Books
Loving Life
Loving Life: The Morality of Self-Interest and the Facts that Support It is a highly concretized, systematic introduction to Ayn Rand's ethics. It demonstrates that morality is a matter not of divine revelation or social convention or personal opinion—but, rather, of the factual requirements of human life and happiness.
Contents (Click the opening chapters to read them online.)
- Introduction: Who Should Read This Book—And Why
- 1. Religion Versus Subjectivism: Why Neither Will Do
- 2. The Is–Ought Gap: Subjectivism's Technical Retreat
- 3. To Be Or Not To Be: The Basic Choice
- 4. Objective Moral Values: Basic Human Needs
- 5. Making Life Meaningful: Living Purposefully
- 6. Objective Moral Values: Principled Actions
- 7. A Civilized Society: The Necessary Conditions
- 8. Concluding Summary: What We Now Know
- Afterword: Terrorism, Altruism, and Moral Certainty
- Appendix. Emergency Situations: The Principle Remains
- Recommended Reading
- Index
Reviews
"Loving Life...is a clear, simple, and—at less than 150 pages—succinct introduction to the essentials of Ayn Rand's ethics."
“Based on Ayn Rand's ethics of rational egoism—but assuming no prior knowledge of her ideas or of philosophy in general—this short book argues that 'morality is a matter of the factual requirements of human life and happiness. It is a matter of reason, logic and the law of cause and effect.' The author offers dozens of concrete, everyday examples to illustrate the theoretical points discussed. From start to finish, Loving Life engages the reader with its lively conversational style.”
"The material abundance and individual freedom that is the hallmark of capitalism rests on upon the ethics of self-interest, but today perhaps no code of morality is more misunderstood and maligned. In a profound yet easily accessible text, Craig Biddle demolishes the conventional wisdom that holds sacrifice as a moral ideal and offers a compelling alternative."
"...challenging, informative, thoughtful.... Loving Life is a fresh voice of reason.... very highly recommended reading...."
“. . . a great book, both for recommending to potential students of Objectivism—and for emulating in our efforts to convey our ideas.”
“[Loving Life] is the best primer on ethics I've seen, and it is an excellent introduction to Ayn Rand's Objectivist ethics.”
Back to topBook in Progress
The book I’m currently writing, which is tentatively titled “Good Thinking,” is about the principles of rational thinking and the fallacies that are violations of those principles. Whereas Loving Life demonstrates that being moral consists in being selfish, “Good Thinking” shows what being selfish means in the realm of cognition; it is about how to use one’s mind in the service of one’s life, liberty, and happiness.
Back to top