Living Ethics: An Introduction with Readings

Living Ethics: An Introduction with Readings
Russ Shafer-Landau
Translated into Persian by Abolghasem Fanaei, Iman Abbasnejad
Published by Soroosh-e Mowlana Publication, 2022

About the Book
The voluminous book “Living Ethics: An Introduction with Readings” is consisted of two completely separate parts. In the first part of this book, in the first three chapters, the author deals with the three issues of the essence and meaning of ethics, the nature of moral reasoning, and moral skepticism, and in the next eight chapters, he discusses eight theories in normative ethics. The translation of this part is now presented to the Persian readers by the name of “Modern Ethics (1): Ethical Theories”. The second part of the book is devoted to the investigation of ethical issues raised in different branches of applied ethics. At the end of each chapter (except for the chapters 1 and 2) there is a selection of classic or contemporary texts from well-known authors in that field, so that the reader, after a deep and critical acquaintance with the moral theory discussed in the chapter, becomes familiar with the main texts of the philosophers, who are the defenders of that theory. Furthermore, at the end of each chapter, the author has added a summary of the important topics of that chapter along with questions for further contemplation.

Although ethics or moral philosophy is considered a novel discipline in Iran, in recent years, many books have been translated in this field, which have partially compensated for the lack of textbooks in this area, yet they are far from enough for the richness of the literature of this subject. Moreover, human knowledge is being updated day by day, and knowledge of the latest writings in each field gives relative confidence to the scholars that they are aware of the latest approaches in their respected fields. The novelty of the publication of this book (2018) and the mastery and skill that the author has gained, due to his works and positions in prestigious scientific associations in this very field, can give the readers some assurance that they are reading a new and up-to-date work from a reputable publisher; and by an author, who has a comprehensive and relatively thorough proficiency in the current issues of moral philosophy.

About the Author
Russ Shafer-Landau is a 59-year-old professor of philosophy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, one of the largest and most prestigious universities in the United States. He is considered as one of the most famous and prolific professors of philosophy of our time, whose main activity has been in the field of moral philosophy (Metaethics, normative and applied ethics).
In metaethics, he believes in unnaturalistic moral realism and defends this point of view in the book “Moral Realism: A Defense” and has authored about ten books in this field so far. He is the chief editor of a collection of important works in this field published by reputable publishers, such as Oxford University Press. Fifteen volumes of the Oxford studies in metaethics, edited by him, have been published so far. Some of his works have reached the 16th edition and others have reached the 5th edition. Shafer-Landau is the 2020-2021 president of the American Philosophical Association.