From childhood, we're taught one central, non-controversial idea about morality: self-sacrifice is a virtue. It is universally accepted that serving the needs of others, rather than our own, is the essence of morality. To be ethical—it is believed—is to be altruistic. Questioning this belief is regarded as tantamount to questioning the self-evident. Here, Peter Schwartz questions it. In Defense of Selfishness refutes widespread misconceptions...

"One boy's parents travel from far-off lands to improve their son's life. But what happens next is unexpected. What does it mean when your parents are different? With humor and pathos, Sworder reflects on the strange nature of giving and receiving love and celebrates those parents who embrace a hard life for themselves in the hope of a better life for their children"--

It is a time of trouble in the Northern Kingdoms because a group of power-hungry polar bears called Roguers has been snatching cubs from their mothers and killing those who resist; but Svenna is not about to relinquish her two cubs to that fate, so she agrees to go with the Roguers and serve Mystress of the Hands if her cubs, who have special powers, are allowed to stay with her cousin--but nobody is truly safe when a way of life is collapsing around...

Tells the story of a family that has been uprooted by the Partition of India and come to depend on its eldest daughter, the self-sacrificing Neeta. She watches helplessly as her own hopes and desires are pushed aside time and again by those of her siblings and parents, until all her chances for happiness evaporate, leaving her crushed and ailing.

How did the universe begin? What is truth? How can we live good lives? Throughout history, humankind has asked these and other big questions about the nature of life and existence - and big thinkers have offered solutions that continue to shape our world. Written in plain English, The Philosophy Book is packed with short, pithy explanations that cut through the jargon, step-by-step diagrams that untangle knotty theories, classic quotes that make philosophy...

"A life-affirming anthem to kindness and self-sacrifice, The Travelling Cat Chronicles shows how the smallest things can provide the greatest joy. We take journeys to explore exotic new places and to return to the comforts of home, to visit old acquaintances and to make new friends. But the most important journey is the one that shows us how to follow our hearts ... An instant international bestseller, The Travelling Cat Chronicles has charmed readers...

"'Here is how monstrous humans are.' A sentient, murderous prosthetic leg; shadowy creatures lurking behind a shimmering wall; brutal barrow men-of all the terrors that populate The Glassy, Burning Floor of Hell, perhaps the most alarming are the beings who decimated the habitable Earth: humans. In this new short story collection, Brian Evenson envisions a chilling future beyond the Anthropocene that forces excruciating decisions about survival and...

In this lecture, investigate the gendering of religious language and the treatment of women's bodies in religious practices like menstrual seclusion and self-sacrifice. Also, study the anxiety around women that occurred during the Salem witch trials, as well as competing interpretations of women's freedom and constraint in Islam.

‘The history of officers and men of the Royal Australian Navy through the war years will, for the most part, never be known, yet they won for themselves honour in a service known for its traditions of self-sacrifice and devotion to duty. Now, in the aftermath of war, we may lose sight of many things – including our debt to the past – yet because of that heritage of faith and courage, surely we need never doubt that the day will dawn when we...

"Walsh does a service to patriots everywhere. His must-read book allows the reader to work 'the why' around in his mind-and come to an understanding of real heroism." -Steve Bannon What are we willing to die for? Michael Walsh restores the dignity of lost concepts like honor, duty, sacrifice and patriotism for our unheroic age. What is heroism? What are its moral components-altruism, love, self-sacrifice? Why was it once celebrated, and now often...