Baumgarten’s Philosophical Ethics

Alexander Baumgarten (1714-1762) was among the first to teach the controversial philosophy of Christian Wolff (1679-1754). By order of the king, he moved to Frankfurt on the Oder in 1739, where he remained until his death in 1762. His most influential philosophical works are Metaphysics (1739), Philosophical Ethics (1740) and Aesthetics (2 Vols, 1750 and 1757). Today Baumgarten is also regarded as a central founder of modern aesthetics. John Hymers is Associate Professor of Philosophy at La Salle University, USA. He is the co-editor and translator of Metaphysics: A Critical Translation (Bloomsbury, 2012), Preparation for Natural Theology (Bloomsbury, 2016) and Baumgarten's Elements of First Practical Philosophy (Bloomsbury, 2020).

Series Editors’ Preface
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations

Translator’s Introduction to the BEP
This Volume
Alexander Baumgarten – A Brief Life
The central themes of the Ethica Philosophica
1) The Determining Ground of Perfection
2) Obligation
3) Happiness and religion
Notes on this translation
1) The editions of the Ethica Philosophica
2) Vocabulary

Baumgarten’s Philosophical Ethics

To the listener of good will [Preface to the first edition]
New Preface [Preface to the second edition]
Synopsis
Prolegomena

Part I. General Ethics
I. Religion
2. Duties Towards Yourself
3. Duties Towards Other Things

Part II. Special Ethics
4. Special Duties with Respect to the Soul
5. Special Duties with Respect to the Body
6. Special Duties with Respect to the External State

Index to the Paragraphs of the Philosophical Ethics
Glossaries
English to Latin
Latin to English
Greek – English
Works Cited
Textual Variants