Nuclear Deterrence, Morality and Realism [Paperback]

John Finnis (Author), Joseph Boyle Jr. (Author), Germain Grisez (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 1988 | ISBN-10: 0198247915 | ISBN-13: 978-0198247913

Providing a rigorous and objective ethical analysis of nuclear deterrence, this book discusses such issues as the Soviet menace, possible holocaust, and strategic imperatives. At the same time, the authors unmask types of deterrence that they perceive essentially as moral evasions, maintaining that deterrence cannot be bluffing, pure counterforce, the lesser (or greater) evil, or a step towards disarmament. Concluding that deterrence is unjustifiable, this book examines the new questions of conscience that this raises for us all.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"An important book [that] could change the teaching of the Catholic Church on the morality of nuclear deterrence."--America

"The most important contribution so far to the debate over the ethics of nuclear deterrence."--New York Review of Books

"An excellent, sophisticated contribution, perhaps the best that has been set out among the many recent books on this difficult but crucial subject."--American Political Science Review

"The aspects of deterrence that are often said to give rise to moral paradoxes are discussed with greater rigor, imagination, and thoroughness than in any previous work....Deserve[s] and will repay careful study."--Ethics

"Exceptionally important."--The Review of Politics

About the Author

John Finnis is at University College, Oxford. Joseph Boyle is at University of Toronto.

Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (September 15, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0198247915
• ISBN-13: 978-0198247913
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,752,024 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Bad Timing, May 26, 2006

By 

Bruce Frier (Ann Arbor, MI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Nuclear Deterrence, Morality and Realism (Paperback)

Rather unfortunately, this book appeared just two years before the end of the Cold War. It therefore will now seem dated to some, particularly in light of the new threats that have arisen since 1989; the old battles over nuclear deterrence have been replaced by new battles over how to deal with terrorism.

But it would be a great shame to let the book be forgotten for this reason. Finnis, Grisez, and Boyle are three of the leading scholars responsible for the revival of Natural Law theories in the late twentieth century, and their book presents their joint effort in analyzing the moral deficiencies of consequentialist (outcome-oriented) thinking. The book is well worth owning for just this reason. No matter one's feelings about the success of Natural Law reasoning (and I have considerable doubts), this book will help any reader better understand what is truly at stake in, for instance, contemporary debates over the use of torture.

1 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A new outlook, May 22, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Nuclear Deterrence, Morality and Realism (Paperback)

Finnis presents a new outlook on an old battle. He considers the ethical and moral, as well as the pragmatic issues pertaining to the nuclear question.