Ethics Through History: An Introduction

What is the human good? What are the primary virtues that make a good person? What makes an action right? Must we try to maximize good consequences? How can we know what is right and good? Can morality be rationally justified? In Ethics Through History, Terence Irwin addresses such fundamental questions, making these central debates intelligible to readers without an extensive background in philosophy. He provides a historical and philosophical discussion of major questions and key philosophers in the history of ethics, in the tradition that begins with Socrates onwards. Irwin covers ancient, medieval, and modern moral philosophers whose views have helped to form the agenda for contemporary ethical theory, paying attention to the strengths and weaknesses of their respective positions.


About the Author
Terence Irwin, Emeritus Professor of Ancient Philosophy, University of Oxford

Terence Irwin is Emeritus Professor of Ancient Philosophy at the University of Oxford. He obtained his MA from Oxford and his PhD from Princeton University. He has taught at Harvard and Cornell. He is the author of The Development of Ethics (Oxford 2007-9), among numerous other publications.