Philosophy

Ethics: A Very Short Introduction

Ethics: A Very Short Introduction

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  • Author：Simon Blackburn
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Summary

Very Short Introductions: Brilliant， Sharp， Inspiring

Our self-image as moral， well-behaved creatures is dogged by scepticism， relativism， hypocrisy， and nihilism， and by the fear that in a Godless world science has unmasked us as creatures fated by our genes to be selfish and tribalistic， or competitive and aggressive。 Here， Simon Blackburn tackles the major moral questions surrounding birth， death， happiness， desire， and freedom， showing us how we should think about the meaning of life， and why we should mistrust the soundbite-sized absolutes that often dominate moral debates。

This second edition of the Very Short Introduction on Ethics has revised and updated aspects of the original to reflect changing times and mores。 It highlights the importance of an understanding of approaches to ethics and its foundations， confronted as we are with a fluid and uncertain world of eroding trust， swirling conspiracy theories， and a dismaying loss of respect in public discourse。

ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area。 These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly。 Our expert authors combine facts， analysis， perspective， new ideas， and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable。

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Reviews

Kat ，

Small little book that summarizes the most prominent ethical theories。 As someone who has only recently delved into philosophy I’m not sure if Blackburn’s profiles accurately portray the essence of philosophical theories， but the breadth of this book is adequate for a beginner student of philosophy。

Jasper ，

Reading other reviews， I think what you take away from this book depends on what you expected。 It’s good for an introduction to many facets of a complex topic， taking shallow dives into various things。 It’s not anything super in depth or with a revolutionary takeaway。 It can get a bit rambling at some points but overall pretty readable and well organized。

Zaid Zain ，

2021 #5Ethics， A Very Short IntroductionSimon BlackburnWho this book is for: For people who want to get to know more about ethics， from the perspective of Western philosophy。Why am I reading this book？: To try to better understand the core module subject I'm taking。What I like about the book: Part One: The Seven Threats to EthicsWhat I don't like about the book: Unlike the other books in the VSI series， this one would require some background knowledge in the topic before delving into it。 In that 2021 #5Ethics， A Very Short IntroductionSimon BlackburnWho this book is for: For people who want to get to know more about ethics， from the perspective of Western philosophy。Why am I reading this book？: To try to better understand the core module subject I'm taking。What I like about the book: Part One: The Seven Threats to EthicsWhat I don't like about the book: Unlike the other books in the VSI series， this one would require some background knowledge in the topic before delving into it。 In that sense， this is not a suitable introductory book， IMO。Will I read this again？: Maybe。 Some topics discussed are timeless and contemporary， may require a reread some time in the future。Rating: 2/5 Don't buy， just borrow from the library。 Thank fully mine is a library copy。 。。。more

Prashant Goyal ，

The book has been divided into 3 parts and they being， first， several threats to and attacks on ethics even questioning the need for it。 Second part concerns the major debate topics from death， life， abortion， pleasure， meaning of life， evil， freedom and rights。 Part three is about the basic foundations and major ideas in ethics。I think it was nice to introduce ethics to a layperson in that order rather than beginning with heavy terminology and big ideas straight away。 This methodology is very u The book has been divided into 3 parts and they being， first， several threats to and attacks on ethics even questioning the need for it。 Second part concerns the major debate topics from death， life， abortion， pleasure， meaning of life， evil， freedom and rights。 Part three is about the basic foundations and major ideas in ethics。I think it was nice to introduce ethics to a layperson in that order rather than beginning with heavy terminology and big ideas straight away。 This methodology is very useful to engage reader and make him constantly think。 On the hand， I found some examples to be poor although the point made was valid and could easily be conveyed through some other means。 And I found a lot of unnecessary repetitions because of the methodology mentioned above。 。。。more

Richard Swan ，

Very poor。 Sloppy thinking with， unforgivably， sloppy expression。 On p。 3 he says ‘An ethical climate is a different thing from a moralistic one’， but never defines either ethics or morals or the distinction between them。 Sentences like ‘The bad news is that we will accord authority to anyone in a white coat’ are patronising and false， while any author who can write ‘it is usually not at all certain that’ should be taken outside and edited。

Giuliana Gramani ，

Interessante， principalmente quando dá exemplos ligados a religião， mas eu realmente não nasci para as leituras da Filosofia。

Karlie ，

I was disappointed in this book。 I wanted an overview of the field of Ethics， where different systems are compared and contrasted， and perhaps ways of working out an ethical system are presented （or at least an introduction to that！）。 Instead， Blackburn never loses an opportunity to quote Hume， who seems to be his hero （and seems， from what Hume himself said， to be a real jerk: "’Tis not contrary to reason to prefer the destruction of the wholeworld to the scratching of my finger。 ’Tis not contr I was disappointed in this book。 I wanted an overview of the field of Ethics， where different systems are compared and contrasted， and perhaps ways of working out an ethical system are presented （or at least an introduction to that！）。 Instead， Blackburn never loses an opportunity to quote Hume， who seems to be his hero （and seems， from what Hume himself said， to be a real jerk: "’Tis not contrary to reason to prefer the destruction of the wholeworld to the scratching of my finger。 ’Tis not contrary to reason forme to choose my total ruin， to prevent the least uneasiness of anIndian or person wholly unknown to me。 ’Tis as little contrary toreason to prefer even my own acknowledged lesser good to mygreater。"The conclusion is that there are is no Truth， no moral framework except what each society determines is best。 If we decide slavery is wrong， then it's wrong， but it wasn't wrong before we did， so we could have left it in place as long as everyone agreed that was best。 I mean。。。seriously？ Maybe I'm biased because I have religious beliefs （which， by the way， Blackburn dismissed early in the book as a reason for ethics） but even so， I tend to think there are moral principles that exist independently of human beliefs。 Blackburn dismisses this idea and leaves NO room for argument。I gave it two stars， because at least he presents the other ideas and systems even if he does not agree with them， well， that is he does before tearing then apart and presenting what Hume thought。 。。。more

Natalia Mat ，

I expected a book for ‘beginners’ in ethics/philosophy， so I’m a bit dissatisfied。 Honestly， for me it was often too hard to follow， as it was simply filled up with facts。 It think it may serve as a great summary of different ethical thoughts for those， who are already into the topic but not for those unfamiliar with what this book is about。Still， I enjoyed the contemplating nature of the book， as well as the broad range of perspectives it presented。 It was quite analytical， and constantly intro I expected a book for ‘beginners’ in ethics/philosophy， so I’m a bit dissatisfied。 Honestly， for me it was often too hard to follow， as it was simply filled up with facts。 It think it may serve as a great summary of different ethical thoughts for those， who are already into the topic but not for those unfamiliar with what this book is about。Still， I enjoyed the contemplating nature of the book， as well as the broad range of perspectives it presented。 It was quite analytical， and constantly introduced new ideas。 I found some chapters inspiring and fascinating， however others seemed a bit dull。。。 Not surprisingly， the chapters I enjoyed that concentrated on the topics I have already studied。Now， I want to skim read through it and take some notes in order to really absorb the information。 I don’t feel it was a waste of time， but comparing to the effort I put into reading it， the outcome is quite poor。 。。。more

Eric Xia ，

I thought this answered important concerns and left appropriately important questions unresolved/up to the reader。 I also didn't think the author was particularly biased。 I thought this answered important concerns and left appropriately important questions unresolved/up to the reader。 I also didn't think the author was particularly biased。 。。。more

M。 Ashraf ，

EthicsA Very Short Introduction #80Simon BlackburnI think it is not an into to Ethics but rather a discussion through some of the ethical and moral questions we may face in our life without getting that deeper into philosophy and without being impartial about some topics。I find it to be a good book though。 I enjoyed reading it。 Human beings are ethical animals。 I do not mean that we naturally behave particularly well， nor that we are endlessly telling each other what to do。 But we grade and evalu EthicsA Very Short Introduction #80Simon BlackburnI think it is not an into to Ethics but rather a discussion through some of the ethical and moral questions we may face in our life without getting that deeper into philosophy and without being impartial about some topics。I find it to be a good book though。 I enjoyed reading it。 Human beings are ethical animals。 I do not mean that we naturally behave particularly well， nor that we are endlessly telling each other what to do。 But we grade and evaluate， and compare and admire， and claim and justify。 We do not just ‘prefer’ this or that， in isolation。 We prefer that our preferences are shared; we turn them into demands on each other。 Events endlessly adjust our sense of responsibility， our guilt and shame， and our sense of our own worth and that of others。 We hope for lives whose story leaves us looking admirable; we like our weaknesses to be hidden and deniable。 Drama， literature， and poetry all work out ideas of standards of behavior and their consequences。For many people， ethics is not only tied up with religion but is completely settled by it。 Such people do not need to think too much about ethics， because there is an authoritative code of instructions，a handbook of how to live。 It is the word of Heaven or the will of a Being greater than ourselves。religion is not the foundation of ethics， but its showcase or its symbolic expression。we drape our own standards with the stories of divine origin as a way of asserting their authority。 We do not just have a standard of conduct that forbids， say， murder， but we have mythological historical examples in which God expressed his displeasure at cases of murder。There are only the different truths of different communities。 This is the idea of relativism。What is just or right in the eyes of one person may not be so in the eyes of another， and neither side can claim real truth， unique truth， for its particular rules。If we are good， it may be because we were never tempted enough， or frightened enough， or put indesperate enough need。 。。。more

Steph De Mel ，

This is one of the best VSIs I've read so far。 Blackburn's introduction to ethics is engaging， accessible， and packed full of useful information on the subject。 I particularly like the way in which he organises the text into three broad sections "seven threats to ethics"， "some ethical ideas"， and "foundations"， rather than separating each school of thought into its own chapter。 This allows a fuller， richer discussion of the subject through bringing various strands of thought into dialogue and j This is one of the best VSIs I've read so far。 Blackburn's introduction to ethics is engaging， accessible， and packed full of useful information on the subject。 I particularly like the way in which he organises the text into three broad sections "seven threats to ethics"， "some ethical ideas"， and "foundations"， rather than separating each school of thought into its own chapter。 This allows a fuller， richer discussion of the subject through bringing various strands of thought into dialogue and juxtaposition with one another， which - at least to me - feels more fruitful and interesting than the alternative of simply examining each alone。 Highly recommended for anyone interested in， and looking to expand their knowledge of， this subject area。 。。。more

Michelle ，

I am mostly in agreement with other reviewers。 The book was previously published as Being Good and it does Blackburn no favours that it is now published under the Very Short Introduction series。 Blackburn states that his aim is to confront what really bothers people about ethics， something that some other texts fail to do。 Thus， the first section of the book looks at common lines of reasoning that may threaten ethics - e。g。 "acting ethically is too demanding"， or "there is no objective notion of I am mostly in agreement with other reviewers。 The book was previously published as Being Good and it does Blackburn no favours that it is now published under the Very Short Introduction series。 Blackburn states that his aim is to confront what really bothers people about ethics， something that some other texts fail to do。 Thus， the first section of the book looks at common lines of reasoning that may threaten ethics - e。g。 "acting ethically is too demanding"， or "there is no objective notion of good and bad"。 The inclusion of this section is a good idea， and Blackburn correctly predicts at least some of the questions I have about ethics。 Blackburn goes on to discuss some contemporary ethical questions - abortion， human rights - and， finally， discusses what the foundation of ethics might be。 All in all， his approach is to pay more attention to modern questions， rather than classical schools of thought。 He mentions the latter only when they are relevant to the discussion。 I am sympathetic to this choice， but believe the execution is lacking， especially if the book is to be branded as a Very Short Introduction。First， one might expect an explanation of the main schools of thought in ethics are。 But Blackburn only discusses these loosely。 Second， I found the wording a bit imprecise at times。 I had some difficulty understanding the section on Aristotle， because Blackburn keeps using different terms - "virtuous life"， "good life"， 。。。Third， the book does not do enough to accommodate readers who may be completely new to philosophy。 Its tone is a bit too technical at times and some concepts are introduced too quickly。 。。。more

Melissa Palzewicz ，

Short， easy read with lots to think about

Ariel Pontes ，

The book presents interesting contemporary ethical debates and how they relate to some more theoretical philosophical ideas。 Although I appreciate this type of approach in principle， in the case of this book it was extremely chaotic。 The subjects were approached without any meaningful order， and a plethora of subjects and concepts were scratched superficially without ever giving the sensation that a conclusion was reached or that the core ideas of a theory were presented in a coherent way。 It fe The book presents interesting contemporary ethical debates and how they relate to some more theoretical philosophical ideas。 Although I appreciate this type of approach in principle， in the case of this book it was extremely chaotic。 The subjects were approached without any meaningful order， and a plethora of subjects and concepts were scratched superficially without ever giving the sensation that a conclusion was reached or that the core ideas of a theory were presented in a coherent way。 It felt like a long rant about the issues of today。 Sometimes it was interesting， but I expected a lot more structure from a book in this series。 。。。more

Fabio Borges ，

A nice， extremely concise introduction to Ethics。 It works well as a starting point， specially if you don't want to spend much time on the subject， or if you want to get an overview of the subject first before moving on to more detailed， longer texts。 The set of themes tackled in the book is comprehensive enough for a good overview。This is not a "typical" introduction though。 A "typical" introduction would somehow present the schools of thought （the "-isms"） in a more or less chronological way， A nice， extremely concise introduction to Ethics。 It works well as a starting point， specially if you don't want to spend much time on the subject， or if you want to get an overview of the subject first before moving on to more detailed， longer texts。 The set of themes tackled in the book is comprehensive enough for a good overview。This is not a "typical" introduction though。 A "typical" introduction would somehow present the schools of thought （the "-isms"） in a more or less chronological way， with a final chapter on the current state of things。 This book has a different structure， starting with what the author considers challenges or obstacles to Ethics （relativism， nihilism， egoism， stringent religious codes， etc。）， then moving on to some themes （death， birth， freedom） and only then discussing the schools of thought。 It's an interesting structure and I don't dislike it， but some may be more comfortable with a traditional， perhaps more pedagogical structure。As for the prose style， it's easy to follow， though in my opinion it looses fluidity at some points。 Some paragraphs are confusing， I thought， but overall it's a pleasant reading。It's worth mentioning that this is not a "neutral" text。 The author's own opinions are reflected in the arguments and ideas presented。 But we could argue whether there is such thing as a "neutral" Philosophy Book， probably there isn't。 One should read about the same subject from different authors to get familiar with the different perspectives on the field。 So I don't think the presence of personal opinions is necessarily bad and， besides， the author presents different points of view than his own。 Compared to another good introduction I've read （Peter Cave's Ethics: a Beginner's Guide） this book has less examples， and it doesn't present the famous "moral dilemmas"， which may be a problem if you expect to find those （as I suppose many people do）。 The "further readings" section could be a bit better as well （with more references）。With all that being said， my review is positive overall and I recommend this book。 。。。more

Jim Cook ，

Simon Blackburn’s Ethics， is an entertaining overview of the topic。 It’s divided into three parts， the first of which examines what he calls seven challenges or “threats” to ethics。 Each of these threats include “ideas that destabilize us when we think about standards of choice and conduct。” The most challenging of these are relativism， nihilism， and scepticism。 Others include: egoism， evolutionary theory， determinism and futility， false consciousness， and the view that ethical theories make unr Simon Blackburn’s Ethics， is an entertaining overview of the topic。 It’s divided into three parts， the first of which examines what he calls seven challenges or “threats” to ethics。 Each of these threats include “ideas that destabilize us when we think about standards of choice and conduct。” The most challenging of these are relativism， nihilism， and scepticism。 Others include: egoism， evolutionary theory， determinism and futility， false consciousness， and the view that ethical theories make unreasonable demands on us。 Consider the following scenario （first raised in discussions of this sort by Allan Bloom in his The Closing of the American Mind）: imagine you were an 18th century British administrator in India。 Would you have let the natives under your governance burn the widow at the funeral of a man who has died？ This practice， known as “sati” or “sutee” reached its peak in India between the 15th and 18th centuries， when about 1，000 widows annually met their fate in this fashion。 Was it simply an example of the British imposing Western norms in this colony when they outlawed the practice？ Or did they do the “right” thing？ Questions like this are a staple example for discussions related to relativism。 Ultimately， Blackburn concedes， answers to the questions posed by the seven challenges， especially that of relativism， can only come from within a particular moral perspective。 There are no transcultural answers， no Reasons （capital R） that can respond but only “reasons” that are never totally compelling。 However， he further argues that it makes sense to try to find reasons that share some common ground because “the attempt to find a common point of view is better than manipulative contempt for it。” Further， Blackburn asks us to keep our eyes on the oppressed in circumstances of this kind。 For example slavery， widow-burning， female genital mutilation， and the like are practices that it’s victims usually struggle against: “it is the Brahmins， mullahs， priests， and elders who hold themselves to be spokesmen for their culture” not the victims of these barbaric practices。 In part two， Blackburn discusses moral dilemmas associated with what he calls “birth， death， and the meaning of life。” He provides a brief critical analysis of the ethical problems related to abortion， euthanasia， as well as an overview of Plato and Aristotle’s views of “the good life。” Part 2 concludes with a nice， short discussion about the concepts of rights and human rights， something that the famous moral philosopher Jeremy Bentham once called “nonsense upon stilts”！In the concluding chapter of the book， Blackburn provides an overview of utilitarian moral thinking （the felicific calculus）， discusses relevant moral concepts developed by Hume and Kant， and provides a critique of a group of modern moral philosophers he calls “contractarians。” These include thinkers like TM Scanlon， Juergen Habermas， and John Rawls。 This is quite a lot to pack into a book of only 130 pages but Blackburn does it with verve and wit， and some pretty incisive thinking。 This makes his book both entertaining and informative。 。。。more

Saud Amin Khan ，

Well-written， well-explained; good introduction overall。 I only wish it was better formatted and made more engaging by referring to some contemporary issues

Dorrit ，

Good one。

ems ，

surprisingly conversational

dave semrud ，

Not BadNot bad but glazed with a little too much PC theology。 My Grandpa Ole would tell me this dude needs to climb down from the tower and take a look around。

Rashid Saif ，

A well written and encompassing book。 I wish for the cognitive/neuroscience evolutionary dweebs out there who pontificate on ethics to read this book。

Muhamed ，

In my opinion， the author did a good job of presenting important ethical discussions （mainly western）。 However， more than being an overview and a summary， the author presents his own views as the correct ones。 One could say that's how it should be。 But usually with introductory books I prefer to have the discussions without the author telling us who is right。 In my opinion， the author did a good job of presenting important ethical discussions （mainly western）。 However， more than being an overview and a summary， the author presents his own views as the correct ones。 One could say that's how it should be。 But usually with introductory books I prefer to have the discussions without the author telling us who is right。 。。。more

Reza Khabook ，

A issue short introduction！ Just good for opening your eyes on issues！

Harry ，

I feel that I have learnt a lot about a fascinating subject but I found the arguments very difficult to understand and I had to go back over some of the text as it didn't sink in。 It has made me want to learn more but as a primer it didn't work for me。 I feel that I have learnt a lot about a fascinating subject but I found the arguments very difficult to understand and I had to go back over some of the text as it didn't sink in。 It has made me want to learn more but as a primer it didn't work for me。 。。。more

Arno Mosikyan ，

Perhaps fewer of us are sensitive to what we might call the moral or ethical environment。 This is the surrounding climate of ideas about how to live。An idea in this sense is a tendency to accept routes of thought and feeling that we may not recognize in ourselves， or even be able to articulate。 Yet such dispositions rule the social and political world。An ethical climate is a different thing from a moralistic one。 Indeed， one of the marks of an ethical climate may be hostility to moralizing， whic Perhaps fewer of us are sensitive to what we might call the moral or ethical environment。 This is the surrounding climate of ideas about how to live。An idea in this sense is a tendency to accept routes of thought and feeling that we may not recognize in ourselves， or even be able to articulate。 Yet such dispositions rule the social and political world。An ethical climate is a different thing from a moralistic one。 Indeed， one of the marks of an ethical climate may be hostility to moralizing， which is somehow out of place or bad form。 Thinking that will itself be a something that affects the way we live our lives。 So， for instance， one peculiarity of our present climate is that we care much more about our rights than about our ‘good’。Human beings are ethical animals。 I do not mean that we naturally behave particularly well， nor that we are endlessly telling each other what to do。 But we grade and evaluate， and compare and admire， and claim and justify。For many people， ethics is not only tied up with religion， but is completely settled by it。 Such people do not need to think too much about ethics， because there is an authoritative code of instructions， a handbook of how to live。The detour through an external god， then， seems worse than irrelevant。 It seems to distort the very idea of a standard of conduct。 As the moral philosopher Immanuel Kant （1724–1824） put it， it encourages us to act in accordance with a rule， but only because of fear of punishment or some other incentive; whereas what we really want is for people to act out of respect for a rule。 This is what true virtue requires。The alternative suggested by Plato’s dialogue is that religion gives a mythical clothing and mythical authority to a morality that is just there to begin with。In this analysis， religion is not the foundation of ethics， but its showcase or its symbolic expression。Religion on this account is not the source of standards of behaviour， but a projection of them， made precisely in order to dress them up with an absolute authority。The ‘freshman relativist’ is a nightmare figure of introductory classes in ethics， rather like the village atheist （but what’s so good about village theism？）。If everybody needs the rule that there should be some rule， that itself represents a universal standard。 It can then be suggested that the core of ethics is universal in just this way。For human beings， there is no living without standards of living。We are egoists， altruism doesn’t exist， ethics is only a fig-leaf for selfish strategies， we are all conditioned， women are nurturing， men are rapists， we care above all for our genes。The core of morality， then， lies not in what we do， but in our motives in doing it: ‘When moral worth is at issue， what counts is not actions， which one sees， but those inner principles of action that one does not see。 。。。more

Sleepless Dreamer ，

Review to come， possibly。Or， briefly， one of the commanders on base saw me reading On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century and wanted a trade。 I'm flattered and happy because it's nice that someone supports my nerdy endevours durng guard duty。 The thing is， I like to think I'm not a beginner and as such， I feel comfortable to criticize and say that it's a basic book， it doesn't devlve deep enough into the ethical issues and I feel like I'm not getting the whole picture。 All in all， Review to come， possibly。Or， briefly， one of the commanders on base saw me reading On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century and wanted a trade。 I'm flattered and happy because it's nice that someone supports my nerdy endevours durng guard duty。 The thing is， I like to think I'm not a beginner and as such， I feel comfortable to criticize and say that it's a basic book， it doesn't devlve deep enough into the ethical issues and I feel like I'm not getting the whole picture。 All in all， a nice read but not much more。 。。。more

Jerry Wall ，

for previous thinkers about ethics 。 。 。 the central concern was the state of one's soul， meaning some personal stare of justice or harmony。 p。 4。 。 。 justice can be satisfied by the sacrifice of an innocent for the sins of the guilty。 p。 11 ！！！！！！！！！follow a rule 。 。 。 because of fear of punishment or some other incentive 。 。 。 。 p。 15 [contract village atheist} what is so good about village theism？ p。 17to say "that's just your opinion 。 。 。 is a conversation stopper。 p。 25。 。 。 we can be over for previous thinkers about ethics 。 。 。 the central concern was the state of one's soul， meaning some personal stare of justice or harmony。 p。 4。 。 。 justice can be satisfied by the sacrifice of an innocent for the sins of the guilty。 p。 11 ！！！！！！！！！follow a rule 。 。 。 because of fear of punishment or some other incentive 。 。 。 。 p。 15 [contract village atheist} what is so good about village theism？ p。 17to say "that's just your opinion 。 。 。 is a conversation stopper。 p。 25。 。 。 we can be overwhelmed just by the relentless human capacity for making life horrible for others。 The right reaction is not to succumb to the mood， but to reflect that the cure lies in our own hands。 p。 48Amartya Sin talks about 100 million missing women 。 。 。 due to inequalities in medical care and sustenance ， as well as deliberate infanticide， together making up the world's biggest issue of justice for women。 p， 50on abortion issue 。 。 。 。 what about natural miscarriage。 p。 56Death is nothing to us， for that which is dissolved is without sensation: and that which lacks sensation is nothing to us。 [？from Epicurus？] * * * Death is not the state of a person。 It is 'nothing to us' because we no longer exist。 It is not a kind of life: peaceful， reposed， reconciled， content， cold， lonely， dark， or anything else。 p。 57 ！！！！！！ So if life here is unjust and intolerable， then the only defensible inference is that Divinity intends a fair dose of things that are unjust and intolerable。 * * * It imagines the soul as accidentally and only temporarily lodged in a body， like a person in a car。 p。 59。 。 。 felicific calculus 。 。 。 p。 71Salus populi suprema lex -- the safety of the people is the supreme law。 p。 76Fiat justitia et ruant coeli -- let just be done though the heavens fall。 p 。 77。 。 。 any full specification of a freedom is apt to indicate both what you are free from and what you are free to do。 p。 81This is done in the name of the Constitution， this being a document to whose meaning the legal mandarins alone have privileged access。 The parallel with a priesthood and its private access to the truth of the sacred texts is lost on many。 p。 87Our generation may flourish by consuming all the world's resources， and letting the future go hang。 p。 100 ！！！！！！！I ought never to act except in such a way that I could also will that my maxim should become a universal law。 p。 104So act that you use humanity， whether in your own person or in the person of any other， always at the same time as an end， never merely as a means。 p。 106。 。 。 the large part of ethics that concerns our rights and duties to each other。 p。 107 ！！！！！！Nature has no concern for good or bad， right or wrong。 p。 112 ！！！！！！！ 。。。more

Karen Lynn ，

"[Ethics] gives us our standards - our of behaviour。 In the eyes of some thinkers， most famously perhaps G。W。F。 Hegel （1770 - 1831）， it shapes our very identities。 Our consciousness of ourselves is largely or even essentially a consciousness of how we stand for other people。 We need stories of our own value in the eyes of each other， the eyes of the world。" ~Ethics: A Very Short Introduction"A question about ethics posed by a survior of the Nazi concentration camps。 He asked， fairly aggressively "[Ethics] gives us our standards - our of behaviour。 In the eyes of some thinkers， most famously perhaps G。W。F。 Hegel （1770 - 1831）， it shapes our very identities。 Our consciousness of ourselves is largely or even essentially a consciousness of how we stand for other people。 We need stories of our own value in the eyes of each other， the eyes of the world。" ~Ethics: A Very Short Introduction"A question about ethics posed by a survior of the Nazi concentration camps。 He asked， fairly aggressively， what use philosophy would have been on a death march？ The answer， of course， was not much - no more than literature， art， music， mathematics， or science would be useful at such a time。 But consider the ethical environment that made such events possible。 Hitler said， ‘How lucky it is for rulers that men do not think。’ But in saying this he sounded as if he， too， was blind to the ethical climate that enabled his own ideas， and hence his power， to flourish。 This climate included images of the primordial purity of a particular race of people。 It was permeated by fear for the fragile nature of this purity。 Like America in the post-war McCarthy era， it feared pollution from ‘degenerates’ outside or within。 It included visions of national and racial destiny。 It included ideas of apocalyptic transformation through national solidarity and military dedication to a cause。 It was hospitable to the idea of the leader whose godlike vision is authoritative and unchallengeable。 In turn， those ideas had roots in misapplications of Darwinism， in German Romanticism， and indeed in some aspects of Judaism and Christianity。 In short， Hitler could come to power only because people did think - but their thinking was poisoned by an enveloping climate of ideas， many of which may not even have been conscious。 For we may not be aware of our ideas。 An idea in this sense is a tendency to accept routes of thought and feeling that we may not recognize in ourselves， or even be able to articulate。 Yet such dispositions rule the social and political world。" ~Ethics: A Very Short Introduction 。。。more

Billie Cotterman ，

I got to page 50 before stopping。 This isn't an introduction to Ethics so much as a discussion of problems within ethics。 There's no actual introduction to the field of ethics or what ethics even means。 Maybe this would be more interesting if I were familiar with the field， but it really just reads like someone's rant。 I can't tell what is the author's opinion and what is actual established practice in the field。 I got to page 50 before stopping。 This isn't an introduction to Ethics so much as a discussion of problems within ethics。 There's no actual introduction to the field of ethics or what ethics even means。 Maybe this would be more interesting if I were familiar with the field， but it really just reads like someone's rant。 I can't tell what is the author's opinion and what is actual established practice in the field。 。。。more

H。 P。 ，

DNF

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Ethics: A Very Short Introduction

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Ethics: A Very Short Introduction&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Ethics: A Very Short Introduction&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0