Tara Smith: Ayn Rand's Normative Ethics: The Virtuous Egoist

[Felix]

Being a big fan of Viable Values, I am thrilled that Smith has finally followed up with a treatment of Normative Ethics. I would like to know if anyone of you has read it, yet, and if so, what you think of it.

If it is even remotely as good as Viable Values, she's found a new buyer even though the book is quite expensive at $80.

[LaszloWalrus]

As a sequel, the plot's a little thin; hardly any of the main characters return

Actually, I havne't read it yet, though I've heard its excellent.

[DavidOdden]

Being a big fan of Viable Values, I am thrilled that Smith has finally followed up with a treatment of Normative Ethics. I would like to know if anyone of you has read it, yet, and if so, what you think of it.

If it is even remotely as good as Viable Values, she's found a new buyer even though the book is quite expensive at $80.

Thanks for posting that info: I didn't know about it. And gosh, I get a free copy. So cool!

[Felix]

Thanks for posting that info: I didn't know about it. And gosh, I get a free copy. So cool!

You get a free copy? How?

[Sherry]

I haven't read any of her books yet, but hope to get her Viable Values in the next couple of weeks.

I really enjoyed her last lecture that ARI posted online.

David, you are a lucky bastard. (I mean that in the nicest way possible, of course.)

Has anyone here written a review on Viable Values they would like to share? Or her other works?

[DavidOdden]

You get a free copy? How?

An annual quota of free books from the publisher for being an associate editor of one of their journals.

[Felix]

David, you are a lucky bastard. (I mean that in the nicest way possible, of course.)

Then I'd second that.

[Felix]

Khaight said he has started reading the book in another thread, so I contacted him via PM. He gave me permission to post his answer here:

I'm only in the third of ten chapters. So far she's covered the meta-ethical argument for egoism (basically a quick recap of the argument from Viable Values), and the virtues of rationality and honesty. There isn't any groundbreaking new material here for people familiar with Rand and Peikoff's work, but I wasn't really expecting anything different. The value here is in the clarity and structure of Smith's presentation, particularly her concretization of the things that the various virtues require of those who wish to practice them.

I've been telling people that I'm reading a formal academic treatise on how to be more selfish. That's basically what the book is.

One difference between this book and Viable Values is that it is a much more purely positive work. A large chunk of Viable Values is taken up arguing against various wrong approaches to meta-ethics (intuitionism, contractarianism, rationalism, inherent value theory, etc). Only after those weeds are cleared does Smith get on to Rand's argument. Her new book pretty much jumps straight into Rand's normative egoism and lays it out, calmly and systematically. Comparisons are made to the works of other ethicists at appropriate points, but this is not a polemic.

Finally, as I expected, Smith's work continues to provide a model of what academic Objectivism can and should look like. Technical and detailed, but still comprehensible and valuable to the intelligent layman.