Starting Analysis in Ethics: A Practical Guide

Abstract

This chapter aims to give further guidance on critical reasoning and analysis in ethics, starting by looking closely at the critical reading of texts dealing with ethics. The aim is to equip readers to begin or to enhance their critical inquiries into ethics. Some basic strategies of critical analysis are illustrated, including crucial questions about the role of authority in a text; the arguments and concepts used; the conclusions drawn; and what assumptions, hidden or explicit, are made. There is an extended discussion of the framing of texts and the importance of spotting frames to critical ethical inquiry. The common frames in genomics of speed and of future promise are discussed.