The Moral Landscape

How Science Can Determine Human Values

By: Sam Harris

Narrated by: Sam Harris

Sam Harris’s first book, The End of Faith, ignited a worldwide debate about the validity of religion. In the aftermath, Harris discovered that most people—from religious fundamentalists to nonbelieving scientists—agree on one point: science has nothing to say on the subject of human values. Indeed, our failure to address questions of meaning and morality through science has now become the most common justification for religious faith. It is also the primary reason why so many secularists and religious moderates feel obligated to "respect" the hardened superstitions of their more devout neighbors.

In this explosive new book, Sam Harris tears down the wall between scientific facts and human values, arguing that most people are simply mistaken about the relationship between morality and the rest of human knowledge. Harris urges us to think about morality in terms of human and animal well-being, viewing the experiences of conscious creatures as peaks and valleys on a "moral landscape". Because there are definite facts to be known about where we fall on this landscape, Harris foresees a time when science will no longer limit itself to merely describing what people do in the name of "morality"; in principle, science should be able to tell us what we ought to do to live the best lives possible.

Bringing a fresh perspective to age-old questions of right and wrong and good and evil, Harris demonstrates that we already know enough about the human brain and its relationship to events in the world to say that there are right and wrong answers to the most pressing questions of human life. Because such answers exist, moral relativism is simply false—and comes at increasing cost to humanity. And the intrusions of religion into the sphere of human values can be finally repelled: for just as there is no such thing as Christian physics or Muslim algebra, there can be no Christian or Muslim morality.

©2010 Sam Harris (P)2010 Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Sam Harris breathes intellectual fire into an ancient debate. Reading this thrilling, audacious book, you feel the ground shifting beneath your feet. Reason has never had a more passionate advocate.” (Ian McEwan)

“A lively, provocative, and timely new look at one of the deepest problems in the world of ideas. Harris makes a powerful case for a morality that is based on human flourishing and thoroughly enmeshed with science and rationality. It is a tremendously appealing vision, and one that no thinking person can afford to ignore.” (Steven Pinker, Harvard College Professor of Psychology, Harvard University, and author of How the Mind Works and The Blank Slate)

It will soon become a sociology classic

Brilliantly written, brilliantly delivered, this book will become as relevant as the works of Kant, Descartes or Rousseau some day. Life-changing.

4

One really annoying thing was the 's' or 'sh' sound whenever he spoke. It sounded like a really loud whistle and was very annoying. Other than that a great read.

Wow. Should be mandatory reading.

So amazingly fantastic, Harris is dedicated to the truth and finding the best path to human wellbeing.

Everyone should consider this book...

Great book and very well written. The topics considered within the book are very well thought out and the examples provided are clear and concise...

groundbreaking

Awesome argument against absolute moral and cultural relativism. And the idea you can get an ought from an is. exceptional arguments! loved it

Thought provoking as always.

Some of it is hard to hear but nonetheless important and impactful. I'll continue reading Sam's work.

Important discussion

I felt that this book posed some very interesting questions and made a powerful case for a change of attitude in this field. Interesting, thought provoking and brave, challenging the current thinking.

Perfectly mind altering

An amazing read. This read challenged my previously held beliefs in a logical way that made it hard for me to see any way but the way presented. A stellar investigation of one of the most perplexing human black boxes.

Science _can_ tell us how to live a good life.

As one of the "Four Horsemen of New Atheism", Sam Harris gets hated on a lot. If you can't take some straightforward, pull-no-punches criticism of religion, you'll probably have some trouble listening to this. Nevertheless, he does a masterful job of outlining a method by which humanity can arrive at an objective measure of morality and human values through science. He admits that some questions are hard--even inanswerable--but his airtight logic demonstrates why science may just be the only objective guide for determining what values are worth promoting and what constitutes morality.

The author reads the book himself, and his tone is very conserved, conversational, and logical.

Intensely rational. Classic Sam Harris.

What would you get if you mixed the compassion of an enlightened eastern mystic with the incisive reasoning of a neuroscientist?

This book.

Sam has a way of putting things that make them seem clear and incontrovertible. He gently disintegrates the counter arguments that once seemed almost plausible if only because of their ubiquity.

This book is a well founded, well intentioned and well executed attempt at remaining rational, factual, and scientific. It succeeds!

If I had read the manuscript and could have offered advice I would have suggested that Sam point out the ramifications for us if we fail to adopt a rational model for ethical reasoning. It isn't an exaggeration to say that all life on earth could be extinguished in what amounts to a delusional cult reacting to voodoo warnings of an imaginary enemy. By definition the only differences are that cults are newer and have fewer adherents, delusion excludes religious believe, and instead of spells, people use prayers.

I think you should read this book if you are on the fence. It will likely knock you off onto the correct side.

I love Sam and I think he is doing great work. This book is no exception. Buy it.