Living Ethics An Introduction with Readings

by Shafer-Landau, Russ

• ISBN13: 9780190272197
• ISBN10: 0190272198
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2018-06-29
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Living Ethics: An Introduction with Readings is an ideal all-in-one resource for courses in introduction to ethics and contemporary moral problems. In this hybrid textbook/reader, Russ Shafer-Landau brings moral theory and contemporary moral issues to life with a comprehensive and balanced set of readings, uniquely engaging explanations, and clear analysis of arguments.

The book balances coverage of moral reasoning (in Part 1) with highly relevant contemporary moral problems (in Part 2).

Part 2 also features a rich collection of pedagogical tools to help students understand and think critically about the various contemporary moral issues discussed:

* Just the Facts: Provides students with relevant factual material, offering necessary background for the book's ethical investigations

* Argument Analysis: Reconstructs and critically assesses a battery of arguments on the topics of the chapter

* Essential Concepts: Key terms that are placed in bold on first mention in the text (also available in the glossary)

* Stat Shots: Visual presentations of quantitative data provide additional context for the chapter's subject matter

* Cases for Critical Thinking: Often taken from headlines, these exercises are designed to invite deeper reflection on issues related to the chapter topic

Author Biography

Russ Shafer-Landau is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is the author, editor, or coeditor of several books including The Fundamentals of Ethics, Fourth Edition (OUP, 2017) and The Ethical Life, Fourth Edition. He is also the editor of Oxford Studies in Metaethics.

Table of Contents

PART 1. MORAL THEORY
Chapter 1. What Is Morality?
A. Conventional and Critical Morality
B. The Branches of Moral Philosophy
C. Moral Starting Points
D. Morality and Other Normative Systems
E. Morality and Religion
F. Conclusion
Essential Concepts
Discussion Questions
Chapter 2. Moral Reasoning
A. Validity and Soundness
B. Necessary and Sufficient Conditions
C. Valid Argument Forms
D. Fallacies
E. Conclusion
Essential Concepts
Discussion Questions
Chapter 3. Skepticism about Morality
A. Egoism
B. Relativism
C. Error Theory
D. Conclusion
Essential Concepts
Discussion Questions
Readings
Mary Midgley, Trying Out One's New Sword
J. L. Mackie, The Subjectivity of Values
Chapter 4. The Good Life
A. Hedonism
B. Desire Satisfaction Theory
C. Conclusion
Essential Concepts
Discussion Questions
Readings
John Stuart Mill, Hedonism
Robert Nozick, The Experience Machine
Chapter 5. Consequentialism
A. The Nature of Consequentialism
B. The Attractions of Utilitarianism
C. Some Difficulties for Utilitarianism
D. Conclusion
Essential Concepts
Discussion Questions
Reading
John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism
Chapter 6. Kantian Ethics
A. Consistency and Fairness
B. The Principle of Universalizability
C. Hypothetical and Categorical Imperatives
D. Assessing the Principle of Universalizability
E. Kant on Absolute Moral Duties
F. The Principle of Humanity
G. Conclusion
Essential Concepts
Discussion Questions
Reading
Immanuel Kant, Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals
Chapter 7. Social Contract Theory
A. The Background of the Social Contract Theory
B. The Prisoner's Dilemma
C. Cooperation and the State of Nature
D. The Advantages of Contractarianism
E. The Role of Consent
F. Disagreement among the Contractors
G. Conclusion
Essential Concepts
Discussion Questions
Reading
Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan
Chapter 8. Natural Law
A. The Theory and Its Attractions
B. Three Conceptions of Human Nature
C. Natural Purposes
D. The Doctrine of Double Effect
E. Conclusion
Essential Concepts
Discussion Questions
Reading
Thomas Aquinas, Natural Law
Chapter 9. The Ethic of Prima Facie Duties
A. Ethical Pluralism and Prima Facie Duties
B. The Advantages of Ross's View
C. A Problem for Ross's View
D. Prima Facie Duties and the Testing of Moral Theories
E. Knowing the Right Thing to Do
F. Conclusion
Essential Concepts
Discussion Questions
Reading
W. D. Ross, What Makes Right Actions Right?
Chapter 10. Virtue Ethics
A. The Standard of Right Action
B. Moral Complexity
C. Moral Understanding
D. The Nature of Virtue
E. Does Virtue Ethics Offer Adequate Moral Guidance?
F. Who Are the Moral Role Models?
G. Conflict and Contradiction
H. The Priority Problem
I. Conclusion
Essential Concepts
Discussion Questions
Reading
Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics
Chapter 11. Feminist Ethics and the Ethics of Care
A. The Elements of Feminist Ethics
B. The Ethics of Care
C. The Importance of Emotions
D. Against Unification
E. Partiality and Concreteness
F. Downplaying Rights
G. Challenges for Feminist Ethics
H. Conclusion
Essential Concepts
Discussion Questions
Reading
Hilde Lindemann, What Is Feminist Ethics?
PART 2. MORAL PROBLEMS
Chapter 12. Abortion
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Essential Concepts
Stat Shot
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
John Noonan, An Almost Absolute Value in History
Judith Jarvis Thomson, A Defense of Abortion
Mary Anne Warren, On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion
Don Marquis, Why Abortion Is Immoral
Chapter 13. Animals
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Essential Concepts
Stat Shot
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
Peter Singer, All Animals Are Equal
Tom Regan, The Case for Animal Rights
Mary Anne Warren, Difficulties with the Strong Animal Rights Position
Alastair Norcross, Puppies, Pigs, and People
R. G. Frey, Moral Standing, the Value of Lives, and Speciesism
Chapter 14. The Environment
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Essential Concepts
Stat Shot
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
Paul Taylor, The Ethics of Respect for the Environment
Thomas Hill, Jr., Ideals of Human Excellence and Preserving Natural Environments
Eric R. Posner and Cass A. Sunstein, Climate Change Justice
Walter Sinnott-Armstrong, It's Not My Fault: Global Warming and Individual Moral Obligations
Chapter 15. Euthanasia
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Essential Concepts
Stat Shot
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
James Rachels, The Morality of Euthanasia
Leon R. Kass, Why Doctors Must Not Kill
Chapter 16. Economic Justice and Economic Inequality
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Essential Concepts
Stat Shot
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
John Rawls, A Theory of Justice
Robert Nozick, The Entitlement Theory of Justice
Harry Frankfurt, Equality as a Moral Ideal
Elizabeth Anderson, How Not to Complain about Taxes
Chapter 17. Globalization and Immigration
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Essential Concepts
Stat Shot
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
Peter Singer, The Singer Solution to World Poverty
Onora O'Neill, A Kantian Approach to Famine Relief
Thomas Pogge, Human Rights and Global Wrongs
Michael Huemer, Is There a Right to Immigrate?
David Miller, Immigration: The Case for Limits
Chapter 18. The Legacy of Racism
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Essential Concepts
Stat Shot
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
J. Angelo Corlett, Reparations to Native Americans?
Dan Hausman, Affirmative Action: Bad Arguments and Some Good Ones
Elizabeth Anderson, The Future of Racial Integration
Tommie Shelby, Justice, Deviance, and the Dark Ghetto
Chris Lebron, Time for a New Black Radicalism
Chapter 19. Terrorism
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Essential Concepts
Stat Shot
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
Michael Walzer, Terrorism: A Critique of Excuses
Virginia Held, Terrorism and War
Lionel K. McPherson, Is Terrorism Distinctively Wrong?
Stephen Nathanson, Can Terrorism Be Morally Justified?
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Stat Shot Concepts
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
Ernst van den Haag, On Deterrence and the Death Penalty
Jeffrey H. Reiman, Civilization, Safety, and Deterrence
Igor Primoratz, Justifying Legal Punishment
Stephen Nathanson, An Eye for an Eye?
Chapter 21. Drugs
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Essential Concepts
Stat Shot
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
Peter de Marneffe, Against the Legalization of Drugs
Michael Huemer, America's Unjust Drug War
Robert E. Goodin, Permissible Paternalism: Saving Smokers from Themselves
Chapter 22. Genetic Engineering
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Essential Concepts
Stat Shot
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
Michael Sandel, The Case Against Perfection
Julian Savulescu, Genetic Interventions and the Ethics of Human Beings
Roberta Millstein, GMOs? Not So Fast
Gary Comstock, Ethics and Genetically Modified Foods
Chapter 23. Sexual Morality
Just the Facts
Argument Analysis
Essential Concepts
Stat Shot
Cases for Critical Thinking
Readings
John Corvino, Why Shouldn't Tommy and Jim Have Sex? A Defense of Homosexuality
Maggie Gallagher, Normal Marriage: Two Views
Raja Halwani, Virtue Ethics, Casual Sex, and Objectification
Nicholas Dixon, Alcohol and Rape
Martha C. Nussbaum, "Whether from Reason or Prejudice": Taking Money for Bodily Services
Appendix: The Truth about Philosophy Majors
Glossary
Index