Applied Ethics: A Multicultural Approach / Edition 6

by Larry May

Overview

Unlike any other anthologies in applied ethics, this anthology integrates multicultural perspectives throughout each section as it considers contemporary ethical problems and dilemmas. All of the standard topics for an introductory ethics course are present, but this new edition is the only anthology to devote an entire section to the ethics of radically new technologies. Classic readings, as well as compelling contemporary essays, are brought together to provide instructors and students with the best introduction to applied ethics on the market.

Features:

• Integrated moral perspectives, drawn from diverse global traditions, for each ethical topic
• Introductory chapter on the nature of morality, including capsule summaries of major Western and non-Western ethical perspectives
• Classic and contemporary readings on all ethical topics, representing differences of gender, ethnicity and race
• Extended introductions to sections and essays to aid in student comprehension

New to this edition:

• Entirely new section on technology and ethics, with essays on genetics, artificial intelligence, and mind-altering drugs
• Completely revised section on race, including new essays representing diverse ethnic American voices
• New essay which clarifies common misperceptions about the ethical position of "cultural relativism"
• New essays on reproductive rights issues, environmental issues, and the problems of hunger and poverty

Product Details

ISBN-13:	2901612058398
Publication date:	09/16/2015
Pages:	606
Product dimensions:	6.80(w) x 9.90(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

Larry May is W. Alton Jones Professor of Philosophy, Professor of Law, and Professor of Political Science at Vanderbilt University. He has authored or edited over thirty books, most recently on the topics of war and international criminal law. He teaches courses in philosophy of law and the history of political philosophy. Jill B. Delston is an assistant teaching professor of philosophy at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Her teaching and research span social and political philosophy, global justice, normative ethics, early modern philosophy, and ancient Greek philosophy.

Table of Contents

Preface ix

Introduction 1

Antiracism, Multiculturalism, and Interracial Community: Three Educational Values for a Multicultural Society Lawrence A. Blum 4

Judging Other Cultures: The Case of Genital Mutilation Martha Nussbaum 12

I Theoretical Perspectives 23

Utilitarianism John Stuart Mill 31

A Simplified Account of Kant's Ethics Onora O'Neill 39

A Theory of Justice John Rawls 44

On Virtue Ethics Rosalind Hursthouse 52

Hindu Values Debabrata Sen Sharma 59

Images of Relationship Carol Gilligan 66

II Human Rights 75

United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights 78

Women's Rights as Human Rights: Toward a Re-Vision of Human Rights Charlotte Bunch 82

Islam, Islamic Law, and the Dilemma of Cultural Legitimacy for Universal Human Rights Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na 'im 91

The African Context of Human Rights Claude Ake 100

Asian Justifications for Human Rights Daniel A. Bell 106

A Buddhist Response to the Nature of Human Rights Kenneth K. Inada 117

Conditions of an Unforced Consensus on Human Rights Charles Taylor 126

Democracy as a Universal Value Amartya Sen 140

III Environmental Ethics 151

The Historical Roots of Our Ecological Crisis Lynn White, Jr. 155

Animal Liberation is an Environmental Ethic Dale Jamieson 163

Faking Nature Robert Elliot 172

A "Good" Environment: Just One of the Set of Human Objectives William Baxter 181

Look to the Mountain: Reflections on Indigenous Ecology Gregory Cajete 186

Environmental Racism, American Indians, and Monitored Retrievable Storage Sites for Radioactive Waste Shari Collins-Chobanian 194

IV Hunger and Poverty 203

Carrying Capacity as an Ethical Concept Garrett Hardin 206

Feeding the Hungry Jan Narveson 213

Famine, Affluence, and Morality Peter Singer 220

A Cosmopolitan Perspective on the Global Economic Order Thomas Pogge 228

Sex & Consequences: World Population Growth vs. Reproductive Rights Margaret P. Battin 238

Perils Amid Promises of Genetically Modified Foods Mae-Wan Ho 248

V War and Violence 259

Just War Theory Douglas P. Lackey 262

Was the [First] Gulf War a Just War? Gregory S. Kavka 270

Was the [Second] Iraq War a Just War? Steven Lee 280

Jus Post Bellum and the Prosecution of Al Bashir for Darfur Larry May 291

A Women's Politics of Resistance Sara Ruddick 296

Letter from the Birmingham City Jail Martin Luther King, Jr. 304

VI Gender Roles and Morality 315

Gender and Social Construction: Who? What? When? Where? How? Sally Haslanger 318

Domestic Violence Against Women and Autonomy Marilyn Friedman 326

Is Equality Tearing Families Apart? Joel Anderson 337

Re-Thinking Civil Unions and Same-Sex Marriage Brook J. Sadler 346

Is it Wrong to Discriminate on the Basis of Homosexuality? Jeff Jordan 355

Justice, Gender, and the Politics of Multiculturalism Sarah Song 363

VII Racial and Ethnic Discrimination 371

Philosophical and Social Implications of Race Naomi Zack 374

Collective Responsibility and Multiple Racial, Ethnic, and Cultural Identities Kai C. Wong 383

Racisms Kwame Anthony Appiah 393

Affirmative Action: The Price of Preference Shelby Steele 404

Should Public Policy Be Class Conscious Rather Than Color Conscious? Amy Gutmann 410

The Color-Blind Principle Bernard Boxill 418

VIII Abortion 427

An Almost Absolute Value in History John T. Noonan 430

On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion Mary Anne Warren 435

Why Abortion Is Immoral Don Marquis 443

Does a Fetus Already Have a Future-Like-Ours? Peter McInerney 450

The Problem of Coerced Abortion in China and Related Ethical Issues Jing-Bao Nie 453

Contestation and Consensus: The Morality of Abortion in Japan William R. LaFleur 463

The Classical Hindu View on Abortion and the Moral Status of the Unborn Julius J. Lipner 471

IX Euthanasia, Sustaining, and Creating Life 481

Active and Passive Euthanasia James Rachels 484

The Intentional Termination of Life Bonnie Steinbock 489

Assisted Suicide: The Philosophers' Brief Ronald Dworkin Thomas Nagel Robert Nozick John Rawls Thomas Scanlon Judith Jarvis Thomson 495

Objections to the Institutionalisation of Euthanasia Stephen G. Potts 505

Euthanasia: The Way We Do It, the Way They Do It Margaret P. Battin 510

Gender, Feminism, and Death: Physician-Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia Susan M. Wolf 525

Confucian Ethic of Death with Dignity and Its Contemporary Relevance Ping-Cheung Lo 540

Buddhist Views of Suicide and Euthanasia Carl B. Becker 553

The Wisdom of Repugnance Leon R. Kass 563

Preface

This book has filled an existing gap in the literature used in applied ethics courses. The major anthologies in applied ethics contain essays written almost exclusively by American social and moral philosophers. These anthologies leave the student with the impression that there are no viewpoints other than those expressed by Americans, and that ethical and social philosophy has little to do with perspectives of other nations and cultures. More and more courses that include the perspectives of diverse cultures are being added to the curriculum. There is no applied ethics volume comparable to ours—indeed philosophy has been very slow to respond to the call for multiculturalism in our curricula.

Our volume addresses various topics in applied ethics from Western and non-western perspectives. As a result, the typical instructor will have an easier time approaching the material than if the material were segregated, or if the issues were not already well known in the West. Nonetheless, since our book devotes significant attention to the moral perspectives of many different cultures and ethnicities, students will come away from our text having a deeper appreciation for other cultures. We believe that the increasing emphasis on multiculturalism and internationalism across disciplines has set the stage for a very positive reception for a book like ours.

Let us briefly address some of the terminology in the book. We have chosen to use the term "American Indian" rather than "Native American" because of the increasing use of the former instead of the latter in such titles as "American Indian Studies" and because many American Indian people believe that the term "NativeAmerican" does not adequately capture their identity since many non-Indians may also claim to be Native Americans. We have used the term "African American" when referring to Blacks living in America and have retained the term "Blacks" when the designated group was not restricted to Americans.

Many people provided us with valuable suggestions and assistance throughout the years that we worked on this project. We would like to thank Margaret Battin, Karen Warren, Iris Young, Mary Mahowald, Marilyn Friedman, Denward Wilson, and Gloria Cuadraz for valuable suggestions about the book's format and selections. We are especially grateful to Dana Klar from Washington University's Center for American Indian Studies for help with some of the multicultural material. In addition, Kenneth Sharratt, Marilyn Broughton, and Debi Katz have helped in the more technical phases of the book's production. The following reviewers provided helpful suggestions and useful insights for the third edition: Susan Lee Morris, Ferris State University and Jeremiah Hackett, University of South Carolina. Joel Anderson, Kate Parsons, Jennifer Stiff, Dennis Cooley, William Tolhurst and many others who used the first edition gave valuable help on the second edition, as did our students. And finally we would like to thank Ross Miller and the rest of the Prentice Hall staff for their invaluable help and support.

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