Sublime

The best-known systems of normative ethics are the one-receptor systems I described in chapter 6: utilitarianism (which tells us to maximize overall welfare) and deontology (which in its Kantian form tells us to make the rights and autonomy of others paramount).

This, too, can be wrong; propounding neutrality is just as attackable as propounding any particular side.

Consider the following question posed by Amartya Sen, winner of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Economics.13 Three men have come to you looking for work. You have only one job to offer; the work cannot be divided among the three of them and they are all equally qualified. One of your goals is to make the world a better place by hiring the man who needs the

convictions

Social comparisons led to differences in political beliefs.

Everyone cares about fairness, but there are two major kinds. On the left, fairness often implies equality, but on the right it means proportionality—people should be rewarded in proportion to what they contribute, even if that guarantees unequal outcomes.

Our bodily states sometimes influence our moral judgments. Bad smells and tastes can make people more judgmental (as can anything that makes people think about purity and cleanliness).

How can we make sense of our lives, and hold people accountable for their choices, given the unconscious origins of our conscious minds?