Rational Commitment and Social Justice: Essays for Gregory Kavka

by Edited by Jules L. Coleman , Christopher W. Morris

• ISBN13: 9780521042024
• ISBN10: 052104202X
• Edition: Revised
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-09-24
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

Gregory S. Kavka (1947-1994) was a prominent and influential figure in contemporary moral and political philosophy. The essays in this volume are concerned with fundamental issues of rational commitment and social justice to which Kavka devoted his work as a philosopher. The essays take Kavka's work as a point of departure and seek to advance the respective debates. The topics include: the relationship between intention and moral action as part of which Kavka's famous 'toxin puzzle' is a focus of discussion, the nature of deterrence, the rationality of morals, contractarian ethics, and the contemporary relevance of Hobbes' political thought. Incorporating important philosophical statements of problems and fresh contributions to the ongoing debate about rational intention this volume will interest not just philosophers but also political scientists and economists.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

List of contributors

Introduction: the moral and political philosophy of Gregory

Some personal memories

The shadow of the future Brian Skyrms

A new paradox of deterrence

Rethinking the toxin puzzle

Toxin, temptation, and the stability of intention

The toxin puzzle

Religion and morality in

Contemporary uses of Hobbes- political philosophy

The knavish humean

Some considerations in favour of contractualism

Justice, reasons and moral standing

Wrongful life: paradoxes in the morality of causing people to exist

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