The Secret Chain

Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
1 Ethics and Evolution
The Secret Chain
Epistemology from an Evolutionary Point of View
Ethics from an Evolutionary Point of View
Morals and Models
Evolution and Ethics
2 Altruism, Benevolence, and Self-Love in Eighteenth Century British Moral Philosophy
Introduction
Benevolence and Self-Love from Hobbes to Mackintosh
The Eighteenth Century Legacy
3 The Moral Realm of Nature: Nineteenth Century Views on Ethics and Evolution
Introduction
Natural Facts and Natural Values
Nature, Culture, and Conflict
4 Human Nature
Introduction
The Concept of Human Nature
Human Nature and Moral Theory
Human Nature and Ideology
Does Darwinism Undermine the Concept of Human Nature?
5 Three Contemporary Approaches to Evolutionary Ethics
Introduction
The Wisdom of the Genes: The Sociobiology of Ethics
Richard Alexander and the Biological Basis of Morality
Robert Richards and the Revised Theory
General Conclusion
6 Darwinism and the Moral Status of Animals
Introduction
Singer's Expanding Circle Argument
James Rachels on "Moral Individualism"
Rodd on the Rights of Animals and Our Duties Toward Them
Conclusion
7 Final Reflections
Summary of the Argument
The Biological Roots of Morality
The Relevance of Darwin for Moral Philosophy
Bibliography
Index