Review of The Physics of Morals
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Review of The Physics of Morals
Are you evil or good if you can bring evil and good into being? Who do you feed if you have limited food? Is eating meat morally wrong, and should farmers be punished for slaughtering animals? If you lie or murder someone, does that always make you immoral? These are just a few thought-provoking questions you will encounter when you read The Physics of Morals by Lewis Herman. Through mathematical calculus and metaphysics, you will learn that your responsibilities to live in a moral world differ from those of your ancestors. But first, you have to understand morals and ethics and their roles in our lives. Reading this book will help you gain this understanding.
One of my favorite aspects of this book is the examples Lewis Herman uses to make his points. They were down-to-earth, and I could easily visualize and understand them. One example is giraffes' and lions' tactics to survive and maintain the natural order. Some topics discussed are the environment, child punishments, poverty, food subsidies, car accidents, taxation, justice, politics, suicide, and school shootings. It was especially interesting to read how food subsidies impact our moral lives. One thought-provoking topic that kept me thinking long after I finished this book is that you have to understand yourself before you can change for the better. I commend the author for providing definitions of key terms, descriptions of the moral laws, and a metaphysical overview to give readers the knowledge they need to understand this book without having to refer to a dictionary.
The key terms would have been easier to find when I needed to refer back to them if they had been in alphabetical order, and chapter headings would have made it easier to differentiate between the book's three parts. Some of the bibliographies at the end of the book have formatting issues that the author may want to look into. However, these few negative aspects did not impact my reading enjoyment, and I did not consider them in my rating because they may not affect other readers.
I found no reason not to give this professionally edited book a perfect score of 5 out of 5 stars. You will need to read this book more than once to get the full benefit of it because there is too much to think about in one reading. I look forward to rereading it when I do not have to worry about errors or other aspects of doing a review because I enjoy reading books that make me think.
I recommend this book to readers who enjoy thought-provoking metaphysical philosophies about morals and ethics. You will not be disappointed, but I will caution you that I discovered the first day of reading not to read this book before going to bed because my mind would not shut down.
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The Physics of Morals
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