The Morality of Everyday Life: Rediscovering an Ancient Alternative to the Liberal TraditionFleming offers an alternative to enlightened liberalism, where moral and political problems are looked at from an objective point of view and a decision made from a distant perspective that is both rational and universally applied to all comparable cases. He instead places importance on the particular, the local, and moral complexity, advocating a return to premodern traditions for a solution to ethical predicaments. In his view, liberalism and postmodernism ignore the fact that human beings by their very nature refuse to live in a world of abstractions where the attachments of friends, neighbors, family, and country make no difference. Fleming believes that a modern type of "casuistry" should be applied to moral conflicts, using examples from history, literature, and religion to explain this moral ecology that refuses to divorce organisms from their interactions with each other and with their environment. |
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Page 3
... believe) as a divine revelation from God and his Church, while you do not even pretend to believe that. Our way of life in Denmark and Europe rests upon my moral tradition, but if any of yours were adopted, it would be the end of ...
... believe) as a divine revelation from God and his Church, while you do not even pretend to believe that. Our way of life in Denmark and Europe rests upon my moral tradition, but if any of yours were adopted, it would be the end of ...
Page 6
... believe that the abortionist and his patient are cold-blooded murderers who deserve execution, it may not be our responsibility to stop them, especially since our actions may have very unpleasant con- sequences for the husbands and ...
... believe that the abortionist and his patient are cold-blooded murderers who deserve execution, it may not be our responsibility to stop them, especially since our actions may have very unpleasant con- sequences for the husbands and ...
Page 12
... believe he had the duty to betray Jim, the runaway slave who had befriended him, and turn him in to the authorities. The law, after all, makes no exception for friendship. Huck is asked to assist in a search for runaway slaves, and ...
... believe he had the duty to betray Jim, the runaway slave who had befriended him, and turn him in to the authorities. The law, after all, makes no exception for friendship. Huck is asked to assist in a search for runaway slaves, and ...
Page 19
... believe — that we should be dutiful children , cooperative neighbors , and loyal citizens . However , since the eighteenth century , moral philosophers have been telling us to identify ourselves and our duty with all of our society ( or ...
... believe — that we should be dutiful children , cooperative neighbors , and loyal citizens . However , since the eighteenth century , moral philosophers have been telling us to identify ourselves and our duty with all of our society ( or ...
Page 49
... believe that the end of all earthly states was at hand but to put their hope in God. A Christian's love for the universal Church was not inconsistent with his duty of obedience to a secular, even non-Christian, ruler (as Paul made clear ...
... believe that the end of all earthly states was at hand but to put their hope in God. A Christian's love for the universal Church was not inconsistent with his duty of obedience to a secular, even non-Christian, ruler (as Paul made clear ...
Contents
1 | |
18 | |
42 | |
Too Much Reality | 69 |
Growing Up Unabsurd | 95 |
Problems of Perspective | 135 |
The Myth of Individualism | 167 |
Goodbye Old Rights of Man | 194 |
Bibliography | 235 |
Index | 251 |
Other editions - View all
The Morality of Everyday Life: Rediscovering an Ancient Alternative to the ... Thomas Fleming No preview available - 2004 |
The Morality of Everyday Life: Rediscovering an Ancient Alternative to the ... Thomas Fleming No preview available - 2004 |
Common terms and phrases
abstract Alasdair MacIntyre American ancient Antigone argued argument Aristotle Athenian Carol Gilligan casuistry Catholic century charity child Christian Church citizens civil claims common concept Creon cultural depends Descartes divine duty ethical European evil example fact father feel French friends friendship G. K. Chesterton global Goodbye Greek Growing Up Unabsurd happiness hero human rights ideal identity impartial Jefferson Jews John Johnson justice justify killed Kohlberg Kosovo language Lawrence Kohlberg liberal liberty live loyalty ment modern moral development Morality of Everyday mother Myth of Individualism nation-state nationalist natural neighbor Neoptolemus object obligation Old Rights one’s parents patriotism person Philoctetes philosophers Plato Plutarch political poor principle Problems of Perspective question reality reason regard religion religious responsibility Roman rules Samuel Johnson sense Serbs social society Stoic story strangers theory things Thomas tion tradition University Press virtue Voltaire women