Philosophy has provided us with a wealth of moral and ethical theories. Applied ethics is the study of practical moral issues and our best philosophical theories, and how each can inform the other.

Acclaimed philosopher and textbook author Robin Attfield invites students to reflect on the key problems of our time. Through lively case studies of topics related to health care, international development, the environment, abortion, punishment and more, he reveals how standard ethical theories can be tested on these real-life scenarios and, if necessary, revised or discarded. Students are encouraged to be their own philosophers, exploring and reaching coherent stances across a wide range of areas of everyday concern.

Covering a typical applied ethics syllabus in a comprehensive and accessible manner, Applied Ethics will motivate philosophy students to engage with the most pressing moral issues of the twenty-first century.

Acknowledgements

1 The History and Revival of Applied Ethics
2 Sketches of Some Ethical Theories
3 Inter-Generational Ethics
4 Inter-Species Ethics
5 Biomedical Ethics
6 Development Ethics and Population Ethics
7 Environmental Ethics and Climate Ethics
8 Punishment, Recompense and Capital Punishment
9 The Ethics of War and Peace
10 Applied Ethics and Ethical Theory

Bibliography“An outstanding book: comprehensive, systematic, and clear, covering enormous territory. It will be highly successful in courses, as well as with general readers looking for a guide to applied ethics. Attfield is a true, even awesome contributor to the field.”
Charles Taliaferro, St. Olaf College

“This clear, scholarly, and engaging book, by a long-standing and internationally eminent contributor to the subject, is the perfect introduction to applied ethics for students. Those already working in the area at any level will also learn much from it.”
Roger Crisp, University of OxfordRobin Attfield is Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at Cardiff University.