Ethics by Rev. James L. Breed, Ph.D. Ethics: An Introduction to the Western Schools of Thought in Moral Philosophy is an introductory textbook in moral philosophy. It provides an outline of the main schools of thought in the Western philosophical traditions, with a brief analysis of each school of thought and the views of its critics. This text is designed to cover the major theories and schools of thought in moral philosophy: the divine command theory; the deontological theories; natural law theory; virtue ethics; other teleological theories including egoism and hedonism; the ethics of community; utilitarianism; existentialist ethics; individualism and radical individualism; relativism; realist and absolutist theories; feminist ethics; environmentalist ethics; the focus on the need for individual judgment and moral commitment; and contextualism.