Three Methods of Ethics - (Great Debates in Philosophy) by Marcia W Baron & Philip Pettit & Michael a Slote (Paperback)

About the Book

Written in the form of a debate, this volume presents a clear survey and assessment of the main arguments, both for and against, of Kantian ethics, consequentialism, and virtue ethics.

Book Synopsis

During the past decade ethical theory has been in a lively state of development, and three basic approaches to ethics - Kantian ethics, consequentialism, and virtue ethics - have assumed positions of particular prominence.

From the Back Cover

During the past decade ethical theory has been in a lively state of development, and three basic approaches to ethics - Kantian ethics, consequentialism, and virtue ethics - have assumed positions of particular prominence. Written in the form of a debate, this volume presents a clear survey and assessment of the main arguments, both for and against each of these three central approaches to ethics. In doing so, it represents the first volume to bring these forms of ethical theory into a critical relationship, engaging current philosophical debate on the one hand in terms clear enough for undergraduates on the other.

It is an ideal basis for course use in ethics and moral philosophy.

Review Quotes

"An unprecedented three-way conversation between forceful representatives of the three major traditions in ethical philosophy." Stephen Darwall, University of Michigan

"An outstanding resource: a book which students beginning to think about normative ethical theory, and their teachers, simply must read." Michael Smith, Australian National University

"This is a superb book by three moral philosophers who really know their stuff; lively, lucid and highly engaging." John Fischer, University of California, Riverside

"This book, which brings together leading protagonists of the three approaches to ethics currently dominant, is definitely one of the best in ethics for 1997. It will provide any reader (whether student, teacher, or 'researcher') with not only an excellent 'big picture' of this important area of debate, but also much philosophical detail to chew over." Steven Tudor, University of Melbourne, Australasian Journal of Philosophy

About the Author

Marcia W. Baron is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Illinois, Urbana. She is the author of Kantian Ethics Almost Without Apology (1995).

Philip Pettit is Professor of Philosophy at Australian National University. He is the author of Republicanism (1996), The Common Mind (1993), and Not Just Deserts (1990), and is editor (with Robert E. Goodin) of A Companion to Contemporary Political Philosophy (Blackwell Publishers, paperback edition 1996) and Contemporary Political Philosophy: an Anthology (Blackwell Publishers, paperback edition 1997).

Michael Slote is Professor of Philosophy and Chair of the Philosophy Department at the University of Maryland, College Park. He is the author of Goods and Virtues (1983), Common Sense Morality and Consequentialism (1985), Beyond Optimizing(1989), and From Morality to Virtue (1992).