Customer Reviews

Ethics: Theory and Practice (10th Edition)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This book was required for my ethics class. I was dreading this class, but after beginning this book, I found myself interested not only in the subject matter, but also in the ideas presented by the author. The 8th edition has been updated to include new sections on stem cell research and terorism in the wake of September 11th. As long as one can read this book with an open mind, they will find it enlightning and interesting. Compared to other ethics readings, this book is a joy to read.

I have used this textbook in my Intro to Ethics class... for three years. I would highly recommend it; it presents ethical theory in a concise and interesting fashion appropriate for a undergraduate level introduction to ethics. I especially like applied ethics aspects of the book. Thiroux presents compelling and controversial case studies in which students can apply the theory that they have learned in the first 4-5 chapters.

A few problems with the text:

(1) I'm not a big fan of Thiroux's personal ethical position -- this position is far too prominent in the text.

(2) Related to (1), I don't like the inclusion of the Appendices. In them, Thiroux further expounds on his position of Humanitarian Ethics and applies the position to most of the case studies that he presented the student with in the book. In my experience, I have found that once students find this section of the book, they use it almost as an answer key.

Overall, this is a good introductory text with far more plusses than minuses.

This text is solid and easy to read. The case studies are up to date and relevant. This is one of the more "user friendly" texts I have used this year.

The instructor's manual has good test questions, excellent synopsis, and workable suggestions introducing each class. If you use this text to teach a class, get the instructor's manual.

I used this text to review for the DANTES "Ethics in America" test (2007) and out of a perfect score of 80 earned a 73 (an A or 92nd percentile).

Very well written- not dry as some texts can be. If you want quick review it's in here too- outlines galore!

Simple to read, pretty basic philosophy text. Nothing to get excited about. It's making the class pretty easy as the chapters are fairly short and the concepts are presented in succinct form.

As an ethics instructor, I'm always looking for a good book that will help my students relate. This one was a winner!

I had to read this book for an ethics class. Now, I love the world of logic and abstracts and found this book very disappointing. I felt it was biased, it arguments are, a lot of the time, poorly constructed and I also found it poorly written. The voice of the book was poor and a lot of the time I felt like the author was trying to speak to a five year old child. There a lot of things that didn't make sense. This was about three years ago. I can't point out specifics because I sold the book back. If you have a choice between ethics books and are really interested and want a fair presentation to the world of abstracts, this isn't the book for you. I don't recommend it. I wasn't the only one who felt this way either, there were several in my class who felt the same way and we actually spent a whole lecture period discussing this book. My professor felt the same way. Not sure why he required this book.

But, to be fair, for those who are interested but don't want to get too intense or care much about objectivity, then you could consider this text. It does provide a nice general overview of the world of ethics. I did find a little value in the general information that couldn't be construed to satisfy the author's agenda.

There are two things to consider with a textbook of this sort: how thoroughly does it cover the material, and how well does it manage to communicate that material to the reader? This book succeeds gloriously on both counts. Obviously, if the subject of Philosophy in general and Ethics in particular don't interest you, you won't enjoy this book. But if you have an interest in the subject, and need a basic intro to it, you'd be hard-pressed to find a better one.

It's a shame I order a book for class. I thought I was getting a deal. The price was just right. The only thing is the class has started and I have yet to receive my book. I order it one month ago. Wow. Never again.

Exactly what I expected. It is a textbook and is the correct one for the online course I am taking.