Would You Kill the Fat Man?: The Trolley Problem and What Your Answer Tells Us a

Description: Would You Kill the Fat Man? by David Edmonds A runaway train is racing toward five men who are tied to the track. Unless the train is stopped, it will inevitably kill all five men. You are standing on a footbridge looking down on the unfolding disaster. Would you kill the fat man? The question may seem bizarre. FORMAT Hardcover LANGUAGE English CONDITION Brand New Publisher Description A runaway train is racing toward five men who are tied to the track. Unless the train is stopped, it will inevitably kill all five men. You are standing on a footbridge looking down on the unfolding disaster. However, a fat man, a stranger, is standing next to you: if you push him off the bridge, he will topple onto the line and, although he will die, his chunky body will stop the train, saving five lives. Would you kill the fat man? The question may seem bizarre. But its one variation of a puzzle that has baffled moral philosophers for almost half a century and that more recently has come to preoccupy neuroscientists, psychologists, and other thinkers as well. In this book, David Edmonds, coauthor of the best-selling Wittgensteins Poker, tells the riveting story of why and how philosophers have struggled with this ethical dilemma, sometimes called the trolley problem. In the process, he provides an entertaining and informative tour through the history of moral philosophy. Most people feel its wrong to kill the fat man. But why? After all, in taking one life you could save five. As Edmonds shows, answering the question is far more complex--and important--than it first appears.In fact, how we answer it tells us a great deal about right and wrong. Notes A runaway train is racing towards five men who are tied to the track. You are standing on a footbridge watching the unfolding disaster and next to you is an overweight man. If you push the man off the bridge he will die but his large body will stop the train. What do you do? David Edmonds invites readers to contemplate this moral dilemma. Back Cover "Lucid, witty, and beautifully written, this book is a pleasure to read. While providing an introduction to moral philosophy, it also presents engaging portraits of some of the greatest moral philosophers from Thomas Aquinas to the present day, and it makes the case for the relevance to ethics of the new experimental moral psychology. It is a tour de force." --Kwame Anthony Appiah, author of The Honor Code: How Moral Revolutions Happen "This is a splendid work. You shouldnt expect it to resolve all your trolley problems but you can look forward to a romping mix of fine humor, intriguing anecdote, and solid argument. Its a sheer joy to read." --Philip Pettit, Princeton University and Australian National University "David Edmonds has a remarkable knack for weaving the threads of philosophical debates into an engaging story. Would You Kill the Fat Man? is a stimulating introduction to some key ethical issues and philosophers." --Peter Singer, author of The Life You Can Save: How to Do Your Part to End World Poverty "David Edmondss new book, Would You Kill the Fat Man? , is both highly informative and a delight to read. Written in a clear, engaging, and witty style, it succeeds admirably in making various fascinating and important debates in philosophy and psychology accessible to a broad readership." --Jeff McMahan, Rutgers University "This is a highly engaging book. David Edmondss reflections are full of insight and he provides fascinating biographical background about the main players in the history of the trolley problem, in a style reminiscent of his very successful Wittgensteins Poker ." --Roger Crisp, University of Oxford Flap "Lucid, witty, and beautifully written, this book is a pleasure to read. While providing an introduction to moral philosophy, it also presents engaging portraits of some of the greatest moral philosophers from Thomas Aquinas to the present day, and it makes the case for the relevance to ethics of the new experimental moral psychology. It is a tour de force." --Kwame Anthony Appiah, author of The Honor Code: How Moral Revolutions Happen "This is a splendid work. You shouldnt expect it to resolve all your trolley problems but you can look forward to a romping mix of fine humor, intriguing anecdote, and solid argument. Its a sheer joy to read." --Philip Pettit, Princeton University and Australian National University "David Edmonds has a remarkable knack for weaving the threads of philosophical debates into an engaging story. Would You Kill the Fat Man? is a stimulating introduction to some key ethical issues and philosophers." --Peter Singer, author of The Life You Can Save: How to Do Your Part to End World Poverty "David Edmondss new book, Would You Kill the Fat Man? , is both highly informative and a delight to read. Written in a clear, engaging, and witty style, it succeeds admirably in making various fascinating and important debates in philosophy and psychology accessible to a broad readership." --Jeff McMahan, Rutgers University "This is a highly engaging book. David Edmondss reflections are full of insight and he provides fascinating biographical background about the main players in the history of the trolley problem, in a style reminiscent of his very successful Wittgensteins Poker ." --Roger Crisp, University of Oxford Author Biography David Edmonds is the author, with John Eidinow, of the best-selling Wittgensteins Poker, as well as Rousseaus Dog and Bobby Fischer Goes to War. The cofounder of the popular Philosophy Bites podcast series, Edmonds is a senior research associate at the University of Oxfords Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics and a multi-award-winning radio feature maker at the BBC. He holds a PhD in philosophy. Table of Contents List of Figures xi Prologue xiii Acknowledgments xv Part 1 Philosophy and the Trolley Chapter 1 Churchills Dilemma 3 Chapter 2 Spur of the Moment 8 Chapter 3 The Founding Mothers 13 Chapter 4 The Seventh Son of Count Landulf 26 Chapter 5 Fat Man, Loop, and Lazy Susan 35 Chapter 6 Ticking Clocks and the Sage of Konigsberg 44 Chapter 7 Paving the Road to Hell 57 Chapter 8 Morals by Numbers 69 Part 2 Experiments and the Trolley Chapter 9 Out of the Armchair 87 Chapter 10 It Just Feels Wrong 94 Chapter 11 Dudleys Choice and the Moral Instinct 108 Part 3 Mind and Brain and the Trolley Chapter 12 The Irrational Animal 127 Chapter 13 Wrestling with Neurons 135 Chapter 14 Bionic Trolley 153 Part 4 The Trolley and Its Critics Chapter 15 A Streetcar Named Backfire 169 Chapter 16 The Terminal 175 Appendix Ten Trolleys: A Rerun 183 Notes 193 Bibliography 205 Index 213 Review "An accessible, humorous examination of how people approach complex ethical dilemmas... Written for general readers, the book captures the complexities underpinning difficult decisions."--Publishers Weekly "This is a rare treat--a serious, thought-provoking book on ethics that is also witty, funny, and entertaining. Not to be missed... David Edmonds has taken the well-known trolley car problem and breathed new life into it, examining it from different perspectives and using it to shed light on the ethical theories of Immanuel Kant, Jeremy Bentham, John Rawls, Aristotle, and others. If you think philosophy has to be ponderous and difficult, you havent read this book... Whats intoxicating about this book is that every time you think you know what you think, Edmonds tosses out a new element... Theres lots more to enjoy and learn from this book, a real gem and one of my new favorites."--Mark Willen, TalkingEthics.com Prizes Commended for PROSE Awards: Philosophy 2015 Short-listed for Choice Magazine Outstanding Reference/Academic Book Award 2014 Long Description A runaway train is racing toward five men who are tied to the track. Unless the train is stopped, it will inevitably kill all five men. You are standing on a footbridge looking down on the unfolding disaster. However, a fat man, a stranger, is standing next to you: if you push him off the bridge, he will topple onto the line and, although he will die, his chunky body will stop the train, saving five lives. Would you kill the fat man? The question may seem bizarre. But its one variation of a puzzle that has baffled moral philosophers for almost half a century and that more recently has come to preoccupy neuroscientists, psychologists, and other thinkers as well. In this book, David Edmonds, coauthor of the best-selling Wittgensteins Poker, tells the riveting story of why and how philosophers have struggled with this ethical dilemma, sometimes called the trolley problem. In the process, he provides an entertaining and informative tour through the history of moral philosophy. Most people feel its wrong to kill the fat man. But why? After all, in taking one life you could save five. As Edmonds shows, answering the question is far more complex--and important--than it first appears.In fact, how we answer it tells us a great deal about right and wrong. Review Quote This provocatively titled tract opens with a burst of drama that proves philosophy can be exciting. ---David Wilson, South China Morning Post Details ISBN0691154023 Author David Edmonds Short Title WOULD YOU KILL THE FAT MAN Publisher Princeton University Press Language English ISBN-10 0691154023 ISBN-13 9780691154022 Media Book Format Hardcover Year 2013 Imprint Princeton University Press Place of Publication New Jersey Country of Publication United States DEWEY 170 Subtitle The Trolley Problem and What Your Answer Tells Us about Right and Wrong Translated from English UK Release Date 2013-10-06 Publication Date 2013-10-06 NZ Release Date 2013-10-06 US Release Date 2013-10-06 Illustrations 10 line illus. Pages 240 Alternative 9780691165639 Audience Tertiary & Higher Education AU Release Date 2014-01-01 We've got this At The Nile, if you're looking for it, we've got it. 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