Bernard Rosen Boeken

The book explores the shift from manufacturing to service industries, highlighting the emergence of an information society and its impact on social dynamics. It identifies a new class of winners, termed "Chameleons," who possess the character traits necessary to thrive in this transformed landscape. In contrast, those labeled as losers struggle due to a lack of adaptability and values needed for success. The author challenges conventional explanations for societal issues like job stagnation and inequality, emphasizing psychosocial factors as key determinants of success and failure in modern society.

The book explores how Generation X, particularly elite members, navigate the anxieties of rapid social, economic, and technological changes in America. It introduces the concept of "chameleonism," where individuals adapt their identities to meet others' expectations in pursuit of security. This behavior, while a coping mechanism, can become ingrained in their personalities. The author offers a compelling analysis of how this generation's survival strategies reflect their unique challenges and experiences in a transforming society.

A normative ethical theory provides a means of arriving at justified moral and value judgments. A clear example of such a theory is J. S. Mill's utilitarianism. When Mill, or any authors, attempt to justify these normative ethical theories they provide meta-ethical arguments. Any attempted justification of the meta-arguments, or the methods they employ, is at the meta-philosophical level and are parceled out to their proper level, thus revealing Mill's full ethical theory. Bernard Rosen argues Mill's critics and supporters address one level or another, often without noting which one it is. The positions of important ethical theorists who have been influenced by, or who criticize Mill are presented. They include A. Sidgwick, G. E. Moore, William James, M. Schlick, A. J. Ayer, R. M. Hare, C. L. Stevenson, William Frankena, and John Dewey. Along the way, a thoroughgoing, pragmatic ethical theory at every level, is set out and defended.