Essays on political morality - R. M. Hare

R. M. Hare, one of the most widely discussed of today's moral philosophers, presents a selection of essays in which he brings ethical theory lucidly to bear on moral problems arising in politics. He examines our obligation to obey the law; the limits of legitimate lawbreaking, civil violence, and war; rights of various sorts and their supposed conflict with utility; justice, distributive and retributive; and care of the environment. His arguments are amplyillustrated by specific examples. The volume substantiates the author's claim that help with such problems can be found in philosophy, and particularly in his own ethical theory, which draws together the best insights of Kant and utilitarians.

R. M. Hare, FBA, was White's Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Oxford from 1966 to 1983, and Graduate Research Professor of Philosophy at the University of Florida, Gainesville, thereafter.