How are We to Live?: Ethics in an Age of Self-interest - Softcover

Singer, Peter

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0749319372 ISBN 13: 9780749319373

Publisher: Mandarin, 1995

Synopsis

This assessment of human nature and society suggests that people who take an ethical approach to life often escape from the trap of meaninglessness so prevalent in modern society, finding instead a deeper satisfaction in what they do than those whose goals are narrower and more self-centred. In spelling out what he means by an ethical approach to life, Peter Singer also challenges the view that selfishness is an evolutionary inevitability.

About this title

Review

Imagine that you could choose a book that everyone in the world would read. My choice would be this book. (Roger Crisp, Ethics)

highly successful. it tackles questions of the first importance, it is immensely readable - being packed with anecdotes and illustrations - and it forces its readers to reflect on how they live their lives (Journal of Applied Philosophy)

From the Back Cover

Singer suggests that people who take an ethical approach to life often avoid the trap of meaninglessness, finding a deeper satisfaction in what they are doing than those people whose goals are narrower and more self-centered. He spells out what he means by an ethical approach to life and shows that it can bring about significant and far-reaching changes to one's life. How Are We to Live? explores the way in which standard contemporary assumptions about human nature and self-interest have led to a world that is fraught with social and environmental problems. Singer asks whether selfishness is in our genes and concludes that we do not have to accept the bleak view of human nature sometimes believed to be inevitable, given our evolutionary origins.

Edition details

• Publisher: Mandarin
• Publication date: 1995
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0749319372
• ISBN 13: 9780749319373
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 400