Philosophical Ethics: An Historical and Contemporary Introduction

Philosophical Ethics introduces students to ethics from a distinctively philosophical perspective, one that weaves together central ethical questions such as “What has value?” and “What are our moral obligations?” with fundamental philosophical issues such as “What is value?” and “What can a moral obligation consist in?” Throughout, the reader is invited to do—rather than just read about—philosophical ethics and, in doing so, to think through questions that face all thoughtful human beings. Themes include the nature of value and moral obligation, freedom and choice, human flourishing, excellence and merit, radical critiques of morality, and the importance of relationships for human life.

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An introduction to ethics from a philosophical perspective. After background, Part II examines metaethics, with chapters on areas such as naturalism, theological voluntarism, and rational intuitionism. Part III examines the ideas of Hobbes, Mill, and Kant, and Part IV, on philosophical ethics without morality, discusses the work of Nietzsche and Aristotle, with a final chapter on ethics of care. For use in undergraduate courses in ethics. A prior course in philosophy is ideal but not essential. Paper edition (unseen), $20.00. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

Stephen Darwall is professor of philosophy at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor and is the author of Impartial Reason and The British Moralists and the Internal “Ought”: 1640–1740.