosophy, but in order to reveal the ethical dimension of our epistemic practices the focus must shift to injustice. Fricker adjusts the philosophical lens so that we see through to the negative space that is epistemic injustice. The book explores two different types of epistemic injustice, each driven by a form of prejudice, and from this exploration comes a positive account of two corrective ethical-intellectual virtues. The characterization of these phenomena casts light on many issues, such as social power, prejudice, virtue, and the genealogy of knowledge, and it proposes a virtue epistemological account of testimony. In this ground-breaking book, the entanglements of reason and social power are traced iTrade Reviewan exciting examination of a widespread problem that is rarely discussed in such terms so that it can be understood and communicated, and perhaps, someday, solved * Feminist Review *An original and stimulating contribution to contemporary epistemology... There is much to admire in Fricker's book. It is clear, well-written and well-structured. The explanations and arguments are rigorous without being overly technical, and the illustrations are interesting and felicitous. In particular, the book constitutes a striking example of how contemporary epistemology can be enriched by a close attention to our experiences, and of how our understanding of epistemic matters can be deepened through the deployment of ideas from ethics, plitical theory and feminist philosophy. As a result, Epistemic Injustice makes a significant contribution, not just to epistemology, but to all of the disciplines * Michael Brady, Analysis Reviews *Compelling and gracefully argued book. * Karyn L. Freedman, Times Higher Education *Fricker's Epistemic Injustice constitutes a systematic attempt to explicate epistemic injustice, articulate the harm it inevitably causes, and expound its remedy. In these goals, Fricker is largely successful. In an often gripping manner, Fricker cuts across philosophical subdisciplines in order to expose some of the more sinister aspects of our epistemic practices. For anyone interested in ethics, epostemology, or social and political philosophy, this is surely a must-read. * Francesco Pupa, Metaphilosophy *Miranda Fricker's excellent monograph occupies some relatively uncharted philosophical territory, being 'neither straightforwardly a work of ethics nor straightforwardly a work of epistemology', but instead seeking to '[renegotiate] a stretch of the border between these two regions'...her discussion is outstandingly lucid and persuasive...the book is an admirable reminder of what can be accomplished in under two hundred pages of crisp yet free-flowing philosophical prose. It deserves, and will surely command, widespread attention. * Sabina Lovibond, Philosophy *...excellent snd well argued book...This is an important and timely book, argued with care and illustrated with detailed and compelling examples...this is an exemplary discussion of the intersection of knowledge and power. * Kathleen Lennon The Philosophical Quarterly *This is a wonderful book not just for social or feminist epistemologists, but for the discipline as a whole. Fricker succeeds admirably in achieving her main goal of offering a detailed and wide-ranging ethical and epistemological analysis of testimonial injustice...Moreover, the book is beautifully written... * Martin Kusch MIND *bold and well-argued... [a] rich and elegantly written study... Anyone whose philosophical interest in the concept of knowledge extends beyond merely definitional issues, and addresses its ethical and political dimensions as well as it s genealogy, can ill afford to ignore this book * Axel Gelfert, Times Literary Supplement *In this elegantly crafted book, Miranda Fricker's timely project of "looking at the negative space that is epistemic injustice" (viii) comes to fruition...this is a path-breaking study. With this book Miranda Fricker has opened space for the new meanings the "more squarely political" analysis will require. Her readers will look forward to the next phase of this creative, vitally important project. * Lorraine Code, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *In this elegant and ground-breaking work, Fricker names the phenomenon of epistemic injustice, and distinguishes two central forms of it, with their two corresponding remedies. As the title conveys, Fricker is working in the newly fertile borderland between theories of value and of knowledge. We are social creatures-something that tends to be forgotten by traditional analytic epistemology. We are also knowers-something that tends to be forgotten by power-obsessed postmodern theorizing. Fricker steers a careful passage between the Scylla of the one and the Charybdis of the other... The book is not only a wonderful, ambitious attempt to bring ethics and epistemology together in a way that has rarely been done before, it is also a beautiful, and powerful, attempt to name something that matters. What progress, to be able to name the enemy, be it sexual harassment or epistemic injustice! * Rae Langton, Hypatia *Table of ContentsPreface ; Introduction ; 1. Testimonial Injustice ; 2. Prejudice In The Credibility Economy ; 3. Towards A Virtue Epistemological Account of Testimony ; 4. The Virtue of Testimonial Justice ; 5. The Genealogy of Testimonial Justice ; 6. Original Significances: The Wrong Revisited ; 7. Hermeneutical Injustice ; Conclusion ; Index
£92.25
Clarendon Press Welfare Happiness and Ethics
Book SynopsisMoral philosophers agree that welfare matters. But they do not agree about what it is, or how much it matters. Wayne Sumner presents an original theory of welfare, investigating its nature and discussing its importance. He considers and rejects all notable rival theories, both objective and subjective, including hedonism and theories founded on desire or preference. His own theory connects welfare closely with happiness or life satisfaction. Professor Sumner then proceeds to defend welfarism, that is, to argue (against the value pluralism that currently dominates moral philosophy) that welfare is the only basic ethical value, the only thing which we have a moral reason to promote for its own sake. He concludes by discussing the implications of this thesis for ethical and political theory.Trade ReviewVery helpful footnotes and an extensive bibliography. Upper-division undergraduate and graduate students and faculty in philosophy will find this volume of special interest. * Choice *Undismayed by the damage that economists and politicians in different ways have done to the term 'welfare', Sumner offers a carefully developed systematic argument for restoring the term to a better use ... This argument moves on from stage to stage to few visible slips. At every stage it is illuminating. At every stage it keeps up enough suspense to impel readers to go on to see how the next stage will work out. This will be true even for readers thoroughly familiar with the topics and the texts that Sumner takes up. Sumner has something new and penetrating to say about all of them. Thus overall it is a very accomplished book. * David Braybrooke, Philosophy in Review *The book is extremely well-written and argued, and the discussion of competing views (e.g., hedonism, desire theory, perfectionism) is very insightful. Most importantly, Sumner's theory of welfare breaks important new ground, and is sure to become one of the leading theories. Ignore this book at your peril. * Peter Vallentyne, Economics and Philosophy *a clear, careful and well-crafted investigation into major theories of welfare * Bruce Brower, University of Tulane, The Philosophical Review, vol 107, no 2, April 1998 *Table of Contents1. THE CONCEPT OF WELFARE; 2. WELFARE AND SUBJECTIVITY; 3. OBJECTIVE THEORIES; 4. HEDONISM; 5. THE DESIRE THEORY; 6. WELFARE AND HAPPINESS; 7. WELFARISM; BIBLIOGRAPHY; INDEX.
£55.10
Clarendon Press The Limits of Morality
Book SynopsisMost of us believe that there are limits to the sacrifices that morality can demand of us. We also think that certain types of acts are simply forbidden, even when necessary for promoting the overall good. Here Kagan argues that attempts to defend these sorts of moral limit are inadequate. In thus rejecting two of the most fundamental features of commonsense morality, the book offers a sustained attack on our ordinary moral views.Trade Review`this is an important book International Studies in Philosophy Vol XXX/I 1993`Kagan writes with exemplary clarity and shows considerable ingenuity in arguing for his massively counterintuitive and really rather sinister thesis.' Times Higher Education Supplement`The two points to stress about this book are: it is full of arguments that are themselves formidable. And it gives proper attention to pivotal but largely neglected issues.' MindTable of ContentsAgainst ordinary morality; the structure of ordinary morality; doing harm; intending harm; withou constraints; avoiding the appeal; the appeal to cost; the negative argument; the positive argument; extraordinary morality.
£46.54