Deontology

Deontology is a major approach to normative ethical theory that holds that whether an agent’s action is right or wrong depends not just on consequences, but also on other ‘agent–relative’ features of an individual’s situation – their relations to others, to past actions, and so on. One classical source for this view is Kant’s idea that every person has an inestimable worth, or dignity, that cannot be traded off against other values. But the idea is also prominent in ‘intuitionist’ deontologists, who hold that many different moral considerations and principles exist, and that these cannot be reduced to any fundamental principle or value. Deontology collects, for the first time, both the major classical sources and the central contemporary expressions of this important position. In addition to Kant, classical selections from Richard Price and W. D. Ross are included. Contemporary writers represented here include Robert Nozick, Thomas Nagel, Stephen Darwall, Judith Jarvis Thomson, Frances Myrna Kamm, Warren S. Quinn, and Christine M. Korsgaard. Edited and introduced by Stephen Darwall, these readings are essential for anyone interested in normative theory.

Introduction. Part I: Classical Sources:. 1. From Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals : Immanuel Kant. 2. From The Metaphysics of Morals : Immanuel Kant. 3. ′On a Supposed Right to Lie from Philanthropy′: Immanuel Kant. 4. From A Review of the Principal Questions in Morals : Richard Price. 5. From The Right and the Good: W. D. Ross. Part II: Contemporary Expressions:. 6. ′Moral Constraints and Moral Goals′: Robert Nozick. 7. ′Agent–Relativity and Deontology′: Thomas Nagel. 8. ′Agent–Centred Restrictions From the Inside Out′: Stephen Darwall. 9. ′The Trolley Problem′: Judith Thomson. 10. ′Harming Some to Save Others′: Frances Kamm. 11. ′Actions, Intentions, and Consequences: The Doctrine of Double Effect′: Warren Quinn. 12. ′The Right to Lie: Kant on Dealing with Evil′: Christine Korsgaard. Index.

Stephen Darwall is the John Dewey Collegiate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Michigan. He has written widely on moral philosophy and its history, and is the author of Impartial Reason (1983), The British Moralists and the Internal ‘Ought’: 1640–1740 (1995), Philosophical Ethics (1998), and Welfare and Rational Care (2002). He is the editor, with Allan Gibbard and Peter Railton, of Moral Discourse and Practice (1997).

“This is a well–conceived collection, sensitive both to the history of the subject and to its more practical consequences. It is highly suitable for advanced undergraduate and graduate teaching. Nobody does this sort of thing better than Stephen Darwall.” Jonathan Dancy, University of Reading <!––end––> “Working out an approach to teaching deontology has traditionally been a process of making costly choices. It is a singular virtue of Darwall′s thoughtful collection of readings that by including classical readings as well contemporary discussions, general rationales as well as specific cases, it frees us from the need to make these choices.” Paul Hurley, Pomona College "In this book we have an excellent investigation of anti–consequentialist discourse through a very appropriate selection of essays effecting an imaginative and profound expansion of deontology. It will prove to be a valuable collection for all academics and students ..." Dr Marianna Papastephanou "... in this book we have an excellent inverstigation of anti–consequentialist discourse through a very appropriate selection of essays effecting an imaginative and profound expansion of deontology. It will prove to be a valuable collection for all academics and students who are interested in current debates over moral duty, responsibility and their limits." Marianna Papastephanou, University of Cyprus