The Fundamentals of Ethics / Edition 3

by Russ Shafer-Landau

Overview

In The Fundamentals of Ethics, Second Edition, author Russ Shafer-Landau employs a uniquely engaging writing style to introduce students to the essential ideas of moral philosophy. Offering more comprehensive coverage of the good life, normative ethics, and metaethics than any other text of its kind, this book also addresses issues that are often omitted from other texts, such as the doctrine of doing and allowing, the doctrine of double effect, ethical particularism, the desire-satisfaction theory of well-being, and moral error theory. Shafer-Landau carefully reconstructs and analyzes dozens of arguments in depth, at a level that is understandable to students with no prior philosophical background.

NEW TO THE SECOND EDITION:

* Discussion questions at the end of every chapter provide students with immediate ways to test their understanding of the material

* New, real-life extended examples reinforce the importance of the theories discussed in Chapters 4, 7, 9, 10, 14, 15, and 19

* Greatly expanded coverage of moral rights (in Chapter 8) and of membership in the moral community (in Chapter 9)

* A new discussion of skepticism about morality in the Introduction

* An Instructor's Manual and Testbank on CD offers chapter summaries, more than 100 essay questions, more than 200 multiple-choice questions, and 200 PowerPoint-based lecture slides.

* A Companion Website at www.oup.com/us/shafer-landau contains all the material from the Instructor's Manual along with students resources including 250 multiple-choice questions, a glossary, and helpful web links.

Ideal for courses in introductory ethics and contemporary moral problems, this book can be used as a stand-alone text or with the author's companion reader, The Ethical Life: Fundamental Readings in Ethics and Moral Problems, Second Edition, which offers original readings on ethical theory and contemporary moral problems.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780199997237
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	06/30/2014
Edition description:	Older Edition
Pages:	400
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.10(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Russ Shafer-Landau is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is the author, editor, or coeditor of several books including Living Ethics (OUP, 2018) and The Ethical Life, Fourth Edition (OUP, 2017). He is also the editor of Oxford Studies in Metaethics.

Table of Contents

Preface
New to the Fifth Edition
Instructor's Manual and Companion Website
A Note on the Companion Volume
Acknowledgments

Introduction

A. The Lay of the Land
B. Doubts about Ethics
C. Ethical Starting Points
D. What Is Morality?
E. Moral Reasoning
F. The Role of Moral Theory
G. Looking Ahead

PART ONE: THE GOOD LIFE

Chapter 1. Hedonism: Its Powerful Appeal
A. Happiness and Intrinsic Value
B. The Attractions of Hedonism
1. There Are Many Models of a Good Life
2. Personal Authority and Well-Being
3. Misery Clearly Hampers a Good Life; Happiness Clearly Improves It
4. The Limits of Explanation
5. Rules of the Good Life-and Their Exceptions
6. Happiness Is What We Want for Our Loved Ones

Chapter 2. Is Happiness All That Matters?
A. The Paradox of Hedonism
B. Evil Pleasures
C. False Happiness
D. The Importance of Autonomy
E. Life's Trajectory
F. Unhappiness as a Symptom of Harm
G. Conclusion

Chapter 3. Getting What You Want
A. A Variety of Good Lives
B. Personal Authority
C. Avoiding Objective Values
D. Motivation
E. Justifying the Pursuit of Self-Interest
F. Knowledge of the Good

Chapter 4. Problems for the Desire Theory
A. Getting What You Want May Not Be Necessary for Promoting Your Good
B. Getting What You Want May Not Be Sufficient for Promoting Your Good
1. Desires Based on False Beliefs
2. Disinterested and Other-Regarding Desires
3. Disappointment
4. Ignorance of Desire Satisfaction
5. Impoverished Desires
6. The Paradox of Self-Harm and Self-Sacrifice
7. The Fallibility of Our Deepest Desires
C. Conclusion
Cases for Critical Reflection

PART TWO: NORMATIVE ETHICS: DOING THE RIGHT THING

Chapter 5. Morality and Religion
A. First Assumption: Religious Belief Is Needed for Moral Motivation
B. Second Assumption: God Is the Creator of Morality
C. Third Assumption: Religion Is an Essential Source of Moral Guidance
D. Conclusion

Chapter 6. Natural Law
A. The Theory and Its Attractions
B. Three Conceptions of Human Nature
1. Human Nature as Animal Nature
2. Human Nature Is What Is Innate
3. Human Nature Is What All Humans Have in Common
C. Natural Purposes
D. The Argument from Humanity
E. Conclusion
Cases for Critical Reflection

Chapter 7. Psychological Egoism
A. Egoism and Altruism
B. Does It Matter whether Psychological Egoism Is True?
C. The Argument from Our Strongest Desires
D. The Argument from Expected Benefit
E. Two Egoistic Strategies
1. Appealing to the Guilty Conscience
2. Expanding the Realm of Self-Interest
F. Letting the Evidence Decide
G. Conclusion

Chapter 8. Ethical Egoism
A. Why Be Moral?
B. Two Popular Arguments for Ethical Egoism
1. The Self-Reliance Argument
2. The Libertarian Argument
C. The Best Argument for Ethical Egoism
D. Three Problems for Ethical Egoism
1. Egoism Violates Core Moral Beliefs
2. Egoism Cannot Allow for the Existence of Moral Rights
3. Egoism Arbitrarily Makes My Interests All-Important
E. Conclusion
Cases for Critical Reflection

Chapter 9. Consequentialism: Its Nature and Attractions
A. The Nature of Consequentialism
1. Its Structure
2. Maximizing Goodness
3. Moral Knowledge
4. Actual Versus Expected Results
5. Assessing Actions and Intentions
B. The Attractions of Utilitarianism
1. Impartiality
2. The Ability to Justify Conventional Moral Wisdom
3. Conflict Resolution
4. Moral Flexibility
C. The Scope of the Moral Community
D. Slippery Slope Arguments

Chapter 10. Consequentialism: Its Difficulties
A. Measuring Well-Being
B. Utilitarianism Is Very Demanding
1. Deliberation
2. Motivation
3. Action
C. Impartiality
D. No Intrinsic Wrongness (or Rightness)
E. The Problem of Injustice
F. Potential Solutions to the Problem of Injustice
1. Justice Is Also Intrinsically Valuable
2. Injustice Is Never Optimific
3. Justice Must Sometimes Be Sacrificed
G. Rule Consequentialism
H. Conclusion
Cases for Critical Reflection

Chapter 11. The Kantian Perspective: Fairness and Justice
A. Consistency and Fairness
B. The Principle of Universalizability
C. Morality and Rationality
D. Assessing the Principle of Universalizability
E. Integrity
F. Kant on Absolute Moral Duties

Chapter 12. The Kantian Perspective: Autonomy, Free Will, and Respect
A. The Principle of Humanity
B. The Importance of Rationality and Autonomy
C. The Problem of Free Will
D. Four Problems with the Principle of Humanity
1. Vagueness
2. Determining Just Deserts
3. Moral Luck
4. The Scope of the Moral Community
E. The Good Will and Moral Worth
F. Conclusion
Cases for Critical Reflection

Chapter 13. The Social Contract Tradition: The Theory and Its Attractions
A. The Lure of Proceduralism
B. The Background of the Social Contract Theory
C. The Prisoner's Dilemma
D. Cooperation and the State of Nature
E. The Advantages of Contractarianism
1. Morality Is Essentially a Social Phenomenon
2. Contractarianism Explains and Justifies the Content of the Basic Moral Rules
3. Contractarianism Offers a Method for Justifying Every Moral Rule
4. Contractarianism Explains the Objectivity of Morality
5. Contractarianism Explains Why It Is Sometimes Acceptable to Break the Moral Rules
F. More Advantages: Morality and the Law
1. Contractarianism Justifies a Basic Moral Duty to Obey the Law
2. The Contractarian Justification of Legal Punishment
3. Contractarianism Justifies the State's Role in Criminal Law
G. Contractarianism and Civil Disobedience

Chapter 14. The Social Contract Tradition: Problems and Prospects
A. Why Be Moral?
B. The Role of Consent
C. Disagreement among the Contractors
D. The Scope of the Moral Community
E. Conclusion
Cases for Critical Reflection

Chapter 15. Ethical Pluralism and Absolute Moral Rules
A. The Structure of Moral Theories
B. Is Torture Always Immoral?
C. Preventing Catastrophes
D. The Doctrine of Double Effect
1. A Reply to the Argument from Disaster Prevention
2. How the DDE Threatens Act Consequentialism
3. Distinguishing Intention from Foresight
E. Moral Conflict and Contradiction
F. Is Moral Absolutism Irrational?
G. The Doctrine of Doing and Allowing
H. Conclusion
Cases for Critical Reflection

Chapter 16. Ethical Pluralism: Prima Facie Duties and Ethical Particularism
A. Ross's Ethic of Prima Facie Duties
B. The Advantages of Ross's View
1. Pluralism
2. We Are Sometimes Permitted to Break the Moral Rules
3. Moral Conflict
4. Moral Regret?
5. Addressing the Antiabsolutist Arguments
C. A Problem for Ross's View
D. Knowing the Fundamental Moral Rules
E. Self-Evidence and the Testing of Moral Theories
F. Knowing the Right Thing to Do
G. Ethical Particularism
H. Three Problems for Ethical Particularism
1. Its Lack of Unity
2. Accounting for Moral Knowledge
3. Some Things Possess Permanent Moral Importance
I. Conclusion
Cases for Critical Reflection

Chapter 17. Virtue Ethics
A. The Standard of Right Action
B. Moral Complexity
C. Moral Understanding
D. Moral Education
E. The Nature of Virtue
F. Virtue and the Good Life
G. Objections
1. Tragic Dilemmas
2. Does Virtue Ethics Offer Adequate Moral Guidance?
3. Is Virtue Ethics Too Demanding?
4. Who Are the Moral Role Models?
5. Conflict and Contradiction
6. The Priority Problem
H. Conclusion
Cases for Critical Reflection

Chapter 18. Feminist Ethics
A. The Elements of Feminist Ethics
B. Moral Development
C. Women's Experience
D. The Ethics of Care
1. The Importance of Emotions
2. Against Unification
3. Against Impartiality and Abstraction
4. Against Competition
5. Downplaying Rights
E. Challenges for Feminist Ethics
F. Conclusion
Cases for Critical Reflection

PART THREE: METAETHICS: THE STATUS OF MORALITY

Chapter 19. Ethical Relativism
A. Doubts about Objective Morality
B. Two Kinds of Ethical Relativism
C. Some Implications of Ethical Subjectivism and Cultural Relativism
1. Moral Infallibility
2. Moral Equivalence
3. Questioning Our Own Commitments
4. Moral Progress
5. Ethical Subjectivism and the Problem of Contradiction
6. Cultural Relativism and the Problem of Contradiction
D. Ideal Observers
E. Conclusion

Chapter 20. Moral Nihilism
A. Error Theory
B. Expressivism
1. How Is It Possible to Argue Logically about Morality?
2. Expressivism and Amoralists
3. The Nature of Moral Judgment
C. Conclusion

Chapter 21. Eleven Arguments against Moral Objectivity
A. Objectivity Requires Absolutism
B. All Truth Is Subjective
C. Equal Rights Imply Equal Plausibility
D. Moral Objectivity Supports Dogmatism
E. Moral Objectivity Supports Intolerance
F. Moral Objectivity Cannot Allow for Legitimate Cultural Variation
G. Moral Disagreement Undermines Moral Objectivity
H. Atheism Undermines Moral Objectivity
I. The Absence of Categorical Reasons Undermines Moral Objectivity
J. Moral Motivation Undermines Moral Objectivity
K. Values Have No Place in a Scientific World
L. Conclusion

Chapter 22. Is Moral Knowledge Possible? Five Skeptical Arguments
A. The Skeptical Argument from Disagreement
B. Certainty
C. Who's To Say?
D. Irrelevant Influences
E. Hume's Argument
F. Conclusion

References
Suggestions for Further Reading
Glossary
Index

Editorial Reviews

"The book is written in a crystal-clear, accessible style that makes it an ideal choice for introductory courses in ethics. Indeed, this is one of the best textbooks on any subject I've ever come across. The organization and flow of the presentation, both within and across chapters, is terrific."—Philip Robbins, University of Missouri

"I believe this to be the best such introduction available. Shafer-Landau's The Fundamentals of Ethics surpasses Rachels' in several ways. First of all, Shafer-Landau's text is better organized. In short, whereas Rachels' text provides a laundry list, Shafer-Landau's offers a taxonomy, one that will help students to understand the relations among the various issues. Secondly, Shafer-Landau's text is both broader, covering more issues than Rachels' text, and deeper, covering those issues with more care and detail. Thirdly, I find Shafer-Landau's introduction to be more comprehensive and useful than Rachels' first chapter. Fourthly, Shafer-Landau's text includes a glossary of key terms. Shafer-Landau's is surely the best introductory text in ethics available."—Eugene Marshall, Wellesley College

"The writing is as clear as any I've seen in a philosophy textbook. I planned to use Rachels' two books in my redesigned course until I discovered Shafer-Landau's. Fundamentals and Elements are similar books. The main advantage of the former over the latter is that Shafer-Landau addresses more arguments. Shafer-Landau is much stronger on metaethics, as is especially apparent in Chapter 21. Overall, I find the discussions in Fundamentals of Ethics to be richer and deeper than those in Rachels' Elements of Moral Philosophy."—Jeffrey Brand-Ballard, George Washington University

"Shafer-Landau's book is top notch. I'm convinced that it's the clearest, most accessible introduction to ethics available. I've already told my students that they should model their writing on Shafer-Landau's; I think that he's one of the clearest writers around. I've read introductory texts that are wonderfully clear to me, but the sentence structure and diction is too complex for students to imitate. Shafer-Landau obviously worked hard to write for undergraduates."—Robert Fischer, University of Illinois at Chicago

"I find Fundamentals of Ethics more accessible for the students [than Rachels' Elements of Moral Philosophy]. My TAs and I reviewed the book before I selected it, and they were quite enthusiastic that our students would be more engaged with this text. The price reduction for the bundle [of this text with its reader, The Ethical Life] is most welcome!."—Craig Hanks, Texas State University

"It seems to me that the greatest strength of The Fundamentals of Ethics is the time it takes to explain why any of the theories it covers might be taken seriously, before it points out their flaws. The Rachels book often leaves one feeling that some major normative theories are so obviously wrong that it's a wonder they were ever contenders in the first instance. Putting the technical terms that he has used in boldface, with an associated glossary, is very helpful."—Richard Hine, University of Connecticut

"This is the most readable introduction to ethics I know. Shafer-Landau's prose is delightfully personal, accessible, and free of unnecessary jargon. At every turn the author provides illuminating examples and cases that help students understand and keep them engaged. There's a natural, easy, and logical progression to the book. While it's possible to teach the chapters in pretty much any order, Shafer-Landau has arranged the book very effectively so that chapters build on each other. The text is remarkably comprehensive despite its brevity and easy style. Perfect format—a small text, simple, inexpensive. Rachels' style, though neat and clear, is not nearly as inviting nor as pleasant as Shafer-Landau's. In terms of coverage, the texts are very similar, although the Shafer-Landau text is more comprehensive. The price of the text was a significant consideration."—Brian L. Merrill, Brigham Young University-Idaho

"This is a great little book. An efficient and no-nonsense evaluation of actual arguments, put clearly in premise-conclusion form, leads the reader, in a very natural Socratic way, to ask questions concerning the grounding of moral claims. Another strength is simply the accessible language. The index and the glossary are very helpful."—Patrick Linden, Hunter College and NYU Poly

"Shafer-Landau's writing is superb. I think it is about as good as one could hope for while maintaining a sufficient respect for rigor. Shafer-Landau's text hits the mark with respect to a balance of accessibility and challenging material."—Darren Hibbs, Nova Southeastern University

"I was surprised both by the range of theories in normative ethics and metaethics that the book covers, as well as by the degree to which each of them is examined. The list price of $29.95 should be a real selling point for instructors looking to adopt new texts. It's a strength that the book includes a glossary of all of the technical terms in employs. I also appreciate that each of those words appears in bold on its first use in the text."—Robert Lane, University of West Georgia

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