Some arguments for the objectivity of ethical claim have a 'companions in guilt' form. These arguments defend the objective credentials of ethical claims by comparing them with other claims the objective credentials of which are not in doubt, but which share the features of ethical claims that lead some toward scepticism about ethical objectivity. In this book, the most influential contemporary manifestations of this strategy are subjected to critical analysis for the first time.

This is a systematic study of 'companions in guilt' arguments in moral philosophy. Lillehammer distinguishes between two distinct forms of these, which he calls 'arguments by entailment' and 'arguments by analogy' respectively. For each strategy, Lillehammer examines three of its most prominent manifestations in contemporary ethical thought.