Why read The Risk of a Lifetime?

Book cover of The Risk of a Lifetime: How, When, and Why Procreation May Be Permissible

Book description

Having children is probably as old as the first successful organism. It is often done thoughtlessly. This book is an argument for giving procreating some serious thought, and a theory of how, when, and why procreation may be permissible.
procreative ethics, procreation itself is often done Rivka Weinberg begins with…

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Why read it?

1 author picked The Risk of a Lifetime as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Trevor Hedberg

Author

Rivka Weinberg’s theory of when procreation is permissible and why is one of the most well-defended accounts of reproductive ethics.

The subtitle alludes to the book’s unique approach – the idea that procreation should be an exercise in risk management. All children face the risk of serious harm, so we should only procreate when we are able to do an awful lot to mitigate that risk.

What struck me most about Weinberg’s approach was its theoretical rigor and systematicity. Her account of the ethics of procreation is more thorough and cohesive than other work on the subject I have encountered,…

From Trevor's list on The best books by philosophers about whether it’s okay to have kids.