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geekwayne's review
4.0
'The Trolley Problem' takes a philosophical problem and expands it out into a clever way to explain some philosophical ideas. The trolley problem is a question that has been asked for a while. A trolley is out of control. On the track ahead are five people, who for whatever reason, are unable to get out of the way. You are standing by a switch that can divert the trolley to a side track, but there is a lone person on this track who will be killed instead. Do you throw the switch to save the five people or do you let matters take their course?
The book is presented as a court case that is played in the modern media. It takes place in one of the few cities left that has trolleys, San Francisco. There are police reports, attorney statements, public debates on the radio and in classrooms. Throughout are interwoven the underpinning arguments and schools of philosophy. There are also a few wrinkles added to show variants on the Trolley Problem. Does doing nothing make you a murderer, or throwing the switch and dooming the lone man? Is it right to kill one to save some?
It's an interesting moral/ethical conundrum and Thomas Cathcart presents it in a highly readable manner. It's easy to see why this problem has prompted debate. I found it intelligent and fascinating.
I was given a review copy of this ebook by Workman Publishing Company and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this great book.
The book is presented as a court case that is played in the modern media. It takes place in one of the few cities left that has trolleys, San Francisco. There are police reports, attorney statements, public debates on the radio and in classrooms. Throughout are interwoven the underpinning arguments and schools of philosophy. There are also a few wrinkles added to show variants on the Trolley Problem. Does doing nothing make you a murderer, or throwing the switch and dooming the lone man? Is it right to kill one to save some?
It's an interesting moral/ethical conundrum and Thomas Cathcart presents it in a highly readable manner. It's easy to see why this problem has prompted debate. I found it intelligent and fascinating.
I was given a review copy of this ebook by Workman Publishing Company and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this great book.
designy808's review
funny
informative
slow-paced
3.75
I read this for class. Entertaining, sure. Recommend? Maybe if you like super dragged out things.
growlcat's review
5.0
A really well-written and engaging discussion of a moral dilemma and how different philosophers have approached it. Set in the court of public opinion, the discussion is presented as different opinions from jurors, prosecution and defense.
dlsmall's review against another edition
4.0
Solid, if maybe overly thorough, examination of The Trolley Problem, from probably every angle imaginable.
vdarcangelo's review
3.0
http://ensuingchapters.com/2013/09/10/trending-now-trollies/
Not since Rice-a-Roni has the trolley car been so popular.
What started as a philosophical thought experiment (first posed in the 1960s by British philosopher Philippa Foot) has become fodder for barroom chautauquas and classroom debates. It goes a little something like this: You are the conductor of a runaway trolley, and you’re headed toward five men working on the track. You have no way to stop or slow down, and you know that all five men will die.
Then, you notice a side track, and by simply pulling a switch, you’ll reroute the trolley and spare the workers. However, you see another man on this side track. The worker will surely die, but this lone death will save five.
Do you pull the switch?
What makes the trolley problem so interesting is that it can be reframed in many ways, all essentially asking the same question: Is it better that one person dies in order to save five lives?
The utilitarian gut response is usually affirmative, but the problem gets trickier as you introduce different scenarios. The darkest and most humorous of these is the fat guy on the bridge. Rather than the conductor, you and an obese stranger are on an overpass looking down at the track. In this scenario, there is no side track and no way to reroute the train away from the workers. The only way to spare their lives is to stop the trolley… and the only way to do that is by pushing the obese man off the bridge.
That’s quite the game-changer. But yet, the principle question remains the same: Is it better that one dies to save five?
This dilemma has moved from the classroom to cultural conscience thanks to the work of philosopher Michael J. Sandel and his book/mooc/PBS lectures on justice. This fall, two more intellectual titans offer their take on this ethical dilemma.
In The Trolley Problem, or Would You Push the Fat Guy off the Bridge?: A Philosophical Conundrum, published Sept. 10, Thomas Cathcart presents the arguments before a judge and jury, albeit fictitious. Cathcart is best known for a series of books coauthored with Daniel Klein that explains complicated philosophical ideas through jokes and anecdotes, and as with these bestsellers, like Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar…, the tone is light and irreverent.
Though the jests overshadow the ethics, there is some substance to the work. Ethical arguments are accompanied by short bios of their progenitors, and the introduction and conclusion put forth serious thought.
That said, the jokes amount to insider baseball. The greatness of Cathcart’s other books is that they serve a general audience. The humor in The Trolley Problem, or Would You Push the Fat Guy off the Bridge? is geared toward a readership already familiar with the thought experiment.
Those familiar with the work of Sandel and Foot will enjoy this short, light-hearted laugher. Those looking to explore the complexities of the dilemma should look elsewhere, get up to speed, and then dig into this trial by philosophy.
At least Cathcart gives us something the others don’t (sort of): a juried decision. The final verdict?
You’ll just have to read it for yourself.
Not since Rice-a-Roni has the trolley car been so popular.
What started as a philosophical thought experiment (first posed in the 1960s by British philosopher Philippa Foot) has become fodder for barroom chautauquas and classroom debates. It goes a little something like this: You are the conductor of a runaway trolley, and you’re headed toward five men working on the track. You have no way to stop or slow down, and you know that all five men will die.
Then, you notice a side track, and by simply pulling a switch, you’ll reroute the trolley and spare the workers. However, you see another man on this side track. The worker will surely die, but this lone death will save five.
Do you pull the switch?
What makes the trolley problem so interesting is that it can be reframed in many ways, all essentially asking the same question: Is it better that one person dies in order to save five lives?
The utilitarian gut response is usually affirmative, but the problem gets trickier as you introduce different scenarios. The darkest and most humorous of these is the fat guy on the bridge. Rather than the conductor, you and an obese stranger are on an overpass looking down at the track. In this scenario, there is no side track and no way to reroute the train away from the workers. The only way to spare their lives is to stop the trolley… and the only way to do that is by pushing the obese man off the bridge.
That’s quite the game-changer. But yet, the principle question remains the same: Is it better that one dies to save five?
This dilemma has moved from the classroom to cultural conscience thanks to the work of philosopher Michael J. Sandel and his book/mooc/PBS lectures on justice. This fall, two more intellectual titans offer their take on this ethical dilemma.
In The Trolley Problem, or Would You Push the Fat Guy off the Bridge?: A Philosophical Conundrum, published Sept. 10, Thomas Cathcart presents the arguments before a judge and jury, albeit fictitious. Cathcart is best known for a series of books coauthored with Daniel Klein that explains complicated philosophical ideas through jokes and anecdotes, and as with these bestsellers, like Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar…, the tone is light and irreverent.
Though the jests overshadow the ethics, there is some substance to the work. Ethical arguments are accompanied by short bios of their progenitors, and the introduction and conclusion put forth serious thought.
That said, the jokes amount to insider baseball. The greatness of Cathcart’s other books is that they serve a general audience. The humor in The Trolley Problem, or Would You Push the Fat Guy off the Bridge? is geared toward a readership already familiar with the thought experiment.
Those familiar with the work of Sandel and Foot will enjoy this short, light-hearted laugher. Those looking to explore the complexities of the dilemma should look elsewhere, get up to speed, and then dig into this trial by philosophy.
At least Cathcart gives us something the others don’t (sort of): a juried decision. The final verdict?
You’ll just have to read it for yourself.
bobf2d33's review
3.0
A simply easy reading book intended for the general audience. An introduction to thinking about moral philosophy.
zulhamsyah's review
5.0
Oh my God I finally read this one! This is the trolley problem like in the 60s but gets expanded. The difference is mention with the condition of Ms.Jones (with the moral dilemma) who doesn't bear the burden to make the decision. She was merely standing by a switch when she had seen the trolley was coming. I LOVE this book, A LOT, probably because the book is written in the very conventional way which makes it easy to comprehend. It then goes from chapter to chapter with the basis of the particular circumstances, along with comprising philosophical values to decide whether Ms.Jones should be found guilty nor not. Some terms are a little bit unclear since I am not supra familiar with the classical thoughts (I notice this in the naturalistic fallacy which I ended up discussing the term with friend). However, the book is an exciting way to dive into ethical dilemma and moral judgement. It is a fun and practical (in a playful way) to discuss enlightenment philosophy.