Moral Value and Human Diversity

This short and accessible book is designed for those learning about the search for ethical rules that can apply despite cultural differences. Robert Audi looks at several such attempts: Aristotle, Kant; Mill; and the movement known as "common-sense" ethics associated with W.D. Ross. He shows how each attempt grew out of its own time and place, yet has some universal qualities that can be used for an ethical framework. This is a short, accessible treatment of a major topic in ethics by a senior and highly-respected figure.

Can the moral fragmentation so prominent in the contemporary world be overcome? Are there ethical standards that deserve everyone's allegiance? Can judgments of value transcend taste and cultural preference? Moral Value and Human Diversity offers a brief but highly comprehensive introduction to ethics and value theory that argues for positive answers in a pluralistic framework.

Robert Audi is David E. Gallo Chair in Ethics and Professor of Philosophy at the University of Notre Dame. He is an internationally distinguished contributor to ethics, theory of knowledge, philosophy of action, and philosophy of religion. He has published numerous books and papers in these fields and lectures widely in these areas and, more recently, in business ethics. He is a past president of the American Philosophical Association.