Recommendations from our site
“This was a book that was very influential on me all the way back in 2009 and got me inspired to work on the problem of extreme poverty…You can do an enormous amount of good; it literally costs only a few thousand dollars to save a life. When we think about doing good in the world, we should appreciate how much our money can do. I included this book because whenever we’re engaging in prioritization or thinking about the big problems of our time, this is something that should really be borne in mind. Peter Singer also inspired me to give away most of my income. It can do a lot more good for other people than it can for me.” Read more...
Will MacAskill, Nonprofit Leaders & Activist
“I think the central question in philosophy is, “How should we live?” And that’s a question about which Peter Singer has a lot to say. The book focuses on the terrible poverty and disease found around the world, and how we in the West are living in a luxury that we could adjust just a little bit in order to alleviate that misery. He suggests that we give maybe 5% of our wages to charity. He’s not saying you have to live in a sackcloth and give away all your possessions. Even a small gift of 5% would make a tremendous difference to other people’s lives.” Read more...
The Best Introductions to Philosophy
Nigel Warburton, Philosopher
“It’s a really inspiring read. It’s very nicely set out in terms of having clear arguments and picking up on things that are often said but not thought about. Peter Singer starts with a simple story – if you are walking past a pond and you see a child floundering and it looks likely that the child will drown, despite the fact that your new shoes may be ruined, you will automatically go into the mud to save the child. So he argues that if we all agree on this, why do we then buy new shoes and luxury goods that we don’t really need, when putting that money into an aid programme can save a life? He asks how we can accept that millions of children are dying from curable diseases and poverty every year, when in many places we have more than we need. He looks at that premise under many different spotlights. And he examines aid in a way that I really appreciate. He looks at all the key questions and all the aspects of aid, such as ‘Can we be convinced that our money will be well spent?’ He examines the question very thoroughly and comes up with a resounding ‘yes’.” Read more...
Cassie Knight, Nonprofit Leaders & Activist
Although not overtly about utilitarianism, this philosophical stance underpins this short and very readable book in which Peter Singer argues that most people in the West should be doing more to end world poverty.
