Acknowledgements Preface I owe thanks to many people. Di Gribble of Text Publishing Is there still anything to live for? Is anything worth pursuing, uggested that the time was right for a book on this theme and part from money, love, and caring for ones own family? If so, Michael Heyward of the same firm advised me after the book what could it be? Talk of something to live for has a faintly reached the draft stage. An Australian Research Council Grant eligious flavour, but many people who are not at all religious made it possible for Margaret Parnaby to provide part-time have an uneasy feeling that they may be missing out on some- research assistance, gathering materials, checking references and thing basic that would give their lives a significance it now lacks providing critical comments at every stage of the work. Her Nor do these people have a deep commitment to any political work has helped to put flesh on the bare bones of the outline I creed. Over the past century political struggle has often filled had planned. Various drafts were read by Aaron Asher, Stephen the place that religion once held in other times and cultures. No Buckle, Paola Cavalieri, Lori Gruen, Helga Kuhse, Shunici one who reflects on recent history can now believe that politics Noguchi, Julian Savulescu, Renata Singer, Henry Spira an alone will suffice to solve all our problems. But what else can we Tomasaburo Yamauchi. Each gave me helpful comments and live for? In this book I give one answer. It is as ancient as the collectively, they have made the book- whatever faults it may dawn of philosophy, but as much needed in our circumstances still have - much better than it would have been otherwise today as it ever was before. The answer is that we can live an ethical life. By doing so we make ourselves part of a great, cross- cultural tradition. Moreover. we will find that to live an ethical fulfillment If we can detach ourselves from our own immediate preoccu pations and look at the world as a whole and our place in it, there is something absurd about the idea that people should have trouble finding something to live for. There is, after all, so much that needs to be done. As this book was nearing completion, United Nations troops entered Somalia in an attempt to ensure that food supplies reached the starving population there Although this attempt went badly wrong, it was at least a hope ul sign that affluent nations were prepared to do something about hunger and suffering in areas remote from them. We may learn from this episode, and future attempts may be more suc cessful. Perhaps we are at the beginning of a new era in whichAcknowledgements I owe thanks to many people. Di Gribble of Text Publishing suggested that the time was right for a book on this theme, and Michael Heyward of the same firm advised me after the book reached the draft stage. An Australian Research Council Grant made it possible for Margaret Parnaby to provide part-time research assistance, gathering materials, checking references and providing critical comments at every stage of the work. Her work has helped to put flesh on the bare bones of the outline I had planned. Various drafts were read by Aaron Asher, Stephen Buckle, Paola Cavalieri, Lori Gruen, Helga Kuhse, Shunici Noguchi, Julian Savulescu, Renata Singer, Henry Spira and Tomasaburo Yamauchi. Each gave me helpful comments and, collectively, they have made the book — whatever faults it may still have — much better than it would have been otherwise. Preface Is there still anything to live for? Is anything worth pursuing, apart from money, love, and caring for one's own family? If so, what could it be? Talk of 'something to live for' has a faintly religious flavour, but many people who are not at all religious have an uneasy feeling that they may be missing out on some￾thing basic that would give their lives a significance it now lacks. Nor do these people have a deep commitment to any political creed. Over the past century political struggle has often filled the place that religion once held in other times and cultures. No one who reflects on recent history can now believe that politics alone will suffice to solve all our problems. But what else can we live for? In this book I give one answer. It is as ancient as the dawn of philosophy, but as much needed in our circumstances today as it ever was before. The answer is that we can live an ethical life. By doing so we make ourselves part of a great, cross￾cultural tradition. Moreover, we will find that to live an ethical life is not self-sacrifice, but self-fulfillment. If we can detach ourselves from our own immediate preoccu￾pations and look at the world as a whole and our place in it, there is something absurd about the idea that people should have trouble finding something to live for. There is, after all, so much that needs to be done. As this book was nearing completion, United Nations troops entered Somalia in an attempt to ensure that food supplies reached the starving population there. Although this attempt went badly wrong, it was at least a hope￾ful sign that affluent nations were prepared to do something about hunger and suffering in areas remote from them. We may learn from this episode, and future attempts may be more suc￾cessful. Perhaps we are at the beginning of a new era in which