A Review on What Is This Thing Called Ethics? by Christopher Bennett

• 발행기관: 신학과사상학회
• 저자명: Prof. Fr. Gyuha Choi
• 간행물 정보: 『Catholic Theology and Thought』Catholic Theology and Thought No.79, 310~322쪽, 전체 13쪽
• 주제분류: 인문학 > 종교학
• 파일형태: PDF
• 발행일자: 2017.07.30

영문 초록

One of the necessary but difficult tasks for those who are planning to teach an introductory course about ethics at the college level is finding a proper textbook. It should neither be too specific nor be too general. For, if the former, due to limited teaching hours, the course may not be able to cover all the major or important moral theories, which must be the goal of any introductory class. On the other hand, if the latter, the course may fail to meet the needs of the students who are ready to delve more deeply into detailed arguments and discussions that deal with such issues as: what it means for an action to be morally right or wrong; how an action or a character is morally justified; and what criteria can be used to judge the rightness of an action. In this regard, Christopher Bennett’s What Is This Thing Called Ethics? appears to be a good example of how an introductory textbook should be organized. Basically, this book consists of three main parts: first, an introduction to the theoretical approaches concerning moral issues; second, discussions on three major moral theories, i.e., utilitarianism, Kant’s deontology, and Aristotle’s virtue ethics; third, explanations on some other varied approaches to morality, such as Marxian and Nietzschean critiques on morality and contractualism. In what follows, I do not aim to seriously critique Bennett’s own arguments since, in his book, rather than developing his own arguments and theories, he tries to provide his readers with a substantial and persuasive presentation of various moral theories. Thus, in this review, especially focusing on Part II where Bennett explains three moral theories that are arguably considered as major moral theories, I aim to present the topics of each part chapter by chapter; then, when necessary, I will raise some critical issues although they may seem to be quite trivial.

목차

1. Part I: Life and Death

2. Part II: Three Starting Points in Moral Theory

3. Part III: Further Directions for Moral Thinking