Life and Death: A Reader in Moral Problems by Louis P. Pojman

Synopsis

This anthology examines 11 key issues dealing with the beginning and end of life, and presents a balanced set of 67 classic and contemporary readings on each of them. It is unique in its coverage of applied ethics, medical topics, and broad theoretical considerations of issues of life and death?the sanctity of life versus the quality of life, and the meaning of life and death. The section on Ethical Theory covers the classic theories as well as ethical relativism to orient students to the nature and importance of ethics. The section on the sanctity of life versus the quality of life examines a vital but often neglected issue in moral philosophy. Introductions and study questions accompany each major reading.

Booknews

A collection of readings on issues related to life and death, the sanctity of life versus the quality of life, and the meaning of life and death. A pro-con format helps to clarify opposing points of view, and introductions and study questions for each reading give further insight and direction. This second edition contains a new section on human cloning, and nine new articles focusing on abortion, suicide, and euthanasia. Lacks a subject index. The editor teaches philosophy at the US Military Academy in West Point, NY. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Biography

Louis Pojman attended Columbia University and Union Theological Seminary, from which he received a M.A. and Ph.D. in Religion. In 1969 he was a Fulbright Fellow at the University of Copenhagen and in 1970 a Rockefeller Fellow at Hamburg University. He received his D.Phil. in Philosophy from Oxford University in 1997. His first position was at the University of Notre Dame, after which he taught at the University of Texas at Dallas and the University of Mississippi, where for three years he served as the Chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religion. In 1995 he accepted an offer to become Professor of Philosophy at the United States Military Academy at West Point. He most recently was a Visiting Professor at Brigham Young University in Utah and a Visiting Fellow at Clare Hall, Cambridge University. The author or editor of over 30 books and 80 articles, Pojman won several research and teaching awards, including the Burlington Northern Award for Outstanding Teaching and Scholarship (1988) and the Outstanding Scholar/Teacher in the Humanities at the University of Mississippi (1994). Louis Pojman passed away in 2005.