Canadian Journal of Philosophy Supplementary Volume, 2002
In this article I attempt to untangle the purported connection between moral virtue and flourishi... more In this article I attempt to untangle the purported connection between moral virtue and flourishing in the context of examining what looks like an unexpected effect of oppression: If moral virtue is necessary for flourishing—as Aristotle assumes that it is when he describes eudaimonia as an “activity of the soul in accordance with virtue” — then members of structurally privileged groups can only flourish if they are morally good. However, it is hard to conceive of the privileged as morally good, since their privileges result from unjust social positionings. Thus it appears that they are prevented from leading good lives. This is an odd claim to add to a theory of oppression, which one would expect to explain how the victims of oppression — rather than its beneficiaries — are denied a shot at the good life.While the privileged may enjoy especially ample opportunities to develop certain virtues, I will be thinking here about vices associated with practices of domination, including act...
to the inadequate term white privilege. if all whiteness gave white people was privilege, the dam... more to the inadequate term white privilege. if all whiteness gave white people was privilege, the damage done to nonwhite people would not be nearly so great. it is crucial to the continuing development and social relevance of philosophy for philosophers, especially white philosophers, to wrestle with the horrors and conundrums of whiteness. sullivan has plunged courageously and thoughtfully into this morass. Revealing Whiteness is a superb, indeed foundational contribution to what i hope will be a steadily growing body of important work.
HAVING A PEOPLE: BEYOND INDIVIDUALISM AND ESSENTIALISM IN RESISTANCE TO INTERLOCKED OPPRESSIONS F... more HAVING A PEOPLE: BEYOND INDIVIDUALISM AND ESSENTIALISM IN RESISTANCE TO INTERLOCKED OPPRESSIONS FEBRUARY 1996 LISA TESSMAN, B.A., CARLETON COLLEGE M.A., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Ph D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Ann Ferguson This dissertation draws on the Aristotelian and contemporary communitarian belief that humans are socially constituted, and analyzes the manifestations of this belief in contemporary identity politics and in the concept of ‘culture’ that often underlies identity politics. While I argue that it is important to maintain a communitarian conception of the self, I depart from Aristotle and the communitarian tradition by rejecting the assumption that a constitutive community is characterized by unity and homogeneity. I then claim that identity politics has inherited both the virtues and the problems of communitarian theory. Just as communitarians claim that the self is never free from social constitution, so identity politics...
Lisa Tessman’s new work is a re-purposing of her earlier academic monograph on moral failure for ... more Lisa Tessman’s new work is a re-purposing of her earlier academic monograph on moral failure for popular philosophy. It investigates the experiences of moral dilemma and being burdened with a strict moral duty which is impossible to meet. Tessman aims to show that these experiences are veridical, to explain how they arise in us by grounding them in important features of our nature and psychology, and to convince us that the risk of impossible moral binds is one that we should learn to live with. In all of this, she sees herself as recovering experiences of moral impossibility from modern, analytic ethical theory which operates on an over-intellectualized, rationalistic model of agency that takes such experiences to be illusory, incoherent or otherwise mistaken. I summarize the core arguments of the work, offer some friendly critical commentary, and raise some mild concerns about the project as a work in popular philosophy.
Editor Prof. Lisa Tessman Binghamton University Dept. Philosophy PO Box 6000 Binghamton NY 13902-... more Editor Prof. Lisa Tessman Binghamton University Dept. Philosophy PO Box 6000 Binghamton NY 13902-6000 Library Tower USA ltessman@ binghamton. edu ISBN 978-1-4020-6840-9 e-ISBN 978-1-4020-6841-6 DOI 10.1007/978-1-4020-6841-6 Springer Dordrecht ...
Contents Introduction Part I: Are There Impossible Moral Requirements? 1. Moral Dilemmas and Impo... more Contents Introduction Part I: Are There Impossible Moral Requirements? 1. Moral Dilemmas and Impossible Moral Requirements 2. Moral Intuition and Moral Reasoning 3. Risking Confidence Part II: Evasions 4. Witnessing Moral Failure 5. Idealizing Morality Part III: Endless Demands 6. Minimizing the Demands of Morality 7. On Having an Inexhaustible Source of Moral Requirements Conclusion References Index
ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC. Published in the United States of America by Rowman... more ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC. Published in the United States of America by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. 4720 Boston Way, Lanham, Maryland 20706 http://www. rowmanlittlefield. com 12 Hid's Copse Road Cumnor Hill, Oxford OX2 9JJ, ...
Canadian Journal of Philosophy Supplementary Volume, 2002
In this article I attempt to untangle the purported connection between moral virtue and flourishi... more In this article I attempt to untangle the purported connection between moral virtue and flourishing in the context of examining what looks like an unexpected effect of oppression: If moral virtue is necessary for flourishing—as Aristotle assumes that it is when he describes eudaimonia as an “activity of the soul in accordance with virtue” — then members of structurally privileged groups can only flourish if they are morally good. However, it is hard to conceive of the privileged as morally good, since their privileges result from unjust social positionings. Thus it appears that they are prevented from leading good lives. This is an odd claim to add to a theory of oppression, which one would expect to explain how the victims of oppression — rather than its beneficiaries — are denied a shot at the good life.While the privileged may enjoy especially ample opportunities to develop certain virtues, I will be thinking here about vices associated with practices of domination, including act...
to the inadequate term white privilege. if all whiteness gave white people was privilege, the dam... more to the inadequate term white privilege. if all whiteness gave white people was privilege, the damage done to nonwhite people would not be nearly so great. it is crucial to the continuing development and social relevance of philosophy for philosophers, especially white philosophers, to wrestle with the horrors and conundrums of whiteness. sullivan has plunged courageously and thoughtfully into this morass. Revealing Whiteness is a superb, indeed foundational contribution to what i hope will be a steadily growing body of important work.
HAVING A PEOPLE: BEYOND INDIVIDUALISM AND ESSENTIALISM IN RESISTANCE TO INTERLOCKED OPPRESSIONS F... more HAVING A PEOPLE: BEYOND INDIVIDUALISM AND ESSENTIALISM IN RESISTANCE TO INTERLOCKED OPPRESSIONS FEBRUARY 1996 LISA TESSMAN, B.A., CARLETON COLLEGE M.A., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Ph D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Ann Ferguson This dissertation draws on the Aristotelian and contemporary communitarian belief that humans are socially constituted, and analyzes the manifestations of this belief in contemporary identity politics and in the concept of ‘culture’ that often underlies identity politics. While I argue that it is important to maintain a communitarian conception of the self, I depart from Aristotle and the communitarian tradition by rejecting the assumption that a constitutive community is characterized by unity and homogeneity. I then claim that identity politics has inherited both the virtues and the problems of communitarian theory. Just as communitarians claim that the self is never free from social constitution, so identity politics...
Lisa Tessman’s new work is a re-purposing of her earlier academic monograph on moral failure for ... more Lisa Tessman’s new work is a re-purposing of her earlier academic monograph on moral failure for popular philosophy. It investigates the experiences of moral dilemma and being burdened with a strict moral duty which is impossible to meet. Tessman aims to show that these experiences are veridical, to explain how they arise in us by grounding them in important features of our nature and psychology, and to convince us that the risk of impossible moral binds is one that we should learn to live with. In all of this, she sees herself as recovering experiences of moral impossibility from modern, analytic ethical theory which operates on an over-intellectualized, rationalistic model of agency that takes such experiences to be illusory, incoherent or otherwise mistaken. I summarize the core arguments of the work, offer some friendly critical commentary, and raise some mild concerns about the project as a work in popular philosophy.
Editor Prof. Lisa Tessman Binghamton University Dept. Philosophy PO Box 6000 Binghamton NY 13902-... more Editor Prof. Lisa Tessman Binghamton University Dept. Philosophy PO Box 6000 Binghamton NY 13902-6000 Library Tower USA ltessman@ binghamton. edu ISBN 978-1-4020-6840-9 e-ISBN 978-1-4020-6841-6 DOI 10.1007/978-1-4020-6841-6 Springer Dordrecht ...
Contents Introduction Part I: Are There Impossible Moral Requirements? 1. Moral Dilemmas and Impo... more Contents Introduction Part I: Are There Impossible Moral Requirements? 1. Moral Dilemmas and Impossible Moral Requirements 2. Moral Intuition and Moral Reasoning 3. Risking Confidence Part II: Evasions 4. Witnessing Moral Failure 5. Idealizing Morality Part III: Endless Demands 6. Minimizing the Demands of Morality 7. On Having an Inexhaustible Source of Moral Requirements Conclusion References Index
ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC. Published in the United States of America by Rowman... more ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC. Published in the United States of America by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. 4720 Boston Way, Lanham, Maryland 20706 http://www. rowmanlittlefield. com 12 Hid's Copse Road Cumnor Hill, Oxford OX2 9JJ, ...
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