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Russ Shafer-Landau
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The Fundamentals of Ethics Paperback – 29 June 2017

by Shafer-Landau (Author)
4.5 out of 5 stars 698
Edition: 4th
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The Fundamentals of Ethics 6e
The Fundamentals of Ethics 6e
$152.43
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In The Fundamentals of Ethics, Fourth Edition, author Russ Shafer-Landau employs a uniquely engaging writing style to introduce students to the essential ideas of moral philosophy. Offering more comprehensive coverage of the good life, normative ethics, and metaethics than any other text of its kind, this book also addresses issues that are often omitted from other texts, such as the doctrine of doing and allowing, the doctrine of double effect, ethical particularism, the desire-satisfaction theory of well-being, moral error theory, and Ross's theory of prima facie duties. Shafer-Landau carefully reconstructs and analyzes dozens of arguments in depth, at a level that is understandable to students with no prior philosophical background.Ideal for courses in introductory ethics and contemporary moral problems, this book can be used as a stand-alone text or with the author's companion reader, The Ethical Life: Fundamental Readings in Ethics and Moral Problems, Fourth Edition.
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  1. ISBN-10
    9780190631390
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0190631390
  3. Edition
    4th
  4. Publisher
    Oxford University Press USA
  5. Publication date
    29 June 2017
  6. Language
    English
  7. Dimensions
    20.83 x 1.78 x 13.97 cm
  8. Print length
    500 pages
  9. See all details
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Product description

Review

"The Fundamentals of Ethics is quite simply the best introductory ethics book out there."--Philip Robbins, University of Missouri "The writing style is perfectly pitched, the examples are vivid and memorable, and the concepts are thoroughly discussed."--Scott James, University of North Carolina Wilmington "The clarity of Shafer-Landau's writing is almost unparalleled, and the examples that he uses (both real and imagined) are pedagogical treasures. He does a remarkable job of explaining very complex philosophical theories in a thoroughly engaging yet eminently clear fashion."--Aleksander Pjevalica, University of Texas at El Paso "The Fundamentals of Ethics is an outstanding introductory text. It does an excellent job of presenting complex ideas at an introductory level, while deftly helping students understand the practical import of ethical theory. Its analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of each of the normative theories is cogently presented. Perhaps its most salient feature is its handling of metaethical issues, which speaks directly to the presuppositions students often have about ethical reasoning. Shafer-Landau's approach clearly shows the experience of someone who has taught this material in the classroom and understands common student assumptions and concerns. This is a very impressive introduction. And the price is substantially lower than that of the Rachels text."--Matthew J. Fitzsimmons, University of North Alabama

Review

"The Fundamentals of Ethics is quite simply the best introductory ethics book out there."--Philip Robbins, University of Missouri "The writing style is perfectly pitched, the examples are vivid and memorable, and the concepts are thoroughly discussed."--Scott James, University of North Carolina Wilmington "The clarity of Shafer-Landau's writing is almost unparalleled, and the examples that he uses (both real and imagined) are pedagogical treasures. He does a remarkable job of explaining very complex philosophical theories in a thoroughly engaging yet eminently clear fashion."--Aleksander Pjevalica, University of Texas at El Paso "The Fundamentals of Ethics is an outstanding introductory text. It does an excellent job of presenting complex ideas at an introductory level, while deftly helping students understand the practical import of ethical theory. Its analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of each of the normative theories is cogently presented. Perhaps its most salient feature is its handling of metaethical issues, which speaks directly to the presuppositions students often have about ethical reasoning. Shafer-Landau's approach clearly shows the experience of someone who has taught this material in the classroom and understands common student assumptions and concerns. This is a very impressive introduction. And the price is substantially lower than that of the Rachels text."--Matthew J. Fitzsimmons, University of North Alabama

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0190631392
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Oxford University Press USA; 4th edition (29 June 2017)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 500 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780190631390
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0190631390
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 20.83 x 1.78 x 13.97 cm
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 out of 5 stars 698

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Russ Shafer-Landau

Russ Shafer-Landau

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quinet
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book, highly recommended
Reviewed in Canada on 23 February 2020
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Excellent introduction to the field of ethical theory.
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Pondiki
5.0 out of 5 stars Course Literature
Reviewed in Germany on 18 January 2017
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Had to get this as course literature for university and everyone loved this book. Very nice for beginners! Happy with it and would recommend it.
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Piguel
5.0 out of 5 stars This is a great book- really readable
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 3 April 2016
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This is a great book- really readable, in a way most philosophical related texts aren't. Shafer-Landau has made some hard going topics so accessible and easy to understand. He also is witty and fun.
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A. Omelianchuk
5.0 out of 5 stars The best philosophy textbook I have been assigned to read.
Reviewed in the United States on 20 February 2011
Verified Purchase
Russ Shafer-Landau's The Fundamentals of Ethics was just one of the books assigned in a semester's worth of reading for my graduate studies. Philosophy texts are usually a chore to read, and many of them are quite boring. However, there was never an instance where I did not look forward to reading Fundamentals when I had to fulfill the week's reading assignment. I cannot think of any other textbook I have owned that I could say that about!

Shafer-Landau's writing is lucid and engaging, sprinkled with wit and humor and brilliant summaries of complex moral theories. Perhaps some could complain that his treatment of various views is oversimplified, but that would miss the point. The purpose of the text is to introduce the reader to popular theories of normative systems of ethics, and give a short defense of his preferred view of moral objectivity. If one wants to dive deeper, one will find abundant references to primary sources easily found in one of Shafer-Landau's edited volumes (e.g. Ethical Theory: An Anthology).

This book serves the purpose of education well in that it mercifully introduces the reader to thinking about ethics in a way that invites more learning--not just for learning's sake--but for living well.
27 people found this helpful
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darthbarracuda
5.0 out of 5 stars This is one of the best books on ethics I've ever read
Reviewed in the United States on 24 August 2017
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This is one of the best books on ethics I've ever read, and I've read a lot of books on ethics. It's a book meant for beginners who have little to no experience with moral philosophy, but even professionals or ethics-enthusiasts (like myself) will find much value in this book. It manages to cover an impressive amount of information in a relatively short time, beginning with questions of value, then the various normative ethical views, and ending with meta-ethics. Each chapter is divided into chunks that either explain a position or the arguments for and against it. The companion book is also great, which is a collection of historical ethical literature.

I'm still giving it five stars but a gripe I did have was that the final section on meta-ethics was a little sparse. Shafer-Landau focuses primarily on skeptic perspectives of ethics, such as subjectivism, relativism, non-cognitivism and error theory. I wish he would have included something more about moral realism, and maybe even his own realist views. But in general it's not that big of an omission. I can understand why he didn't include some of the more nuanced positions in meta-ethics, like constructivism or Blackburn's quasi-realism, but if you're looking for a book that has more substance in meta-ethics, you might want to complement this book with another one that focuses more on meta-ethics. I personally would recommend "Foundations of Ethics: An Anthology" which is partly edited by Shafer-Landau, as well as "A Companion to Ethics" edited by Singer.

But yeah, five stars no question about it. Fantastic book, entertaining and filled with information. Would recommend.
3 people found this helpful
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