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Wat Is Morality.

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\\·e are discussing nd-sm~ll matter, but how we ought to live.
SOCRATES, AS REPORTED BY PLATO IN THE REPUBliC (CA. 390 B.C.)

1.1. The Problem of Definition
Moral philosophy is the attempt to achieve a systematic under ­ standing of the nature of morality and what it requires of us­ in Socrates's words, of "how we ought to live,r and why. :It would be helpful, therefore, if we could begin with a simple, uncon­ !roversial defiuition of what lIJ,Qrality is. But that tums out to be impossible. There are many rival theories, each expounding a different conception of what it means to live morally, and any definition that goes beyoud Socrates's simple formulation is bound to offend one or another of them. This should make us cautious, but it need not paralyze us. In this chapter I will describe what I call the "minimum con ­ ception" of morality. As the name suggests, the minimum con ­ ception is a core that every moral theory should accept, at least as a starting point. We will begin by examining some recent moral controversies. The features of the minimum conception will emerge from our consideration of these examples.

1.2. An Infant with No Prospects: Baby Theresa
Theresa Ann Campo Pearson, an anencephalic infant known to the public as "Baby Theresa," was bom in Florida in 1992. Anen ­ cephaly is amoll'g the worst cong~nital disorders. Anencephalic infants are sometimes referred to as "babies without brains," and . dlls gives roughly the rig'ht picture, but it is not quite accurate. Important parts of the brain-the cerebrum and cerebellum­ are missing. as well as the top of the skull. There is, however, a
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£LnlE~,S OF ~IORAL PHILOSOPHY

~tem. and so autonomic functions such as breathing and heartbeat are possible. In the United States, most cases of anen­ cephah' are detected dming pregnancy