Moral Philosophy: Ethics, Deontology and Natural Law

"Moral Philosophy: Ethics, Deontology and Natural Law" by Joseph Rickaby is a philosophical exploration from the early 1900s that untangles the connections between right and wrong, human behavior, and what's considered natural law. It examines how our actions relate to both our own happiness and our sense of duty. The book explains ethics as the study of how to achieve happiness and deontology as the science of moral responsibilities, offering a complete view of moral philosophy. All human actions are driven by a desire for happiness, which Rickaby explains using ideas from Aristotle. The author points out that previous ideas about ethics have often missed the idea of moral duty. He argues that moral philosophy should be divided into three parts: ethics, deontology, and natural law to understand how ethics affects what we do and how deontology defines our moral laws and responsibilities.. This sets the stage for conversations about morality and how we should act.