Listen free for 30 days
-
Catastrophe Ethics
- How to Choose Well in a World of Tough Choices
- Narrated by: Travis Rieder
- Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $23.99
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's Summary
How to live a morally decent life in the midst of today's constant, complex choices
In a world of often confusing and terrifying global problems, how should we make choices in our everyday lives? Does anything on the individual level really make a difference? In Catastrophe Ethics, Travis Rieder tackles the moral philosophy puzzles that bedevil us. He explores vital ethical concepts from history and today and offers new ways to think about the “right” thing to do when the challenges we face are larger and more complex than ever before.
Alongside a lively tour of traditional moral reasoning from thinkers like Plato, Mill, and Kant, Rieder posits new questions and exercises about the unique conundrums we now face, issues that can seem to transcend old-fashioned philosophical ideals. Should you drink water from a plastic bottle or not? Drive an electric car? When you learn about the horrors of factory farming, should you stop eating meat or other animal products? Do small commitments matter, or are we being manipulated into acting certain ways by corporations and media? These kinds of puzzles, Rieder explains, are everywhere now. And the tools most of us unthinkingly rely on to “do the right thing” are no longer enough. Principles like “do no harm” and “respect others” don’t provide guidance in cases where our individual actions don’t, by themselves, have any effect on others at all. We need new principles, with new justifications, in order to navigate this new world.
In the face of consequential and complex crises, Rieder shares exactly how we can live a morally decent life. It’s time to build our own catastrophe ethics.
What the critics say
"An informed, careful investigation of the connection between individual choices and large, complex problems.”—Kirkus (STARRED REVIEW)
“Thought provoking...an excellent resource for the environmentally conscious weighing their life’s choices"—Publishers Weekly (STARRED REVIEW)
"Smart, splendid, and brave. A crash course in ethics from an expert philosopher. This book gave me hope for the future and taught me that living a moral life is having the courage to parse the nuanced in-between. A must read for anyone who cares about doing good in the world."—Anna Lembke, New York Times bestselling author of Dopamine Nation
“Urgent, accessible, and a pleasure to read. The topic could hardly be more serious, but Rieder serves up his philosophy as a readable mix of erudition, self-reflection, anecdote and wit.” —Dr. Elizabeth Cripps, author of What Climate Justice Means and Why We Should Care and Parenting on Earth
"If you want to be hopeful about whether an individual can act morally in a world where individuals don't seem to make much of a difference, this is the book for you.” —Barry Lam, host of Slate's Hi-Phi Nation and professor of philosophy
What listeners say about Catastrophe Ethics
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Paul
- 2024-08-05
Great read for the ethics geek
The author began the book by posing some thought poking dilemma that we deal with daily ... well they are dilemma if you are at all concerned about the ethics of your everyday behavior on the the world. As the book unfolds, he took the reader through a whirlwind tour of different ethical theories and how they may or may not help us in making the 'right' choices. In the end, he offered a way to help us think about these tough choice in our daily lives and find the right decision that is aligned to our personal ethics.
For someone like me who is interested in ethics and our daily lives... this is a great book. Some of the theories may be familiar if you have studied ethics; or they may be new. But in any cases, the author provided a framework for us to think about these dilemmas. And in the process, gave us a way to think clearly about the 'why' of these tough decisions.
Overall, highly recommend this book
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!