The eleven short, linked essays in Morality by Design represent a culmination of two decades of research and writing on the topic of moral realism. Wade Rowland first introduces readers to the basic ideas of leading moral thinkers from Plato to Leibniz to Putnam, and then, he explores the subject through today's political, economic, and environmental conundrums. The collection presents a strong argument against postmodern moral relativism and the idea that only science can claim a body of reliable fact; challenges currently fashionable notions of the perfectibility of human individuals--and even the human species--through technology; and argues for the validity of common sense. In guiding the reader through Enlightenment-era rationalist thought as it pertained to human nature and the foundations of morality, Rowland provides a coherent, intellectually sound, and intuitively appealing alternative to the nihilistic views popularized by contemporary radical relativism. Morality by Design ultimately seeks to convince readers that there is such a thing as moral fact, and that they do indeed have what it takes to make robust and durable moral judgments.

A road trip in France can be many things. This one involves a pair of precocious teenagers, a meditative author intent on imprinting some of the worthier aspects of French civilization on their still-malleable minds, and his indulgent, level-headed wife. Seizing an unexpected opportunity to combine family travel with some studious research into medieval France, the writer and his family embark from Paris on a route that takes them through Versailles, Tours, Chartres, Lyon, Carcasonne, Toulouse, Avignon, Dijon and points between.
Along the way they immerse themselves in France's rich medieval heritage, finally exploring the magnificent mountain-top ruins of the mysterious and romantic religious sect known as the Cathars, in the country's extreme south. From cheese and charcuterie to landmark hotels to Michelin-starred restaurants; from Aristotle, and Thomas Aquinas to Descartes and Magritte, Rowland blends the adventurous family's travel experiences with an astute and fascinating examination of some of our deepest assumptions about the nature of reality and our relationship to the world.
Rolling along back roads in their trusty rented Peugeot; in crusader castles and feudal dungeons; in bistros and supermarches; in a borrowed country farmhouse, in a luxurious cave-dwelling in Vouvray, family discussions turn to the world view of medieval Europe, a system of thought and perception radically different from our own. Suspecting that the Enlightenment and Reformation tossed out the baby of moral certainty with the bathwater of hypocrisy and superstition, Rowland argues that modern values, derived from fundamentalist science and rationalism, have reduced human beings to alienated objects-human resources, or worse, human capital.
Reviewers have compared "Ockham's Razor" to both Peter Mayle's "A Year in Provence" and Robert Pirsig's "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance." It is in fact a unique blending of philosophical speculation with an engaging and often humorous travel narrative that is both authentic and highly imaginative. Its head may be in the clouds both literally and figuratively, but its feet are planted firmly in everyday realities of the modern world and its challenges from family dynamics to global meltdown.