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Applbaum begins by examining the career of Charles-Henri Sanson, who is appointed executioner of Paris by Louis XVI and serves the punitive needs of the ancien régime for decades. Come the French Revolution, the King's Executioner becomes the king's executioner, and he ministers with professional detachment to each defeated political faction throughout the Terror and its aftermath. By exploring one extraordinary role and the arguments that can be offered in its defense, Applbaum raises unsettling doubts about arguments in defense of less sanguinary professions and their practices.

To justify harmful acts, adversaries appeal to arguments about the rules of the game, fair play, consent, the social construction of actions and actors, good outcomes in equilibrium, and the legitimate authority of institutions. Applbaum concludes that these arguments are weaker than supposed and do not morally justify much of the violation that professionals and public officials inflict. Institutions and the roles they create ordinarily cannot mint moral permissions to do what otherwise would be morally prohibited.

Average Customer Rating:

Long hours of reflection

Customer Rating:

Recently I've been interested in Ethics, but I'm no expert. This is a well landed ethics book, you won't feel laden by lots of philosophy terminology or theories since the author treats you as a non specialist. Applbaum gives a solid argument and guides you through different profession perspectives (since he sees professions as qualified entities for social roles) and the social part each represents. Interesting perspective, this book surely made me cogitate and opened my mind to different views and new understanding. Of course this is no "I can't get this book down" kind of reading, but is really bearable and at the end leaves you with a sense of confort feeling you have broken restrictive mental models about professional life and behaviour. Very nice book, recommendable.