adri_ethics group*

Epilogo

2008-06-30T03:53:00.000-07:00

We have finally reached the last pages of this book. It has been interesting and I have enjoyed it from begining to end. I feel that its aim was accomplished, it has made me realize that ethics is not about knowing and doing what is right or wrong because in fact nobody can dictate that, but reflecting on what is convenient for me if I want to live a good life. Each person has its own ethics, its own point of view, and should reflect on the implications of his or her decisions individually, but always respecting his own freedom and the freedom of the ones around him. We should always bear in mind that as humans, we are always influenced by others and at the same time we influence other people,becoming "complete" humans by means of socialization, but we are free to chose what to do with our lives and how to live.

Savater, Etica para Amador
Epilogo

Chapter 9

2008-06-07T10:24:00.000-07:00

Politics

Although democratic countries are governed by elected representatives of the people, I believe that politicians do not actually take into account the people’s needs. Perhaps they do so because they live in their very own worlds and never take the time to take a look around and see other realities. That's way many of them seem to not even know that the word ethics exists, taking decisions that do not fit the necessities of the people but their own personal interests. Justice seems so distant when those who are in charge of the destiny of one Nation act as if either all people were like them or otherwise they did not exist. Maybe they feel that since poverty and health and education problems do not reach them, they do not exist. Maybe they believe that such problems are just ideas we have in our minds, or that such a reality belongs only to a bunch of people who deserve being in the situation they are immersed in, and that poverty exists everywhere so it would be impossible to eradicate it from society even if they tried, so they prefer to overlook reality instead of make an attempt to change it.Anyway,it doesn't really matters to me which they reasons mey be,neglecting those who depend on them is to me a complete lack of ethics.

Savater, Etica para Amador

Chapter 9

Chapter 8

2008-06-01T10:57:00.000-07:00

Immoral?

What do we mean when we talk about something being immoral? The dictionary offers two definitions, the first one says: not following accepted standards of sexual behaviour.The other definition refers to people and their behaviour and means: not considered to be good or honest by most people. When we talk about immoral acts, most of the time we think about the former.Generally, the first thing that comes to the mind of a person when we name the word "immoral" is sex, and not even something related to using sex to hurt people.It just seems to be the immoral issue par excellence. According to Freud, every human fact that has to do with the psicological or social life of a person has a sexual significance and its meaning comes from our sexual drives and the transformations that the ego and the culture continuously demand.That's why sexuality is present in all human manifestations, namely those related to our behaviour, health, pathology, education,children upbringing, morality, religion, cultural productions and social phenomena. Since represion emerges when we are children, sexuality will always be regarded as being disgunting and offensive. At social level this represion is expressed in the innumerable taboos that revolve around sexuality, and we will never be able to treat dispassionately any matter that refers to it.

Savater, Etica para Amador

Chapter 8

Chapter 7

2008-06-01T10:49:00.000-07:00

I accept responsability.

One of the characteristic of human beings is our capacity to imitate other people. Most of our behavior and likes probably derive from what we have observed in other people. Each person is unique and have its personal way of seeing things, but we follow other people's example. As social beings we can't help being influenced and at the same time influencing others. That's why it's important to set an example to children and society in general. Small children have plenty of examples to follow, but surely they aren't all good examples. To treat people with respect, consideration,and most fo all as humans is a nice way of setting the example and it is also more likely that we will receive a similar treatment in response. On the other hand, if we treat people like dirt then we shouldn't be surprised to receive the same kind of treatment.

Savater, Etica para Amador

Chapter 7

Chapter 6

2008-05-27T12:51:00.000-07:00

A matter of individual conscience

The conscience is the part of your mind that tells you whether your actions are right or wrong. Sometimes we call it the voice of conscience. We are not born with a highly developed sense of conscience that alows us to know what is the right thing to do in a given situation. Some people may be better at it than others, but generally we have to criticaly analize what we do or what we are about to do if we want to live a good life and not feel guilty about what we do or omit to do. One of the many things that we should bear in mind is the matter of egoism. An egoist is a person who thinks that he is better than other people and who thinks and cares too much about himself or herself. Being a little bit egoist is a good thing as long as it involves taking care of ourselves and our needs, but generally the word egoism shows disapproval. Egoism prevents the egoist person from really loving anyone but himself and as a consequence will surely prevent others from loving him as well.

"Todos, cuando favorecen a otros se favorecen a si mismos" (Séneca, Cartas a Lucilio)

Savater, Etica para Amador

Chapter 6

Chapter 5

2008-05-11T15:29:00.001-07:00

Wake up baby!

Living a good life doesn't imply doing what we want at the moment. That may please us for the time being, but what about the future? Life is complex and there are lot of things to consider when we make decisions and therefore living a good life is not simple. It is clear that we all want live a good life, but what does it mean anyway? Having things we want, money to buy them and power sounds good, but they cannot buy friendship or somebody's love. So, living a good life doesn't consist of having things and influence over people. We are all humans because we belong to the same specie, but we as humans can humanize each other. So, lots of things and millons of Euros aren't enough to live a good life...because things are necessary but only people can make us humans. Ethics is about reflecting over this issue...to try to understand why behaving in a certain way is more convenient for us than behaving in another way, and what can make life good for us.

"...es que ayer estaba viendo la television, estaba viendo un debate sobre lo del 11-M y estaba viendo los politicos que no se ponen nunca de acuerdo, nunca se ponen de acuerdo. Y habia una señora que habia estado en ese tren y era la mas sensata de todos los que estaban en ese programa. Yo quisiera dedicarle, sin que sirva para nada, solo dedicarle esta cancion:

Y no me importa que me digan que yo soy un viva la vida porque vivo sin compromiso. No me da verguenza ninguna, vida tengo na ma' que una aunque crea en el paraiso. Para mi es mucho mas carota el que me acusa de pasota con la baba llena de whisky. Soy lo que tu quieras pero sinverguenza no soy. Cuando veo en esta puerca humanidad tanto crimenes sin nombre, de sinverguenza ni hablar. Me da verguenza de ser un hombre. Yo prefiero seguir buscando los defectos y los encantos de una dama golfa y valiente, verdadera como la guerra, despeinada como la tierra y canalla como la gente. Yo prefiero una compañera perfumada con la madera, con el cuero y con la palabra, hembra. Una mujer para mi debe ser mucho mas que una hembra. Que desprecie los dineros y el chanel, la corbata y la mentira, y solo por esa mujer valdra mi muerte mas que mi vida "

Alejandro Sanz en Concierto.Tour No Es Lo Mismo. Las Ventas, Madrid, España.

Savater, Etica para Amador
Chapter 5

Chapter 4

2008-04-29T14:16:00.000-07:00

A good life...

As humans we are made of body, soul and mind. If we try to get those things we consider to be important for the time being, such as material posessions, and don't take into account that being able to share with others is what make us humans and make others humans as well, we may regret later on, when we realize that, for example, being rich is not worth if we don't have anybody to share our money with. This issue meade me go back in time for a few seconds. I am at River Plate Stadium now, today is March 3rd, 2007. It's around 11 pm and it's raining, but it doesn't matter at all. I don't care about if, neither do the other 50.000 people around me, because we are watching our's favourite singer concert. So there's Ricky Martin, talking to us, telling us that the song he's about to sing reminds him of the importance of sharing what one has with others. He sais that as he has been in the entertainment bussiness since he was 12 years old, he had to grow up fast, and felt at some point that even though he had many things, and had travelled all around the world and done million of things, he felt at some point that he wasn't living life fully. He had to slow down and think about the importance of being himself and doing what he really felt and wanted, to be in contact again with that child he had abandoned years ago in the search for success.
Here's a link to the the song:

Asignatura pendiente

(you can also read the lyrics on the side bar)

Savater, Etica para Amador

Chapter 4

Chapter 3

2008-04-21T15:41:00.000-07:00

Do what you want!

In order to feel free we have to accept that we are responsible for our actions and that we can accept a piece of advice, but no one can tell us what to do. As we grow up and become adults, we have to follow certain rules but not orders. However, I think that if we believe in God we must accept his rules. So, after all we are free to choose our religion, and our actions have to do that decision. What is good and what is bad become more clear, but not everyone have the same religion, and even some people have no religion at all. Then, reflecting about moral issues become essential if nobody can tell us what to do exept for ourselves!!!

Savater, Etica para Amador

Chapter 3

Chapter 2

2008-04-14T15:39:00.000-07:00

Thinking about our actions

Do we always think about our actions? Sometimes we act automatically, because we were taught to do certain things, especially when we were children, or because we think it is our obligation, or maybe because we saw other people do things that we believe to be correct. But maybe it is necessary to take the time to think if what we are doing is truly a good thing. Just because something is done by many people doesn't mean it is correct, right? Children learn from what we teach them on a lesson, but also from what we teach them with our actions, inside and outside the school. Adults are they role models, but not everyone is a good influence for a child. How about teaching them to think critically and reflect on their actions? And when it comes to reflecting on what is good and bad, ethics plays a vital role. What do you think?

Savater: Etica para Amador

Chapter 2

Chapter I

2008-04-07T15:12:00.000-07:00

Free to make choices

As human beings we are free to make choices and decide what to do with our lives. Some people would do whatever they can and even risk their lives to help a person who is in need, while many others would prefer to do as much as they can to preserve their own lives. What is it that makes us act in a certain way and not in other? Why is it that within the same comunity, country, family, etc. some individuals would emphatize with hunger people, homeless children, an injured animal or a pregnat woman at the bank queue, while others would remain indiferent and just mind their own bussiness regardless of what happens around them, or think about it but take the easiest way and leave the responsability to others? This issue is certainly related to ethics and to the development of moral behaviour, but what can we do about it? Maybe what happens is that those who seem to not care about have never tried to appreciate other people's point of views. If it is so, I believe that the teaching of moral behaviour at school definetly gives society a hand.

Savater: Etica para Amador

Chapter I

Prologo/ Aviso antipedagogico

2008-03-31T15:47:00.000-07:00

Reading 'Etica para Amador'

How would you talk about ethics with a child? And how should a father talk about ethics to his children? An how about teachers to students? Savater poses this question to himself and revolves around reflecting on moral issues in 'Etica para Amador', a book he writes especially for his son Amador but that in fact is directed to all tenagers in general. I think that the writer tries to encourage the readers to reflect about moral issues, which will probably help them when dealing with the making of decisions in their everyday experiences. Ethics deals with questions at many levels and in a wide range of situations. It concerns not only religious people, judges, lawers, and doctors, but also to each and everyone of us. For this reason I find this book really appealing, and eventhough I have read only a few pages, it has caught my attention because it is writen from a very personal point of view and reflects the concerns of a father that wants to tell his child many things that come directly from the bottom of his heart.

Savater: Etica para Amador

Prologo/ Aviso antipedagogico

More about ethics...

2000-01-01T00:00:00.001-08:00

Ethics is a major branch of philosophy, encompassing right conduct and good life. It is significantly broader than the common conception of analyzing right and wrong. A central aspect of ethics is "the good life", the life worth living or life that is simply not satisfying, which is held by many philosophers to be more important than moral conduct.

Greek philosophy

Socrates

Socrates was one of the first Greek philosophers to encourage both scholars and the common citizen to turn their attention from the outside world to the condition of man. In this view, Knowledge having a bearing on human life was placed highest, all other knowledge being secondary. Self-knowledge was considered necessary for success and inherently an essential good. A self-aware person will act completely within their capabilities to their pinnacle, while an ignorant person will flounder and encounter difficulty. To Socrates, a person must become aware of every fact (and its context) relevant to his existence, if he wishes to attain self-knowledge. He posited that people will naturally do what is good, if they know what is right. Evil or bad actions, are the result of ignorance. If a criminal were truly aware of the mental and spiritual consequences of his actions, he would neither commit nor even consider committing them. Any person who knows what is truly right will automatically do it, according to Socrates. While he equated knowledge with virtue, he similarly equated virtue with happiness. The truly wise man will know what is right, do what is good and therefore be happy.

Aristotle

Aristotle posited an ethical system that may be termed "self-realizationism". In Aristotle's view, when a person acts in accordance with his nature and realizes his full potential, he will do good and be content. At birth, a baby is not a person, but a potential person. In order to become a "real" person, the child's inherent potential must be realized. Unhappiness and frustration are caused by the unrealized potential of a person, leading to failed goals and a poor life. Aristotle said, "Nature does nothing in vain." Therefore, it is imperative for persons to act in accordance with their nature and develop their latent talents, in order to be content and complete. Happiness was held to be the ultimate goal. All other things, such as civic life or wealth, are merely means to the end. Self-realization, the awareness of one's nature and the development of one's talents, is the surest path to happiness.

Aristotle asserted that man had three natures: vegetable (physical), animal (emotional) and rational (mental). Physical nature can be assuaged through exercise and care, emotional nature through indulgence of instinct and urges, and mental through human reason and developed potential. Rational development was considered the most important, as essential to philosophical self-awareness and as uniquely human. Moderation was encouraged, with the extremes seen as degraded and immoral. For example, courage is the moderate virtue between the extremes of cowardice and recklessness. Man should not simply live, but live well with conduct governed by moderate virtue. This is regarded as difficult, as virtue denotes doing the right thing, to the right person, at the right time, to the proper extent, in the correct fashion, for the right reason.

Hedonism

Hedonism posits that the principal ethic is maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain. There are several schools of Hedonist thought ranging from those advocating the indulgence of even momentary desires to those teaching a pursuit of spiritual bliss. In their consideration of consequences, they range from those advocating self-gratification regardless of the pain and expense to others, to those stating that the most ethical pursuit maximizes pleasure and happiness for the most people.

Cyrenaic hedonism

Founded by Aristippus of Cyrene, Cyrenaics supported immediate gratification. "Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die." Even fleeting desires should be indulged, for fear the opportunity should be forever lost. There was little to no concern with the future, the present dominating in the pursuit for immediate pleasure. Cyrenaic hedonism encouraged the pursuit of enjoyment and indulgence without hesitation, believing pleasure to be the only good.

Epicureanism

Epicurus rejected the extremism of the Cyrenaics, believing some pleasures and indulgences to be detrimental to human beings. Epicureans observed that indiscriminate indulgence sometimes resulted in negative consequences. Some experiences were therefore rejected out of hand, and some unpleasant experiences endured in the present to ensure a better life in the future. The summum bonum, or greatest good, to Epicurus was prudence, exercised through moderation and caution. Excessive indulgence can be destructive to pleasure and can even lead to pain. For example, eating one food too often will cause a person to lose taste for it. Eating too much food at once will lead to discomfort and ill-health. Pain and fear were to be avoided. Living was essentially good, barring pain and illness. Death was not to be feared. Fear was considered the source of most unhappiness. Conquering the fear of death would naturally lead to a happier life. Epicurus reasoned if there was an afterlife and immortality, the fear of death was irrational. If there was no life after death, then the person would not be alive to suffer, fear or worry; he would be non-existent in death. It is irrational to fret over circumstances that do not exist, such as one's state in death in the absence of an afterlife.

Stoicism

The Stoic philosopher Epictetus posited that the greatest good was contentment and serenity. Peace of mind, or Apatheia, was of the highest value; self-mastery over one's desires and emotions leads to spiritual peace. The "unconquerable will" is central to this philosophy. The individual will should be independent and inviolate. Allowing a person to disturb the mental equilibrium is in essence offering yourself in slavery. If a person is free to anger you at will, you have no control over your internal world, and therefore no freedom. Freedom from material attachments is also necessary. If a thing breaks, the person should not be upset, but realize it was a thing that could break. Similarly, if someone should die, those close to them should hold to their serenity because the loved one was made of flesh and blood destined to death. Stoic philosophy says to accept things that cannot be changed, resigning oneself to existence and enduring in a rational fashion. Death is not feared. People do not "lose" their life, but instead "return", for they are returning to God (who initially gave what the person is as a person). Epictetus said difficult problems in life should not be avoided, but rather embraced. They are spiritual exercises needed for the health of the spirit, just as physical exercise is required for the health of the body. He also stated that sex and sexual desire are to be avoided as the greatest threat to the integrity and equilibrium of a man's mind. Abstinence is highly desirable. Epictetus said remaining abstinent in the face of temptation was a victory for which a man could be proud.

Meta-ethics

Meta-ethics is concerned primarily with the meaning of ethical judgments and/or prescriptions and with the notion of which properties, if any, are responsible for the truth or validity thereof. Meta-ethics as a discipline gained attention with G.E. Moore's famous work Principia Ethicathe naturalistic fallacy. Moore's rebuttal of naturalistic ethics, his Open Question Argument sparked an interest within the analytic branch of western philosophy to concern oneself with second order questions about ethics; specifically the semantics, epistemology and ontology of ethics. from 1903 in which Moore first addressed what he referred to as

The semantics of ethics divides naturally into descriptivism and non-descriptivism. The former position advocates the idea that prescriptive language (including ethical commands and duties) is a subdivision of descriptive language and has meaning in virtue of the same kind of properties as descriptive propositions, whereas the latter contends that ethical propositions are irreducible in the sense that their meaning cannot be explicated sufficiently in terms of truth-conditions.

Correspondingly, the epistemology of ethics divides into cognitivism and non-cognitivism; a distinction that is often perceived as equivalent to that between descriptivists and non-descriptivists. Non-cognitivism may be understood as the claim that ethical claims reach beyond the scope of human cognition or as the (weaker) claim that ethics is concerned with action rather than with knowledge. Cognitivism can then be seen as the claim that ethics is essentially concerned with judgments of the same kind as knowledge judgments; namely about matters of fact.

The ontology of ethics is concerned with the idea of value-bearing properties, i.e. the kind of things or stuffs that would correspond to or be referred to by ethical propositions. Non-descriptivists and non-cognitivists will generally tend to argue that ethics do not require a specific ontology, since ethical propositions do not refer to objects in the same way that descriptive propositions do. Such a position may sometimes be called anti-realist. Realists on the other hand are left with having to explain what kind of entities, properties or states are relevant for ethics, and why they have the normative status characteristic of ethics.

Descriptive ethics

Descriptive ethics is a value-free approach to ethics which examines ethics not from a top-down a priori perspective but rather observations of actual choices made by moral agents in practice. Some philosophers rely on descriptive ethics and choices made and unchallenged by a society or culture to derive categories, which typically vary by context. This can lead to situational ethics situated ethics. These philosophers often view aesthetics, etiquette, and arbitration as more fundamental, percolating "bottom up" to imply the existence of, rather than explicitly prescribe, theories of value or of conduct. The study of descriptive ethics may include examinations of the following: and

Ethical codes applied by various groups. Some consider aesthetics itself the basis of ethics – and a personal moral core developed through art and storytelling as very influential in one's later ethical choices.
Informal theories of etiquette which tend to be less rigorous and more situational. Some consider etiquette a simple negative ethics, i.e. where can one evade an uncomfortable truth without doing wrong? One notable advocate of this view is Judith Martin ("Miss Manners"). According to this view, ethics is more a summary of common sense social decisions.
Practices in arbitration and law, e.g. the claim that ethics itself is a matter of balancing "right versus right," i.e. putting priorities on two things that are both right, but which must be traded off carefully in each situation.
Observed choices made by ordinary people, without expert aid or advice, who vote, buy, and decide what is worth valuing. This is a major concern of sociology, political science, and economics.

Applied ethics

Applied ethics is a discipline of philosophy that attempts to apply ethical theory to real-life situations. The lines of distinction between meta-ethics, normative ethics, and applied ethics are often blurry. For example, the issue of abortion can be seen as an applied ethical topic since it involves a specific type of controversial behaviour. But it can also depend on more general normative principles, such as possible rights of self-rule and right to life, principles which are often litmus tests for determining the morality of that procedure. The issue also rests on meta-ethical issues such as, "where do rights come from?" and "what kind of beings have rights?"

Another concept which blurs ethics is moral luck. A drunk driver may safely reach home without injuring anyone, or he might accidentally kill a child who runs out into the street while he is driving home. The action of driving while drunk is usually seen as equally wrong in each case, but its dependence on chance affects the degree to which the driver is held responsible.

Specific questions

Applied ethics is used in some aspects of determining public policy. For example, the following would be questions of applied ethics: "Is getting an abortion immoral?" "Is euthanasia immoral?" "Is affirmative action right or wrong?" "What are human rights, and how do we determine them?" and "Do animals have rights as well?"

A more specific question could be: "If someone else can make better out of his/her life than I can, is it then moral to sacrifice myself for them if needed?" Without these questions there is no clear fulcrum on which to balance law, politics, and the practice of arbitration — in fact, no common assumptions of all participants—so the ability to formulate the questions are prior to rights balancing. But not all questions studied in applied ethics concern public policy. For example, making ethical judgments regarding questions such as, "Is lying always wrong?" and, "If not, when is it permissible?" is prior to any etiquette.

Post-Critique Ethics

The 20th Century saw a remarkable expansion of critical theory and its evolution. The earlier Marxist Theory created a paradigm for understanding the individual, society and their interaction. The Renaissance Enlightened Man had persisted up until the Industrial Revolution when the romantic vision of noble action began to fade. Humanism, which enshrined the nobility of man, lost validity particularly after the Great War and the Nazi Holocaust.

Modernism, exemplified in the literary works of Virginia Woolf and James Joyce, wrote out God, then anti-humanists such as Louis Althusser and Michel Foucault and structuralist such as Roland Barthes presided over the death of the author and man himself. As critical theory developed in the later 20th century post-structuralism queried the very existence of reality. Jacques Derrida placed reality in the linguist realm stating ‘There is nothing outside the text’ while Jean Baudrillard theorised that signs and symbols or simulacra had usurped reality, particularly in the consumer world. This concept is explored in the postmodernist film Blade Runner.

Post-structuralism and postmodernism are both heavily theoretical and follow a fragmented, anti-authoritarian course which is absorbed in narcissistic and near nihilistic activities. Normative issues are generally ignored. This has led to some opponents of these later movements echoing the critic Jurgen Habermas who fears ‘that the postmodern mood represents a turning away from both political responsibilities and a concern for suffering’(cited in Lyon, 1999, p.103).

David Couzens Hoy says that Emmanuel Levinas’s writings on the face of the Other and Derrida’s mediations on the relevance of death to ethics are signs of the ‘ethical turn’ in Continental philosophy that occurs in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Hoy clarifies post-critique ethics as the ‘obligations that present themselves as necessarily to be fulfilled but are neither forced on one or are enforceable’ (2004, p.103).

This aligns with Australian philosopher Peter Singer’s thoughts on what ethics is not. He firstly claims it is not a moral code particular to a sectional group. For example it has nothing to do with a set of prohibitions concerned with sex laid down by a religious order. Neither is ethics a ‘system that is noble in theory but no good in practice’ (2000, p.7). For him it would be more of the reverse. He agrees that ethics is in some sense universal but in a utilitarian way it affords the ‘best consequences’ and furthers the interests of those affected (2000, p.15).

Hoy in his post-critique model uses the term ethical resistance. Examples of this would be an individual’s resistance to consumerism in a retreat to a simpler but perhaps harder lifestyle, or an individual’s resistance to a terminal illness. Hoy describes these examples in his book Critical Resistance as an individual’s engagement in social or political resistance. He provides Levinas’s account as ‘not the attempt to use power against itself, or to mobilise sectors of the population to exert their political power; the ethical resistance is instead the resistance of the powerless’(2004, p.8).

Hoy concludes that The ethical resistance of the powerless others to our capacity to exert power over them is therefore what imposes unenforceable obligations on us. The obligations are unenforceable precisely because of the other’s lack of power. That actions are at once obligatory and at the same time unenforceable is what put them in the category of the ethical. Obligations that were enforced would, by the virtue of the force behind them, not be freely undertaken and would not be in the realm of the ethical (2004, p.184).

In present day terms the powerless may include the unborn, the terminally sick, the aged, the insane, and animals. It is in these areas that ethical action will be evident. Until legislation or state apparatus enforces a moral order that addresses the causes of resistance these issues will remain in the ethical realm. For example, should animal experimentation become illegal in a society, it will no longer be an ethical issue. Likewise one hundred and fifty hundred years ago, not having a black slave in America may have been an ethical choice. This later issue has been absorbed into the fabric of a more utilitarian social order and is no longer an ethical issue but does of course constitute a moral concern. Ethics are exercised by those who possess no power and those who support them, through personal resistance.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Classic Texts in Ethics

2000-01-01T00:00:00.000-08:00

Many major works in the history of ethics are now available on-line in electronic versions. Some are simply ASCI or text files; as such, they contain a minimum of formating, but otherwise are quite serviceably. These can easily be searched or downloaded, and take up relatively little room in proportion to the amount of text they contain. Other files are in RTF, Rich Text Format, a standard developed by Microsoft that most word processors can use. These contain formatting niceties such as italics not found in ASCI files. A few files, although none currently on this list, are in Adobe Acrobat format, a very robust format that allows extensive formatting possibilities. A viewer for these files is available without charge from Adobe. Finally, some files are in HTML, hypertext markup language.

Special note should be made of the files available at the Perseus Project at Tufts University. They are HTML files that make full use of the hypertext character of HTML. Click on any highlighted word (e.g., a proper name in one of Plato's dislogues), and you will automatically be taken to the entry for that name in a classical encyclopedia. This is the wave of the future

The following list is arranged in chronological order.

Plato (c. 429-347BC)

Euthyphro. Hypertext. Perseus Project, Tufts University.
Apology. Hypertext. Perseus Project, Tufts University.
Crito. Hypertext. Perseus Project, Tufts University.
Phaedo. Hypertext. Perseus Project. Tufts University
Philebus. Hypertext. Perseus Project, Tufts University.
Symposium. Hypertext. Perseus Project, Tufts University
Euthydemus. Hypertext. Perseus Project, Tufts University.
Protagoras. Hypertext. Perseus Project, Tufts University.
Gorgias. Hypertext. Perseus Project, Tufts University.
Meno. Hypertext. Perseus Project. Tufts University.
Republic. Hypertext. Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Aristotle (384-322BC)

Eudemian Ethics. Perseus Project, Tufts University. English with Greek links.
Nichomachean Ethics. Hypertext at Perseus.
Nichomachean Ethics. Ethics Updates
Politics. Hypertext. Perseus Project, Tufts University.
Politics. Ethics Updates
Rhetoric. Hypertext. Perseus Project, Tufts Univesity
Rhetoric. Ethics Updates
Poetics. Ethics Updates
On Interpretation. Ethics Updates
Virtues and Vices. Hypertext. Perseus Project. Tufts University

Aristotle's Political Philosophy Page by Clifford A. Bates Jr.
The Sophia Project: Aristotle

Epictetus

The Discourses

Marcus Aurelius

Meditations. Long, trans.

Augustine (354-430)

Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

Summa Theologica. Maintained by the English Dominican Province

Montaigne

Essays. Charles Cotton, trans. Ethics Updates

Pascal

Provincal Letters. Ethics Updates

Hobbes (1588-1679)

The Leviathan.
Elements of Law Natural and Politics
The Citizen: Liberty - Dominion - Religion (1651)

Baruch Spinoza (1632-1674)

On the Improvement of the Understanding
The Ethics - Parts I , II , III , IV , V
A Theologico-Political Treatise
A Political Treatise
Elwes' Introduction to his Spinoza Translations
Joseph B. Yesselman's Spinoza site; dedicated to Spinoza's Insights.

Locke (1632-1704)

Second Treatise of Government.
A Letter Concerning Toleration, translated by William Popple
Essay Concerning Humane Understanding
Some Thoughts Concerning Education (1693)

Hume (1711-1776)

An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding. Ethics Updates
The Natural History of Religion
My Own Life
Essays on Suicide & the Immortality of the Soul. Unauthorized 1783 Edition.
Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion

John Stuart Mill (1806-1873)

Additional Resources

Ethics Updates Utilitarianism Page

Mary Wollstonecraft

Vindiction of the Rights of Woman. 1792

Kant (1724-1804)

The Metaphysical Elements of Ethics. Abbott translation.
Introduction to the Metaphysics of Morals. Hastie translation. Ethics Updates
The Science of Right. Hastie translation. Ethics Updates
Critique of Practical Reason. Abbott translation.
Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysics of Morals. Abbott translation. Ethics Updates
Critique of Judgment.
Was ist Aufklärung?; What is Enlightenment?

Additional Resources

Ethics Updates Kant Page

Fredrich Nietzsche

The Antichrist , trans. by H. L. Mencken (HTML at Friedrich Nietzsche Society)
Beyond Good and Evil , trans. by Helen Zimmern (Gutenberg text)
The Birth of Tragedy , trans. by Ian C. Johnston (HTML in Canada)
Human, All Too Human , trans. by Helen Zimmern (HTML at publicappeal.org)
On the Genealogy of Morals , trans. by Ian C. Johnston (HTML in Canada)
On the Use and Abuse of History for Life , trans. by Ian C. Johnston (HTML in Canada)
Thus Spake Zarathustra , trans. by Thomas Common
- text at eserver.org
- Gutenberg text

Source: www.ethics.sandiego.edu