Morals and Politics

First published in 1977

Ethics is the most practical branch of philosophy: its immediate concern is with people's actions. Yet most philosophers do little to relate ethics intelligibly to the human situation. In this inquiry into the nature of ethics, William Ash draws on the relevant works of Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin to present the theory and practice of Marxist ethics. He offers an explanation of the moral aspect of Marx's dictum: "The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways; the point, however, is to change it." The book includes, perhaps for the first time in so considered a form, an assessment of Mao Tsetung's contribution to Marxist moral philosophy, together with the ethical implications of such developments in social practice as the Proletarian Cultural Revolution.

The analysis of key concepts

The author deals with the question of value by analysing the concept of "good"; with the question of claims on people and things by analysing the concept of "right"; with the question of the limits and scope of freedom of choice and action by analysing the concept of "ought". Clearly written in order to "de-mystify" the subject, the book challenges readers to test the author's enlightened, Marxist approach in terms of the ethical ordering of their own society.