A Modern Theory of Ethics

What It's About

This is a work of academic moral philosophy, developed from the author's doctoral research at the University of Liverpool. It asks what ethical judgements actually are and where they come from, and argues that no sound ethical theory can ignore what psychology tells us about human desire, feeling and motivation. Rather than treating morality as a set of truths handed down from above or known by pure reason, the book examines how moral experience arises within the human mind and how that understanding should shape our account of what is good. It is a dense, technical study written for readers already comfortable with philosophical argument.

Key Concepts

The central theme is the relationship between ethics and psychology: whether moral claims can be separated from the workings of the mind that makes them. The book weighs the roles of intuition, reason, impulse and sentiment in moral judgement, and tests rival ethical theories against the facts of human motivation. It also explores how personal fulfilment connects with the wider good of the community.

About the Author

Olaf Stapledon (1886–1950) was an English philosopher and writer, born on the Wirral Peninsula near Liverpool. He was educated at Oxford, worked in shipping offices, and served with a Friends' ambulance unit in the First World War. He later took a PhD in philosophy at Liverpool, where he also lectured. A committed pacifist for much of his life, he combined an academic training with a wide-ranging interest in the future of human society.