The Story of Ethics: Fulfilling Our Human Nature » (1st Edition)

This book provides readers with an excellent introduction to the history of ethics. The authors examine the ethical philosophies of prominent Western thinkers—from the ancients through the twentieth century—within the context of their views of human nature and human fulfillment. They do so in a way that is both accessible and engaging without sacrificing the profundity of the issues raised.

A five-part organization covers the Homeric tradition, the Sophists, Plato, Aristotle, Christianity, Neoplatonism, Augustine, the Euthyphro problem, revolutions and reformations, Thomas Hobbes, David Hume, Immanuel Kant, Mary Wollstonecraft, Hegelianism and Materialism, Karl Marx, John Stuart Mill, Soren Kierkegaard, Darwinism, Friedrich Nietzsche, G. E. Moore, A.J. Ayer, Jean-Paul Sartre, Elizabeth Anscombe, John Rawls, Alasdair MacIntyre, Carol Gilligan, Richard Rorty, and a conclusion about human nature, morality & fulfillment.

For individuals who want to better formulate their own answers and frame their own decisions, both large and small, within the all important context of what it means to flourish as a human being.

I. THE ANCIENT WORLD.

1. The Homeric Tradition.

2. The Sophists.

3. Socrates.

4. Plato.

5. Aristotle.

II. THE MEDIEVAL WORLD.

6. Christianity.

7. Neoplatonism.

8. Augustine.

9. The Euthyphro Problem.

10. Thomas Aquinas.

III. THE MODERN WORLD.

11. Revolutions and Reformations.

12. Thomas Hobbes.

13. David Hume.

14. Immanuel Kant.

15. Mary Wollstonecraft.

IV. THE LATE MODERN WORLD.

16. Hegelianism and Materialism.

17. Karl Marx.

18. John Stuart Mill.

19. Kierkegaard.

20. Darwinism.

21. Friedrich Nietzsche.

V. THE POSTMODERN WORLD.

22. G. E. Moore.

23. A. J. Ayer.

24. Jean-Paul Sartre.

25. Elizabeth Anscombe.

26. John Rawls.

27. R. M. Hare.

28. Alasdair MacIntyre.

29. Carol Gilligan.

30. Richard Rorty.

Conclusion: Human Nature, Human Morality, and Human Fulfillment?