Good and Evil

by Richard Taylor

Book Overview

The discussion of good and evil must not be confined to the sterile lecture halls of academics but related instead to ordinary human feelings, needs, and desires, says noted philosopher Richard Taylor. Efforts to understand morality by exploring human reason will always fail because we are creatures of desire as well. All morality arises from our intense and inescapable longing. The distinction between good and evil is always clouded by rationalists...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 157392752X
• ISBN13: 9781573927529
• Release Date: November 1999
• Publisher: Prometheus Books
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Ditto -- but I Just Have to Sing Along!

It's quite the tragedy that this book is out-of-print. A book "with serious philosophy" that is very accessible to casual readers, it is one of the books that's literally changed my life! I won't go into details here except that it helped me "loosen up" and, even, "get a life!" If you've seen Ingmar Bergman's "The Seventh Seal," I was like the Knight character who was full of doubt and worry...this book, among others, helped me tremendously in moving away from that to being more the Jupp (fool/artist) character.... Thanks Professor Taylor! Though I know my church upbringing had something to do with it all, I'm still surprised now how obvious the matter is, as you've laid it out in your book, and yet I just couldn't see it, despite all my former pondering and questioning!

The Perils and Peculiarities of a Rationalistic Ethics

It was Vanderbilt philosopher John Lachs who said that only the philosopher, reflecting on her homogenized sample group of professor-colleagues and college-minded students, really think that by-in-large, humans are rational animals. The problem with ethics and 'moral theory' today is that it drastically overemphasizes the power of rationalism and appeals to...well...theory. Plato, Kant, Mill, and most of those in between have 'argued' for certain moral systems based on some objective standard (the pleasure principle, categorical imperative, etc.) accessible it is said, through the faculty of reason. There is, it is said, a True Morality and general principles therein (that exist whether we think they do or not); only the reasoned, contemplative mind can know them. Richard Taylor has a problem with that. His goal is to examine rataionalism's manifestations in the history of ethical philosophy, argue why that conception is flawed, and replace it with something different, better, and hopefully better capable to portray morality as it really is - rather than as philosophers (who often value consistency over accuracy) tend to pretend it exists. All that said, this book is literally one of the best reading philosophy books I have EVER read (I'd place it in my top ten). Taylor's three sections (history, argument against, elucidation) are simply first rate for their clarity, terseness, conversationalism, and structure. It is rare to read a 300 page book that can present a history, argue against its principles, present new principles, argue for them, present details on them, and still have you interested. This book does that. Even for those that are interested only in a general text on moral philosophy's evolution, buy this book for the first 150 pages; everyone from Protogoras to Plato, Kant to Mill is discussed in an insightful and delightful manner. Finally we come to the argument against rationalism. Taylor's view to replace rationalism is a tough one for philosophers to swallow: general moral principles of the kind to objectively ground morality to don't exist after all. Morality, rather, is simply our set of rules (however informal) in living with others. What is good? What is evil? What is the moral life? Says Taylor, "No general principles or objective mind-irrelative standard is going to help us here." Morality is conventional in the sense that it is solely based on human contrivance (and we are all checks and balances on eachother, even without the luxury of objective principles). But, though relative, morality is still based in large part on our human natures. But it is not reason we are after (as philosophers like to say it is) but emotion. Taylor brings up many reasons why he thinks this is so, but one in particular stands out (as I'd been beginning to suspect it anyhow). Philosophers talk a lot about general principles. But when they do, they 'justify' them by appealing to the results they lead to. For the principle, "See others as ends, rat

Begin and end here.

I had the pleasure of taking three classes with Professor Taylor at the University of Rochester. They are the few classes I've taken with me throughout my life's journey. This book is wonderful example of the clear thinking, and simplicity of thought, that are the gifts of truly brilliant philosophers. Taylor does not try to overwhelm the reader with difficult vocabulary or ornate sentences. He doesn't skirt around issues. He tries to be both practical and insightful, and succeeds on both counts. Think of this as an owner's manual for the thoughtful person.I highly recommend it.

<< NEW EDITION *IS* AVAILABLE! >> Excellent probe into purely secular view of morality/meaning

(Note: THIS BOOK *IS* AVAILABLE! If you're seeing this on a page that lists the book as "Unavailable," click on "Paperback (Rev)" under Product Details / Other Editions for the REVISED 1999 EDITION.) GOOD AND EVIL: A NEW DIRECTION is an amazingly readable and thorough inquiry into the nature of human ethics from a purely secular point of view. Without God or any supernatural force or creator of human beings (who, all evidence shows, came into existence by evolutionary chance), what is the true nature of morality? What can be the purpose of life? Richard Taylor explores these grand questions with disarming clarity and a sense of exciting discovery. Unlike so many other writers and philosophers in the field, Taylor avoids the usual pitfalls of circular arguments and cheated "self-evident" givens to defend secular morality and meaning. Taylor's is one of the most rigorously honest and solid explorations of secular morality I have read. (A fine companion is Michael Shermer's "The Science of Good and Evil.") Instead of the typical appeal to reason alone, which Taylor cogently argues can never truly explain or defend morality, GOOD AND EVIL appeals first and foremost to innate human desire and will. His crisp style and easy use of fable and analogy (most notably, clever variations of the Sisyphus myth: what could make Sisyphus' task seem meaningful?) make this book appropriate for the casual reader and advanced philosophy, psychology, theology and/or anthropology student alike. Sticking to a purely secular view without condescension toward other points of view, Taylor not only offers airtight explanations of morality and meaning, but he sends the reader off with a greater sense of hope and love of life than do many theological and spiritual texts on the same topic. I had some minor quibbles with the final chapter, but nothing important. No matter what one's personal point of view, this book is a must for all who ask the big questions and find the answers lacking. Perhaps it's an even greater must for those who feel confident they have all the answers.

<< NEW EDITION *IS* AVAILABLE! >> Excellent probe into purely secular view of morality/meaning

(Note: THIS BOOK *IS* AVAILABLE! If you're seeing this on a page that lists the book as "Unavailable," click on "Paperback (Rev)" under Product Details / Other Editions for the REVISED 1999 EDITION.) GOOD AND EVIL: A NEW DIRECTION is an amazingly readable and thorough inquiry into the nature of human ethics from a purely secular point of view. Without God or any other supernatural force or "creator" of human beings, what is the true nature of morality? What can be the purpose of life? Richard Taylor explores these grand questions with disarming clarity and a sense of exciting discovery. Unlike so many other writers and philosophers in the field, Taylor avoids the usual pitfalls of circular arguments and cheated "self-evident" givens to defend secular morality and meaning. Taylor's is one of the most rigorously honest and solid explorations of secular morality I have read. (A fine companion is Michael Shermer's "The Science of Good and Evil.") Instead of the typical appeal to reason alone, which Taylor cogently argues can never truly explain or defend morality, GOOD AND EVIL appeals first and foremost to innate human desire and will. His crisp style and easy use of fable and analogy (most notably, clever variations of the Sisyphus myth: what could make Sisyphus' task seem "meaningful"?) make this book appropriate for the casual reader and advanced philosophy, psychology, theology and/or anthropology student alike. Sticking to a purely secular view without condescension toward other points of view, Taylor not only offers airtight explanations of morality and meaning, but he sends the reader off with a greater sense of hope and love of life than do many theological and spiritual texts on the same topic. I had some minor quibbles with the final chapter, but nothing to diminish the book overall. No matter what one's personal point of view, this book is a must for all who ask the big questions and find the answers lacking. Perhaps it's an even greater must for those who feel confident they have all the answers.