Morality, Utilitarianism, and Rights [Hardcover]

The essays reprinted in this collection span a period of almost 30 years and include many classic pieces in metaethical and normative ethical theory.Written by one of the most eminent and influential of contemporary moral philosophers, the essays reprinted in this collection span a period of almost 30 years and include many classic pieces in metaethical and normative ethical theory.Written by one of the most eminent and influential of contemporary moral philosophers, the essays reprinted in this collection span a period of almost 30 years and include many classic pieces in metaethical and normative ethical theory.Richard Brandt is one of the most eminent and influential of contemporary moral philosophers. His work has been concerned with how to justify what is good or right not by reliance on intuitions or theories about what moral words mean but by the explanation of moral psychology and the description of what it is to value something, or to think it immoral. His approach thus stands in marked contrast to the influential theories of John Rawls. The essays reprinted in this collection span a period of almost 30 years and include many classic pieces in metaethical and normative ethical theory. The collection is aimed at both those moral philosophers familiar with Brandt's work and at those philosophers who may be largely unfamiliar with his work. The latter group will be struck by the lucid unpretentious style and the cumulative weight of Brandt's contributions to topics that remain at the forefront of moral philosophy.Sources; 1. Introductory comments; Part I. Metaethical Preliminaries: 2. Moral philosophy and the analysis of language; 3. Rational desires; 4. The explanation of moral language; 5. Morality and its critics; 6. Rationality, egoism, and morrality; Part II. Normative Ethics: Utilitarianism: 7. Some merits of one form of rule - utilitarianism; 8. Fairness to indirect optimific theories in ethics; 9. Two concepts of utility; Part III. Utilitl“+