Living High and Letting Die: Our Illusion of Innocence
"Unger has pioneered a new way of testing and exploring our intuitions, with results that are devastating for traditional ideas of how to do ethics. This will shake normative ethics to its roots. A major work of fundamental importance both to moral philosophy and to the poor of this world. Important in a practical way, as well as in an academic way."--Peter Singer,Princeton University"A terrifically powerful piece of work, and its publication will make a nuclear-sized explosion."--Jonathan Bennett,Syracuse University"Unger's vigorous investigation of irrationalities in our daily thinking...suggests convincingly that we owe others far more than we typically think we do. This, then, is a book on a topic of great importance, written with much moral passion by a skillful and ingenious philosopher."--Martha Nussbaum,London Review of Books"A very fine book...carefully argued, imaginative, fearless."--David Lewis,Eureka Street"[Unger's] discussion of how much the well-off should sacrifice for the world's most needy stands as the state-of-the-art treatment of the subject."--Brad Hooker,Times Literary Supplement"Unger's book is full of subtle and oddly entertaining cases to support his view....[He handles conterarguments] with stunningly effective simplicity."--Globe and Mail"Unger challenges our moral beliefs with arguments that are always powerful, and often original. Everyone who can understand these arguments ought, I believe, to read and think about this book."--Derek Parfit, author ofReasons and Persons"Living High & Letting Diewill annoy many students and faculty--which is a good thing. Unger challenges and illuminates our moral thinking in a direct, forceful way, causing students to engage in moral reasoning and moral psychology with more passion than is ordinarily the case. I used Unger's book alongside a standard anthology in ethical theory in An Introduction to Ethics course. The book's presentation is clear and understandable to undergraduates, and the examples are interesting, thought-provoking, and make doing philosophy fun. Challenge and incite your students with this book!"--Tobyn DeMarco,Hunter College, City University of New York"Students either love or hateLiving High & Letting Die--bored indifference is not an option. Unger's book prods, provokes, infuriates, and inspires. His ingenious and passionate arguments compell students to examine their beliefs as precious few do. They illustrate the significance and urgency of ethical decision-making, and powerfully demonstrate that philosophy can be much more than an abstract, theoretical, barren discipline."--Larry Temkin,Rice University