distutils question - anything akin to make's -n flag?

[Skip Montanaro]

I'm getting ready to install a distutils-aware package for the first time.
The README that came with it says to execute

    python setup.py build
    python setup.py install

This seems easy enough, but before installing a package for the first time
I'm used to being able to execute

    make -n install

to see what potential harm it could inflict on my system.  I saw nothing in
a quick scan of the distutils documentation to suggest there is an
equivalent to make's -n flag.  Am I missing something or am I at the mercy
of the module author?

Thx,

-- 
Skip Montanaro (skip at mojam.com)
Support Mojam & Musi-Cal: http://www.musi-cal.com/sponsor.shtml
(847)971-7098