Elements of Ethics

This work renews the basic questions and principles of philosophical ethics and provides a thorough account of how being oneself presupposes freedom and responsibility. Elements of Ethics focuses on the descriptive and conceptual analysis of the experiences through which human lives become aware of themselves and shows how we are provoked to respond appropriately to the various dimensions and phenomena of the universe.

Operating on the provocative thesis that "if the ethical is real, it cannot be proved, because it is either nothing at all or an irreducible origin," this book pursues the question that defines ethics: "How should I live?" After setting out a preliminary definition of terms, Elements of Ethics gives insight into the relation of human individuals and the world by showing that the traditional separation between "is" and "ought" overlooks their profound coincidence, and by clarifying the determining, though often overlooked, role of affectivity and katharsis in all ethical experiences.

Author: Adriaan T. Peperzak
Publisher: Stanford University Press
Published: 09/26/2003
Pages: 304
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.94lbs
Size: 9.40h x 6.20w x 0.78d
ISBN: 9780804747707

Review Citation(s):
Choice 06/01/2004 pg. 1895
Reference and Research Bk News 02/01/2004 pg. 10

About the Author
Adriaan T. Peperzak is Arthur J. Schmitt Professor in Philosophy at Loyola University, Chicago. He is the author or editor of over thirty books in five languages.