Moral Disagreements Classic and Contemporary Readings

Should we tolerate or interfere with those with whom we disagree? Can those with profound moral differences find a way to live cooperatively together? Whether the issue is homosexuality, abortion, suicide, free speech, or female circumcision, moral disagreements within and among societies are a pervasive feature of the modern world. This anthology is the first to bring together classic and contemporary readings on this central problem in moral thinking. Bringing recent and historical philosophers--from Aquinas, Hume and Nietzsche to Nussbaum and Berlin--into dialogue with well-known anthropologists, "Moral Disagreements" allows the reader to evaluate current philosophical debates in a rich historical and interdisciplinary context. Christopher Gowans provides a comprehensive introduction to the topic and an extensive bibliography of recent literature.

Can moral disagreements be rationally resolved? Can universal human rights be defended in face of moral disagreements? The problem of moral disagreement is one of the central problems in moral thinking. It also provides a stimulating stepping-stone to some of the perennial problems of philosophy, such as relativism, scepticism, and objectivity. Moral Disagreements is the first anthology to bring together classic and contemporary readings on this key topic. Clearly divided into five parts; The Historical Debate; Voices from Anthropology; Challenges to Moral Objectivity; Defenses of Moral Objectivity; and New Directions, the anthology presents readings from the following key thinkers:* Sextus, Empiricus, Chagnon, Wong, MacIntyre* Aquinas, Shweder, Brink, Rawls* Montaigne, Turner, Nussbaum, Narayan* Hume, Mackie, Gewirth* Nietzsche, Williams, Berlin.A distinctive feature of the anthology is that it brings philosophers into dialogue with well-known anthropologists. Also included is a comprehensive introduction by Christopher Gowans, introducing the problem of moral disagreement to those coming to the topic for the first time.

INTRODUCTION, Christopher W. Gowans; Part I Part I THE HISTORICAL DEBATE; Chapter 1 OUTLINES OF SCEPTICISM, Sextus Empiricus; Chapter 2 NATURAL LAW AND MORAL DISAGREEMENTS, Thomas Aquinas; Chapter 3 RENAISSANCE SKEPTICISM, Michel de Montaigne; Chapter 4 A DIALOGUE, David Hume; Chapter 5 BEYOND GOOD AND EVIL, Friedrich Nietzsche; Part II Part II SOME VOICES FROM ANTHROPOLOGY; Chapter 6 YANOMAMÖ: THE LAST DAYS OF EDEN, Napoleon A. Chagnon; Chapter 7 THE ASTONISHMENT OF ANTHROPOLOGY, Richard A. Shweder; Chapter 8 HUMAN RIGHTS, HUMAN DIFFERENCE, Turner Terence; Part III Part III CHALLENGES TO MORAL OBJECTIVITY; Chapter 9 THE ARGUMENT FROM RELATIVITY, J.L. Mackie; Chapter 10 KNOWLEDGE, SCIENCE, CONVERGENCE, BernardWilliams; Chapter 11 MORAL RELATIVITY AND TOLERANCE, David B. Wong; Part IV Part IV DEFENSES OF MORAL OBJECTIVITY; Chapter 12 MORAL DISAGREEMENT, David O. Brink; Chapter 13 NON-RELATIVE VIRTUES, Martha Nussbaum; Chapter 14 IS CULTURAL PLURALISM RELEVANT TO MORAL KNOWLEDGE?, Alan Gewirth; Part V Part V NEW DIRECTIONS; Chapter 15 THE PURSUIT OF THE IDEAL, Isaiah Berlin; Chapter 16 THE RATIONALITY OF TRADITIONS, MacIntyre Alasdair; Chapter 17 POLITICAL LIBERALISM AND THE IDEA OF AN OVERLAPPING CONSENSUS, John Rawls; Chapter 18 ESSENCE OF CULTURE AND A SENSE OF HISTORY, Uma Narayan; Bibliography INDEX;

Christopher W. Gowans is Professor of Philosophy at Fordham University, NY. He is the editor of Moral Dilemmas (1987) and the author of Innocence Lost: An Examination of Inescapable Moral Wrongdoing (1994).