The Ethics of Development (Edinburgh Studies in World Ethics)
Editorial Reviews
Review
Des Gasper has written the best book available on the 'ethics of development'--its history, scope, and challenges. Offering searching criticisms of mainstream development as conceptually blinded to human destitution and social justice, Gasper insightfully analyzes and evaluates alternative development visions. Novice and specialist alike will benefit from his careful dissection of such concepts as economic growth, efficiency, equity, poverty, violence, basic human needs, culture, and human development.
Book Description
An introduction to the field of ethics and development for students and practitioners. Development ethics is concerned with major socio-economic change:
*the meanings given to societal development
*the types, distribution and significance of its costs and gains
*value-conscious ways of thinking about and choosing between alternative paths and destinations. It helps in identifying, considering and making ethical choices about societal development and in identifying and assessing the explicit and implicit ethical theories.
This book focuses on clarifying what is meant by "development". Its central thread is the reassessment of economic growth, asking who benefits? The author considers why economic growth and respect for diversity are widely seen to be good. and examines the moral implications of this view, drawing on the ideas of Len Doyal, Ian Gough, Martha Nussbaum and Amartya Sen.
Dealing carefully and sympathetically with a range of viewpoints, the book aims to present them in a way that contributes to intelligently selective use of them and to their improvement.
Key Features
Provides case studies on famine and other emergencies, land alienation and land reform, industrialisation, globalisation, international debt, colonialism, post-colonialism, international aid, health and malnutrition, violence, forced displacement, and gender equity
Areas covered in the case studies include: Zimbabwe, India, sub-Saharan Africa (Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Ghana, Sudan), South Asia (Sri Lanka and Bangladesh), and Ireland
Places emphasis on probing and clarifying the meanings, uses and areas of relevance of key concepts including 'development', 'efficiency', 'effectiveness', 'equity', 'needs', 'freedom', 'choices', 'culture' and 'community'
Pedagogical features include easy-to-grasp tables and figures, discussion questions and suggestions for further reading
Offers a self-contained introduction to development ethics aimed at undergraduates, professionals and the general reader
Includes a discussion of what ethics is and what methods it can use
Individual chapters are ideal as the main teaching material for sessions with an emphasis on participatory discussion
The Ethics of Development (Edinburgh Studies in World Ethics)
The Ethics of Development (Edinburgh Studies in World Ethics),Des Gasper,Edinburgh University Press,0748610588,Ethics & Moral Philosophy,General,Philosophy,Politics / Current Events,Development studies,Globalization,Political Science / General,Practical & applied ethics
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