I think Ciphergoth wanted to talk about consequentialist ethics.
Can anyone suggest a book (or two) that would serve as a good introduction to consequentialism for the non-philosophy major?
I suppose good places to start would be Wikipedia and the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, but let’s say I want something longer form yet not too arcane.
In addition, there’s the work of Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832), An Introduction
to the Principles of Morals and Legislation. It’s even available as an
audio book through
Librivox.
Warning: Slightly Off-Topic
Can anyone suggest a book (or two) that would serve as a good introduction to consequentialism for the non-philosophy major?
I suppose good places to start would be Wikipedia and the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, but let’s say I want something longer form yet not too arcane.
In addition, there’s the work of Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832), An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation. It’s even available as an audio book through Librivox.
John Stuart Mill is probably easier to read.
John Stuart Mill wrote “Utilitarianism”, which kind of kickstarted the whole mess. It’s a skinny little book.
And out of copyright even in the U.S., which makes it available free online and cheap in print.
Thanks for the recommendation. I found an online copy here:
http://www.utilitarianism.com/mill1.htm