All of Charles Thomas Taylor's previous writings have attempted to reveal the universal rational foundation that undergirds all of the various ethical, political, and economic systems that best nurture human existence. With a latent recognition that the presence of symbolism in other areas of human concern, such as in religion or the fine arts, essentially communicates ethical value, Taylor presents his new book to consider the current relevance or irrelevance of religion and art for the ethical life. An appreciation of beauty in nature and art is generally applauded, not as a substitute for that sense of sensual and emotional gratification that inevitably proceeds from successful rational endeavor toward the satisfaction of human needs, but as a supplemental source of pleasure and happiness. The outcome of Taylor's evaluation of the experience of religion in human affairs does not fare quite as well, for reasons that he lays out in systematic detail. Although the book may be seen as offering some new and original ideas in either sphere of human concern, it is essentially a work of cultural anthropology that attempts to integrate, or not to integrate in some cases, the peripheral concerns of religion and aesthetics with a central ethical vision for the future of our species.

The philosophy of symbiosism designates the rational, and therefore universal, principles of human behavior for living together in peace, security, and happiness. The name has been coined by the author from the combination of three common terms: a prefix, "sym-," meaning "together"; a root and combining form, "bios," meaning "mode of life"; and a suffix, "-ism," meaning doctrine or adherence to a system of principles. The need for a common morality arises from the present ubiquitous condition and rapidly increasing awareness of mutual dependency among human beings. Symbiosism is synthesized from moral traditions of various religions and philosophies of both the West and the East and comprises four moral philosophies: the ethics of noninjury, utilitarianism, the ethics of magnanimity, and a new ethics fully developed from the ancient model of the Golden Rule that the author calls "reciprocitarianism." The author intends for symbiosism to serve as the moral foundation for the cultural and political unification of democratic societies throughout the world. Rather than attempting to introduce a new religious dogma or political platform, symbiosism represents a fresh and wholly rational approach to cultivating one's personal ethics.

In Toward World Sovereignty, Taylor maintains that permanent world peace and the continuing progress of human evolution require that the nations of mankind come together soon to establish a single world democratic federal government. In the author's opinion, the increasing risk of human extinction that is directly associated with the relentless proliferation of nuclear weapons would appear to preclude any viable alternative considerations. Taylor argues that world federalization will achieve permanent peace as well as a new and higher standard of well-being for most of the people in the world. Toward World Sovereignty provides a dispassionate presentation of all of the components on both sides of the debate over world sovereignty. To the greatest possible extent, the book attempts to trace an outline of the most realistic and likely course for the initial establishment and continuing development of the world democratic federal government.

In Moral Education in a Democracy, Charles Thomas Taylor argues that a common morality is essential for the security and well-being of a democratic society, but that the traditional dissemination of such moral values is now insufficient and inadequate. This deficiency requires a dramatic shift of the burden of this activity from the religious institutions to the public schools. Taylor proposes both a curriculum and a methodology for public moral education. While he maintains that an appropriate body of ethics can be derived from the ethical tenets of the major religions, he offers as a working model his own composite of such an ethics code. He further proposes a program of adult remedial moral education for use as an integral component of criminal rehabilitation and mental healthcare for convicts.

In Ignes Fatui, Charles Thomas Taylor examines various misapprehensions and misconceptions that interfere with clear rational thought. The title of the book, a loanword from Medieval Latin, means "foolish fires"-lights that occasionally appear in the nighttime over marshy ground and are frequently attributable to the combination of gases emitted by decomposed organic matter. The term is sometimes used in modern times to suggest deceptive thoughts, goals, or hopes. The first four chapters of Ignes Fatui consider various common illusions that interfere with sound objective thought in society. The fifth and final chapter considers the illusions that prevent and consequently forestall any form of effectual subjective thinking in personal life. The primary objective of the book is to attempt to improve rational thought and thereby reverse the general decline of faith in the power of reason today.