The Methods of Ethics
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Summary
Book I, General Introduction, outlines the relation between the aims and methods of ethics and, on the basis of three reasonable ethical aims, discusses three principal methods: egoistic hedonism, intuitionism which takes right conduct as the end, and universal hedonism or utilitarianism. It contains nine chapters. Book II, Egoism, is devoted to the method of egoistic hedonism and contains six chapters. Book III, Intuitionism, treats the intuitional method under the division of intuitionism of duty and intuitionism of value; under intuitionism of duty it further discusses intuitionism at the perceptual, dogmatic and philosophical levels. It contains fourteen chapters. Book IV, Utilitarianism, treats the method of universal hedonism in terms of its theoretical import, proof and relation to other methods, and is a positive exposition of his utilitarian theory. It contains five chapters. The concluding chapter discusses the relations among the three methods.
Editor's review
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Readers with a strong interest in moral philosophy and ethical theory
- Upper-level students and researchers in philosophy, political science, or law
- Readers who wish to systematically understand the development of utilitarian thought and its critiques
- Those who appreciate clear, profound, and logically rigorous theoretical analysis
Not a good fit for
- Readers seeking simple life guides or inspirational feel-good books
- Beginners lacking patience for highly abstract theoretical analysis and lengthy arguments
Reading tips
- It is advisable to gain a preliminary understanding of basic ethical schools (such as deontology and utilitarianism) before reading this book.
- While reading, focus on Sidgwick's critique and reconstruction of 'intuitionism'; this is the core hinge of his theory.
- The book is argument-dense and suitable for slow reading with note-taking; modern ethicists' commentaries can be used to aid understanding.
About the publisher
The Commercial Press is a publisher known for classic works and academic publishing, with titles spanning Eastern philosophy, foreign literature, world history, social culture, and applied psychology. Its list includes classical commentaries such as Zhu Xi's Collected Commentaries on the Analects and Wang Bi's Commentary on the Zhouyi, as well as modern annotated translations like Zhuangzi with Modern Notes and Translation. In foreign literature it offers War and Peace and Crime and Punishment, while in world history it carries Braudel's The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip II. Applied psychology is represented by Irvin D. Yalom's Existential Psychotherapy, and ethical texts include a Greek-Chinese-English edition of the Nicomachean Ethics. Its authors and translators include Zhu Xi, Wang Bi, Yalom, Braudel, and translators such as Huang Zheng, Zhang Yiling, Shen Dongyu, and Tang Jialong, balancing the editing of original texts with academic translation.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 西季威克和他的《伦理学方法》 代译序
- 初版序言
- 第二版序言
- 第三版序言
- 第四版序言
- 第五版序言
- 第六版序言
- 第七版序言
- 第一编 总论
- 第一章 导论
- 第二章 伦理学与政治学之关系
- 第三章 伦理判断
- 第四章 快乐与欲望
- 第五章 自由意志
- 第六章 伦理学的原则与方法
- 第七章 利己主义与自爱
- 第八章 直觉主义
- 第九章 善
- 第二编 利己主义
- 第一章 利己主义的原则和方法
- 第二章 经验的快乐主义
- 第三章 经验的快乐主义（续）
- 第四章 客观的快乐主义与常识
- 第五章 幸福与义务
- 第六章 演绎的快乐主义
- 第三编 直觉主义
- 第一章 直觉主义
- 第二章 德性与义务
- 第三章 智慧与自我控制
- 第四章 仁爱
- 第五章 公正
- 第六章 法律与允诺
- 第七章 义务的分类。诚实
- 第八章 其他社会义务与德性
- 第九章 有关自身的德性
- 第十章 勇敢，谦卑，等等
- 第十一章 对常识道德的评论
- 第十二章 作为道德判断的主题的行为动机
- 第十三章 哲学的直觉主义
- 第十四章 终极善
- 第四编 功利主义
- 第一章 功利主义的含义
- 第二章 功利主义的证明
- 第三章 功利主义与常识道德的关系
- 第四章 功利主义的方法
- 第五章 功利主义的方法（续）
- 尾章 三种方法的相互关系
- 附录 康德的自由意志观念
- 中译本附录一 西季威克著作和主要哲学论文年表
- 中译本附录二 西季威克研究参考文献
- 再版后记
FAQ
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About the author
Henry Sidgwick was an important modern British ethicist and a researcher of political thought, whose works are often classified in Chinese academia under social culture and politics. Two of his works are included in the collection: The Methods of Ethics and The Development of European Polity. The former offers a systematic discussion of the foundations and methods of moral judgment and is a core text for understanding his ethical theory; the latter traces the historical evolution of European political institutions from the perspective of constitutional development, reflecting the author's interest in the history of political thought. Public information is limited, making it difficult to confirm details of his life, but these two works show that Sidgwick's writing is characterized by careful conceptual analysis and rigorous argumentation, combining philosophical speculation with historical inquiry. His writings have had a lasting influence on later research in ethics and political thought and are often used as important references in related fields.
Liao Shenbai is an author included in this Chinese book database, but the publicly available information about him is limited: his nationality, birth and death years, and academic background are not clearly recorded. Two of his works are listed here: Nicomachean Ethics I.1–III.5 (Greek-Chinese-English comparison) and Methods of Ethics. His writing and translation work therefore appears to center on ethics and philosophical classics, involving comparative presentation of ancient Greek ethical texts and discussion of ethical method. Such works are generally intended for philosophy students and general readers interested in ethical questions, and are marked by a scholarly, close-reading approach. His output falls under the categories of philosophy reading and social culture, offering Chinese readers a point of reference for understanding the Western ethical tradition.
