Moral Literacy: Or How to Do the Right Thing

This measured, dispassionate yet provocative new work addresses a range of contemporary moral concerns, including animal rights, abortion, violence, sex, drugs, censorship and virtue. More an invitation to moral dialogue than a theoretical work of moral philosophy, Moral Literacy encourages the reader to reach solidly considered conclusions through the strenuous exercise of reason. The book is short and yet it richly embodies the methods of ethical thinking about practical moral problems that are hard for students to learn unless they see them in action. Colin McGinn perspicuously sets out a small set of basic principles and then attacks the problems of our treatment of animals, abortion, sex, censorship, and so on, with a masterful blend of attention to real-life cases and imaginary thought experiments.