Description
Book SynopsisContemporary Debates in Moral Theory features pairs of newly commissioned essays by some of the leading theorists working in the field today.
Trade Review"...Dreier and his contributors are to be warmly commended for a high-quality volume which will be useful both to students and to those hoping to find fresh perspectives on some of the leading controversies in contemporary ethics and meta-ethics."
Sarah Stroud, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews "Dreier has selected a terrific line-up of first-rate philosophers, and has added to their lucid and enjoyable pieces an excellent introduction of his own. The contributors not only summarize the current scholarly state of play, but often advance the discussion in novel and exciting ways." Russ Shafer-Landau, University of Wisconsin
"Dreier's collection shows excellent judgment both in his choice of topics and authors. These essays clearly illustrate the fundamental issues in some vital debates in ethics, while displaying where important disputes remain." Daniel Jacobson, Bowling Green State University
Table of ContentsNotes on Contributors vii
Introduction x
James Dreier
Part I Normative Theory 1
Is the Rightness of Action Determined by the Value of Consequences? 3
1 The Consequentialist Perspective 5
William Shaw
2 Against Maximizing Act Consequentialism 21
Peter Vallentyne
3 Reasons Without Demands: Rethinking Rightness 38
Alastair Norcross
Can Contract Theory Ground Morality? 55
4 Moral Contractarianism as a Foundation for Interpersonal Morality 57
Samuel Freeman
5 Can Contract Theory Ground Morality? 77
Philip Pettit
Are the Virtues the Proper Starting Point for Ethical Theory? 97
6 Are Virtues the Proper Starting Point for Morality? 99
Rosalind Hursthouse
7 Virtue Theory Julia Driver 113
Part II Reason And Motivation 125
Are Moral Requirements Derived from Reason? 127
8 Reason, Sentiment, and Categorical Imperatives 129
Samuel J. Kerstein
9 Must We Weep for Sentimentalism? 144
Simon Blackburn
Is Motivation Internal to Moral Judgment? 161
10 How Do Moral Judgments Motivate? 163
Sigrún Svavarsdóttir
11 Moral Motivation 182
R. Jay Wallace
Part III Moral Facts And Explanations 197
Is Morality Fully Factual? 199
12 Moral Factualism 201
Peter Railton
13 Morality Without Moral Facts 220
Terry Horgan and Mark Timmons
Do Moral Facts and Properties Explain Anything? 239
14 Moral Explanations Defended 241
Nicholas L. Sturgeon
15 Moral Epistemology and the Because Constraint 263
Nick Zangwill
Are There General Moral Principles? 283
16 Ethical Generality and Moral Judgment 285
Robert Audi
17 Defending Moral Particularism 305
Mark Norris Lance and Margaret Olivia Little
Index of Subjects 323
Index of Names 330
