This book is a classic work in moral philosophy, aiming to systematically examine various methods for determining right conduct. Sidgwick identifies and analyzes three main approaches to ethics: egoism (egoistic hedonism), intuitionism, and utilitarianism. Through a critical philosophical approach, he explores the rational basis of moral principles, the relationship between happiness and duty, …
This book examines the conflict between freedom and rationality in ethics, where rationality is seen as limiting freedom, while freedom seems incompatible with rationality. It attempts to reconcile the two through three key assumptions, that moral judgments are prescriptive, universalizable, and logically related. Universalizability places rationality within moral judgment, while prescriptivity…
This book examines the development of ethical thought through four main phases, the teachings of Socrates, Aristotle, Christian morality, and utilitarianism. The author highlights how Socrates shifted the focus of philosophy from cosmological speculation to an understanding of humankind and the moral life, emphasizing the importance of self knowledge and the use of reason as the basis for virtu…
This book examines the development of classical utilitarianism in the tradition of Western moral philosophy from the 18th to the 19th centuries. The author traces the concept of utility as a basis for moral judgment, evolving from the thought of David Hume to a more systematic form in the work of John Stuart Mill. Through historical and philosophical analysis, Rosen shows how ideas about utilit…