I picked up this book at an independent bookstore because I noticed that the author is the creator of The Good Place - one of our family's favorite shows. If you haven't watched it, The Good Place considers ethics and human behavior using the premise that the universe tallies all the good and bad someone does over their life and sends them to either the "good place" or the "bad place". And yes, it is a comedy! The main character, Eleanor, is not a nice person but ends up in The Good Place by mistake. Michael Schur became interested in ethics and philosophy after reflecting on a couple of seemingly mundane experiences in his own life. Why does he wait for the barista to notice he is putting his 23-cent tip in the tip jar? Does he want to be noticed? Is being recognized for doing something nice ethical? Does it negate the action? In preparation for The Good Place, Schur starts doing a deep dive into different philosophical principles. How to Be Perfect is his discussion of these philosophies in simplified, easy-to-understand explanations. He covers Aristotle, Kant, utilitarianism, pragmatism, and others. I appreciated how he poses everyday questions such as "Should I lie and tell my friend I like her ugly shirt?" and walks through the different philosophical arguments. Schur is a comedy writer so every page, and nearly every paragraph, has a funny, snarky remark and the book is fully of humorous anecdotes. I can't write this review without recognizing the groundbreaking, new term he introduced to the field of ethics and philosophy: Moral Exhaustion. (He pokes fun at his creation of this term, but I really do think it is brilliant and accurate.) Moral Exhaustion is the idea that "trying to do the right thing all the time...is a huge pain in the ass." Not only just thinking through each moral dilemma but recognizing that we are humans and sometimes have a lot of S*%t going on in our lives. And many people in the world are struggling just to find food and safety every day. Should we all be held to the same moral standards? Another topic I feel like needs to be discussed more in our American society is the role that luck plays in our ability to live up to these moral, ethical standards. Just being born in America in lucky, let alone to parents who are happy & love each. A family who values education and a top-tier public school system. Schur makes the argument that those of us who are "lucky" (and that doesn't mean we only have 'good luck' and have escaped any difficulties) have more moral responsibility to make choices that improve the world and help others. Schur has distilled massive amounts of philosophy into a primer on the major philosophers since Aristotle in an easy-to-read-and-understand way. His use of humor to make the ideas more approachable is brilliant (as are his use of footnotes - read them all). Now I need to re-watch The Good Place, armed with all this new knowledge!
Note: The Armchair Expert podcast has a great interview with Michael Schur!
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