Ethical Wisdom What Makes Us Good
Ethical Wisdom What Makes Us Good by Mark Matousek, published by Doubleday in 2011, explores the complex nature of morality and ethics. This edition spans 251 pages and is presented in English. Matousek delves into the age-old question of what distinguishes good from evil, arguing that emotions are fundamental to ethical life, challenging the notion that reason alone governs our moral decisions.
Readers will find a thorough examination of morality through various lenses, including scientific, sociological, and anthropological perspectives. The book features a mix of questions, readings, interviews, and anecdotes that engage with themes of self-interest versus altruism and the biological versus ethical aspects of morality. Matousek’s approach aims to provide insights for those navigating their own moral dilemmas, making the text both informative and accessible.
Official synopsis Publisher
Since the days of the first primitive tribes, we have tried to determine why one man is good and another evil. Mark Matousek arrives at the answer in Ethical Wisdom.
Contrary to what we’ve been taught in our reason-obsessed culture, emotions are the bedrock of ethical life; without them, human beings cannot be empathic, moral, or good.
But how do we make the judgment call between self-interest and caring for others? What does being good really mean? Which parts of morality are biological, which ethical? When should instinct be trusted and when does it lead us into trouble? How can we know ourselves to be good amidst the hypocrisy, fears, and sabotaging appetites that pervade our two-sided natures?
Drawing on the latest scientific research and interviews with social scientists, spiritual leaders, ex-cons, altruists, and philosophers, Matousek examines morality from a scientific, sociological, and anthropological standpoint. Each chapter features a series of questions, readings, interviews, parables, and anecdotes that zoom in on a particular niche of moral inquiry, making this book both utilitarian and fun.
Ethical Wisdom is an insightful and important book for readers crisscrossing their own murky moral terrain.
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