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Can politicians be morally good or is politics destined to involve 'dirty hands' or the loss of integrity, as many modern philosophers claim? In this title, Susan Mendus seeks to address these important questions to assess whether this apparent tension between morality and politics is real and, if so, why.
The debate between impartialists and their critics has dominated both moral and political philosophy during the 1990s. This book attempts to show both that the dispute between impartialists and their critics runs very deep, and that it can nonetheless be resolved.
This book traces the growth of philosophical justifications of toleration. The contributors discuss the grounds on which we may be required to be tolerant and the proper limits of toleration. They consider the historical and conceptual relation between toleration and scepticism and ask whether toleration is justified by considerations of autonomy or of prudence. The papers cover a range of perspectives on the subject, including Marxist and Socialist as well as liberal views. The editor's introduction prepares the ground by discussing the essential features of the subject and offers a lucid survey of the theories and arguments put forward in the book. The collection arises out of the Morrell Toleration Project at the University of York and all the papers were written as contributions to that project. The discussion will be of interest to specialists in philosophy, in political and social theory and in intellectual history.
Susan Mendus investigates the significance of love in moral and political philosophy. She argues for a re-interpretation of both enlightenment and feminist thinking, and shows how the former often takes love as central, while the latter draws our attention to human vulnerability and neediness. By combining the insights of enlightenment philosophy and feminist theory, the book aims to provide a new understanding of the role of love in moral and political philosophy.
Sexuality and Subordination uses the insights of a range of disciplines to examine the construction of gender in nineteenth-century Britain and France. With contributions from history, literature, sociology and philosophy, its interdisciplinary approach demonstrates the extent to which a common focus can illuminate problems inaccessible to any single discipline. 'Victorianism' is generally understood to mean sexual double standards, hypocrisy and prudery among the middle classes. But, as this collection shows, the representation of sexuality in the nineteenth century was more diverse and complex than is sometimes realized. Both art and literature point to the deployment of sexual metaphors and imagery, and the language of educated public opinion was shaped by the dichotomy between mind and matter, between rationality and sexuality. The contributors to this volume explore how women, in questioning their subordination, had to challenge a construction of femininity which imposed sexual ignorance.
A discussion of John Locke's Letter of Toleration and John Stuart Mill's On Liberty is followed by an analysis of the concept of toleration, exploring its relationship to other central concepts in political thought and an attempt to respond to some important problems concerning toleration.
Sexual Ethics considers the traditional Western views, as well as Freudian explanations, of sexuality. Author Bruce E. Fleming proposes that sex operates in an intrinsically undefined area, one stranded between the two realms that otherwise define our public and private lives. The most heated debate regarding sexual matters is between liberal and conservatives. Whether or not these two groups can continue to co-exist under the umbrella of American democracy depends on their willingness to adhere to the basic principals of democracy.
In a fresh and exciting way, this new book shows how tolerance connects with the practice of philosophy. Andrew Fiala examines the virtue of tolerance as it appears in several historical contexts: Socratic philosophy, Stoic philosophy, Pragmatism, and Existentialism. The lesson derived is that tolerance is a virtue for what Fiala calls 'tragic communities'. Such communities are developed when we come together across our differences, but they lack the robust sense of connection that we often seek with others - the complete sort of happiness that is offered by a more utopian ideal of community. But rather than viewing this conclusion as a failure, Fiala maintains that tragic communities are the best communities possible for human beings who are aware of their own individuality and finitude. Indeed, they are typical of the sorts of communities created by philosophers engaged in dialogue with others. Tolerance and the Ethical Life will strongly appeal to specialists and upper-level students in Ethics and Political Philosophy, both for its unique historical exploration of tolerance and its application of those results to present-day moral theory.
Originally published in 1985, these essays relate philosophical questions about the meaning and justification of toleration to debates about such issues as religious freedom, racial discrimination, pornography and censorship. Many take their point of departure from classic works, especially J S Mill’s On Liberty and many consider recent developments in moral and political philosophy.
This 1990 collection explores one recurrent theme connecting philosophy and politics: the relation between the nature of man and the structure of society. It does so by concentrating on the topical issue of the market economy as an attempt to resolve the clash between individual autonomy and collective action. Beginning with a historical and personal recollection by Enoch Powell and a response by Robert Skidelsky, the volume then provides a forum for political theorists and philosophers to take issue on the fundamental topics of markets and morals; liberal man; and equality and libertarianism. It succeeds equally as a stimulating textbook and a book for the general reader who wishes to understand the philosophical issues arising in a market economy.