"Webb Keane has provided us with an exceptionally broad and nuanced account of the natural and social histories of human ethical conduct. Unlike almost any other, the account is balanced between both cultural universals and cultural variability in the creation of human ethical life. This book is a must-read for everyone interested in the evolution of human sociality." --Michael Tomasello, author of A Natural History of Human Morality "At last, an account of ethical life that is as rich and many layered as ethical life itself. Webb Keane takes us from its instinctual beginnings, through the elaboration of moral notions in everyday interaction, to the broader field of conscious ethical change in history. Every chapter is full of reflection-provoking insights, based on extensive research in a number of fields. This book is a game changer." --Charles Taylor, author of A Secular Age "A treasure trove of richly stimulating ideas.
" --Kwame Anthony Appiah, author of Experiments in Ethics " Ethical Life is a brilliant synthesis of the major issues in moral theory and the anthropology of ethics. Keane masterfully provides us with a model of interdisciplinary engagement--insightful, measured, world aware, and sensitive to the different shades of argument he engages. This book is an outstanding contribution to our understanding of our lives as ethical beings." --Veena Das, author of Affliction: Health, Disease, Poverty "With Ethical Life , Webb Keane confirms his place as one of anthropology's most gifted thinkers. The scope of this book is phenomenal, ranging over a host of disciplines and debates with erudition. Ethical Life provides a new model for what bold anthropology can achieve, bringing us back to the difficult question of how to understand the natural and social histories of humankind--a question that many of us have simply been too timid to ask." --Matthew Engelke, London School of Economics "This ambitious book synthesizes perspectives from anthropology, psychology, philosophy, and history, putting forward with impressive force and clarity a distinctive and persuasive argument. Ethical Life is a work of considerable scholarship and original thought.
" --James Laidlaw, author of The Subject of Virtue: An Anthropology of Ethics and Freedom.