Science and the Good
The Tragic Quest for the Foundations of Morality
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $3.99
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- $3.99
Publisher Description
Why efforts to create a scientific basis of morality are neither scientific nor moral: "Important and timely."—The Wall Street Journal
In this illuminating book, James Davison Hunter and Paul Nedelisky trace the origins and development of the centuries-long, passionate, but ultimately failed quest to discover a scientific foundation for morality. The "new moral science" led by such figures as E.O. Wilson, Patricia Churchland, Sam Harris, Jonathan Haidt, and Joshua Greene is only the newest manifestation of that quest.
Though claims for its accomplishments are often wildly exaggerated, this new iteration has been no more successful than its predecessors. But rather than giving up in the face of this failure, the new moral science has taken a surprising turn. Whereas earlier efforts sought to demonstrate what is right and wrong, the new moral scientists have concluded, ironically, that right and wrong don't actually exist. Their (perhaps unwitting) moral nihilism turns the science of morality into a social engineering project. If there is nothing moral for science to discover, the science of morality becomes, at best, a feeble program to achieve arbitrary societal goals. Concise and rigorously argued, Science and the Good is a definitive critique of a would-be science that has gained extraordinary influence in public discourse today—and an exposé of that project's darker turn.
"Science and the Good is a closely argued, always accessible riposte to those who think scientific study can explain, improve or even supersede morality . . . A generous and thoughtful critique." —The Daily Telegraph
Customer Reviews
Hunter does it again!
James Davison Hunter once again challenges us to look deeper and farther than we normally do. In this book, he teams up with philosopher Paul Nedelisky to offer a powerful critique of scientific approaches to morality.
The book also contains a concise but useful history of ideas from western moral philosophy; while it may be easy to consider this history boring and unnecessary, it is written in a clear, engaging, and insightful way, and there were some connections the authors comment on that I had never made or known between these ideas despite studying them at length.
I highly recommend this book, especially to those who enjoy reading Sam Harris. It will certainly challenge one’s views and concludes with advice that doesn’t overstep or seek to manipulate. The book is consistently thoughtful yet challenging and prodding, and maintains Hunter’s distinct objectivity throughout.
My only con of this book is it takes some of the interesting philosophical details to the notes/appendix (which are excellently explained by likely not read by most readers, despite being important). That, and as a personal preference, I would have loved to see at least some engagement with the work of Alasdair MacIntyre (though the authors do mention GEM Anscombe) plus moral critics such as Richard Joyce and Sharon Street (though these latter two would likely have helped their case and perhaps the authors did not feel the need to invoke them for support).
If you are remotely interested in the relationship of morality and science, this book is one of the best (and best written) around.