Meaning in Life and Why It Matters
Susan Wolf
Introduction by Stephen Macedo
With commentary by John Koethe, Robert M. Adams, Nomy Arpaly & Jonathan Haidt

Cloth | April 2010 | $24.95 / £16.95
160 pp. | 5 1/2 x 8 1/2

Shopping Cart | Endorsements

Most people, including philosophers, tend to classify human motives as falling into one of two categories: the egoistic or the altruistic, the self-interested or the moral. According to Susan Wolf, however, much of what motivates us does not comfortably fit into this scheme. Often we act neither for our own sake nor out of duty or an impersonal concern for the world. Rather, we act out of love for objects that we rightly perceive as worthy of love--and it is these actions that give meaning to our lives. Wolf makes a compelling case that, along with happiness and morality, this kind of meaningfulness constitutes a distinctive dimension of a good life. Written in a lively and engaging style, and full of provocative examples, Meaning in Life and Why It Matters is a profound and original reflection on a subject of permanent human concern.

Susan Wolf is the Edna J. Koury Professor of Philosophy at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. She is the author of Freedom within Reason.

Endorsements:

"Susan Wolf's picture of what makes life meaningful is at once powerful and down to earth, deeply argued but unpretentious. Part of Wolf's persuasive force comes from her stylish prose and cool treatment of profound concerns. This book is absorbing and a pleasure to read."--Kieran Setiya, University of Pittsburgh

"Susan Wolf is one of the clearest, most thoughtful, and most incisively elegant writers in contemporary ethics. She has an uncanny knack for putting her finger on important points and expressing them in ways that capture the imagination. In this book, she develops her ideas about meaningfulness in life with considerable subtlety, creating a work of genuine depth and importance."--John Martin Fischer, University of California, Riverside

Other Princeton books by Stephen Macedo:

• Primates and Philosophers: How Morality Evolved.
• Striking First: Preemption and Prevention in International Conflict.

Series:

• The University Center for Human Values Series
  Stephen Macedo, Series Editor

Subject Area:

• Philosophy

Shopping Cart:

For customers in the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Asia, and Australia
Cloth: $24.95 ISBN13: 978-0-691-14524-2

For customers in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and India
Cloth: £16.95 ISBN13: 978-0-691-14524-2

Prices subject to change without notice

File created: 11/4/2009

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