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Books > Humanities > Philosophy > Topics in philosophy > Ethics & moral philosophy
Truth and Norms: Normative Alethic Pluralism and Evaluative
Disagreements engages three philosophical topics and the
relationships among them. Filippo Ferrari first contributes to the
debate on the nature and normative significance of disagreement,
especially in relation to evaluative judgements such as judgements
about basic taste, refined aesthetics, and moral matters. Second,
he addresses the issue of epistemic normativity, focusing in
particular on the normative function(s) that truth exerts on
judgements. Third, he contributes to the debate on truth-more
specifically, which account of the nature of truth best
accommodates the norms relating judgements and truth. This book
develops and defends a novel pluralistic picture of the normativity
of truth: normative alethic pluralism (NAM). At the core of NAM is
the idea that truth exerts different normative functions in
relation to different areas of inquiry. Ferrari argues that this
picture of the normativity of truth offers the best explanation of
the variable normative significance that disagreement exhibits in
relation to different subject matters-from a rather shallow
normative impact in the case of disagreement about taste, to a
normatively more substantive significance in relation to moral
judgements. Last, Ferrari defends the view that NAM does not
require a commitment to truth pluralism, since it is fully
compatible with a somewhat refined version of minimalism about
truth.
The proximity of many different religions, each with its own unique
metaphysics and ethics, did not exist in the ancient world when
those religions came into existence. Many went uncontested for
centuries, and many merged with governments to shape the laws for
the entire people of a culture or nation. Theocracies can exist
only where there is no plurality of religions or where the minor
religions do not mind the dominant one dictating policy for all
citizens. In the word's two greatest democracies, the U.S. and
India, despite the diversity that a democratic society presupposes,
a majoritarian religion continues to assert an advantage over
others to shape the social contract. An Ethic of Trust: Mutual
Autonomy and the Common Will-to-Live addresses this problem, moving
beyond sheer utilitarianism. W. Royce Clark argues that because of
religious pluralism, a nation's ethic must be grounded on
"freestanding" principles. This means that its base must be
universally obvious, and its principles must be agreeable to all
citizens. The base is instinctual, the "will-to-live" which is
present in all living creatures, and the recognition of that can
influence people to agree to a voluntary unity and a couple of
other basic principles to which all would agree, principles which
embrace differences within relationships, whether in a marriage or
a constitutional republic. But to voluntarily agree to these
requires a genuine mutual trust and mutual autonomy which can
maximize unity while allowing individual liberties. To arrive at
this point, Clark blends scholars who are often cast as
opposites-Albert Schweitzer, Friedrich Nietzsche, and John Rawls-to
forge a new path for an inclusive ethic for a nation, within which
both the religious and non-religious will have equal freedom and
stability.
Reading Augustine is a new line of books offering personal readings
of St. Augustine of Hippo from leading philosophers and religious
scholars. The aim of the series is to make clear Augustine's
importance to contemporary thought and to present Augustine not
only or primarily as a pre-eminent Christian thinker but as a
philosophical, spiritual, literary and intellectual icon of the
West. Why did the ancients come to adopt monotheism and
Christianity? On God, The Soul, Evil and the Rise of Christianity
introduces possible answers to that question by looking closely at
the development of the thought of Augustine of Hippo, whose complex
spiritual trajectory included Gnosticism, academic skepticism,
pagan Platonism, and orthodox Christianity. What was so compelling
about Christianity and how did Augustine become convinced that his
soul could enter into communion with a transcendent God? The
apparently sudden shift of ancient culture to monotheism and
Christianity was momentous, defining the subsequent nature of
Western religion and thought. John Peter Kenney shows us that
Augustine offers an unusually clear vantage point to understand the
essential ideas that drove that transition.
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Digest
(Hardcover)
Quintus Curtius
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R1,049
Discovery Miles 10 490
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Ships in 12 - 19 working days
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Shedding new light on a controversial and intriguing issue, this
book will reshape the debate on how the Judeo-Christian tradition
views the morality of personal and national self-defense. Are
self-defense, national warfare, and revolts against tyranny holy
duties-or violations of God's will? Pacifists insist these actions
are the latter, forbidden by Judeo-Christian morality. This book
maintains that the pacifists are wrong. To make his case, the
author analyzes the full sweep of Judeo-Christian history from
earliest times to the present, combining history, scriptural
analysis, and philosophy to describe the changes and continuity of
Jewish and Christian doctrine about the use of lethal force. He
reveals the shifting patterns of thought in both religions and
presents the strongest arguments on both sides of the issue. The
book begins with the ancient Hebrews and Genesis and covers Jewish
history through the Holocaust and beyond. The analysis then shifts
to the story of Christianity from its origins, through the Middle
Ages and the Reformation, up the present day. Based on this
scrutiny, the author concludes that-contrary to popular belief-the
legitimacy of self-defense is strongly supported by Judeo-Christian
scripture and commentary, by philosophical analysis, and by the
respect for human dignity and human rights on which both Judaism
and Christianity are based. Takes a multidisciplinary approach,
directly engaging with leading writers on both sides of the issue
Examines Jewish and Christian sacred writings and commentary and
explores how interpretations have changed over time Offers careful
analysis of topics such as the political systems of the ancient
Hebrews, the Papacy's struggle for independence, the ways in which
New England ministers incited the American Revolution, and the
effects of the Vietnam War on the American Catholic church's views
on national self-defense Covers the many sects that have played
crucial roles in the debate over the legitimacy of armed force,
including Gnostics, Manicheans, Lutherans, Calvinists, and Quakers
Engages with the ideas of leading Jewish philosophers such as Rashi
and Maimonides; Christian philosophers such as Origen, Augustine,
Aquinas, and Sidney; and the most influential modern exponents of
pacifism, such as Dorothy Day, the Berrigan Brothers, and John
Howard Yoder
Anne Carson (b. June 21, 1950, in Toronto, Canada) is one of the
most versatile of contemporary classicists, poets and translators
in the English language. In this book, Ruprecht explores the role
played by generic transgressions on the one hand, and by embodied
spirituality on the other, throughout Carson's ambitious literary
career. Where others see classical dichotomies (soul versus body,
Classical versus Christian), Carson sees connection. Like Nietzsche
before her, Carson decries the image of the Classics as merely
bookish, and classicists as disembodied intellects. She has brought
religious, bodily erotics back into the heart of the classical
tradition.
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Hypocrisy
(Hardcover)
James S Spiegel
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R1,031
R870
Discovery Miles 8 700
Save R161 (16%)
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Ships in 10 - 15 working days
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Timeless wisdom on generosity and gratitude from the great Stoic
philosopher Seneca To give and receive well may be the most human
thing you can do-but it is also the closest you can come to
divinity. So argues the great Roman Stoic thinker Seneca (c. 4
BCE-65 CE) in his longest and most searching moral treatise, "On
Benefits" (De Beneficiis). James Romm's splendid new translation of
essential selections from this work conveys the heart of Seneca's
argument that generosity and gratitude are among the most important
of all virtues. For Seneca, the impulse to give to others lies at
the very foundation of society; without it, we are helpless
creatures, worse than wild beasts. But generosity did not arise
randomly or by chance. Seneca sees it as part of our desire to
emulate the gods, whose creation of the earth and heavens stands as
the greatest gift of all. Seneca's soaring prose captures his
wonder at that gift, and expresses a profound sense of gratitude
that will inspire today's readers. Complete with an enlightening
introduction and the original Latin on facing pages, How to Give is
a timeless guide to the profound significance of true generosity.
This book explores the norms we have and where we want to go with
them. The project began by asking people what they think is the
central value in society today. The responses point to notions of
what seems "right" to people. We can move forward with these
intuitions about the main tenet of our moral lives. Respondents
named values regarding freedom of the Self, and concern for the
Other. Indeed with freedom, we can respect others. And we must.
People's lives are intertwined, and so freedom as a concept cannot
be understood without taking account of this reality. The author
suggests that the value to be taken as central is the moral freedom
of respect. It ought to guide us in designing the society we want
to build. The law can be a bridge towards that normative world.
Jewish ethics may illuminate the path.
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