Virtue Ethics and Contemporary Aristotelianism: Modernity, Conflict and Politics

by Andrius Bielskis (Editor), Marco Sgarbi (Editor), Eleni Leontsini (Editor), Kelvin Knight (Editor)

Overview

This compelling and distinctive volume advances Aristotelianism by bringing its traditional virtue ethics to bear upon characteristically modern issues, such as the politics of economic power and egalitarian dispute.

This volume bridges the gap between Aristotle's philosophy and the multitude of contemporary Aristotelian theories that have been formulated in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Part I draws on Aristotle's texts and Thomas Aquinas' Aristotelianism to examine the Aristotelian tradition of virtues, with a chapter by Alasdair MacIntyre contextualising the different readings of Aristotle's philosophy. Part II offers a critical engagement with MacIntyrean Aristotelianism, while Part III demonstrates the ongoing influence of Aristotelianism in contemporary theoretical debates on governance and politics.

Extensive in its historical scope, this is a valuable collection relating the tradition of virtue to modernity, which will be of interest to all working in virtue ethics and contemporary Aristotelian politics.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781350251465
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	12/30/2021
Series:	Bloomsbury Studies in the Aristotelian Tradition
Pages:	236
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.53(d)

About the Author

Andrius Bielskis is Professor of Political Philosophy and Director of the Centre of Aristotelian Studies and Critical Thought at Mykolas Romeris University, Lithuania.

Eleni Leontsini is Assistant Professor of the History of Philosophy at the University of Ioannina, Greece and Research Fellow at the Centre for Aristotelian Studies and Critical Theory, Mykolas Romeris University, Lithuania.

Kelvin Knight is Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Aristotelian Studies and Critical Theory, Mykolas Romeris University, Lithuania and Director of the Centre for Contemporary Aristotelian Studies in Ethics & Politics at London Metropolitan University, UK.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The Aristotelian Tradition of Virtues, Andrius Bielskis (Mykolas Romeris University, Lithuania), Eleni Leontsini (University of Ioannina, Greece), and Kelvin Knight (London Metropolitan University, UK)

Part I. The Aristotelian Tradition of Virtues
1. Four – or More – Political Aristotles, Alasdair MacIntyre (University of Notre Dame, USA & London Metropolitan University, UK)
2. Plato and Aristotle on Human Nature and Society, Richard Stalley (University of Glasgow, UK)
3. 'Managers would not need subordinates and masters would not need slaves': Aristotle's Oikos and Oikonomia Reconsidered, Andrius Bielskis (Mykolas Romeris University & Kaunas University of Technology, Lithuania)
4. Aristotle and Two Senses of Happiness, Buket Korkut Raptis (University of Mugla, Turkey)
5. 'Going through Time Together': Aristotelian Friendship and the Criterion of Time, Eleni Leontsini (University of Ioannina, Greece & Mykolas Romeris University, Lithuania)
6. Byzantine Thomism: Aristotelianism and Thomas Aquinas' Reception in Byzantium, Athanasia Glycofrydi-Leontsini (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece)

Part II. Modernity, Conflict and MacIntyrean Aristotelianism
7. Aristotelianism, Austinianism and the Problem of the Good, Kelvin Knight (London Metropolitan University, UK)
8. Virtues and the Common Good: Alasdair MacIntyre Reads Aristotle, Christof Rapp (Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Germany)
9. Williams and MacIntyre on the Human Good and Ethical Objectivity, Apostolos Malakos (London Metropolitan University, UK)
10. MacIntyre's Nietzschean Anti-Modernism, Golfo Maggini (University of Ioannina, Greece)

Part III. Moral Philosophy and Modern Social and Political Order
11. From Field to Forest? Exploring Limits of Virtue Ethics, Joseph Dunne (Dublin City University, Ireland)
12. Aristotle and the Politics of Recognition, Tony Burbans (University of Nottingham, UK)
13. Human Flourishing and Labour: Aristotle, MacIntyre, and Marx, Egidijus Mardosas (Mykolas Romeris University, Lithuania)
14. Alasdair MacIntyre's Aristotelianism: A Marxist Critique, Paul Blackledge (Northumbria University, UK)

Index

Editorial Reviews

Drawing on a wide range of sources from different traditions, the collection makes for a thoroughly informative exploration of Aristotelian virtue ethics. Front and centre are themes from MacIntyre's work, especially flourishing in the political community, which makes this collection of 14 essays an essential read for those interested in understanding MacIntyre's programme.

The essays collected in this volume will be of great value to readers interested in the validity of MacIntyre's revival of Thomistic Aristotelianism and his engagement with modernity, capitalism, and twentieth-century philosophy. Critics and defenders of MacIntyre's approach, including MacIntyre himself, are well represented, as are the thinkers through which the value of Aristotle's ethics are discussed, including Marx, J. L. Austin, and Charles Taylor. The result is a fascinating exploration of some of the major issues, both practical and theoretical, confronting moral and social philosophy today.

This volume is a welcome addition to the literature on Aristotelian political theories. It relates the MacIntyrean views to various debates inside and outside of Aristotelian theories. MacIntyre allows diversity, criticism and dialogue, unlike the misunderstood view of communitarianism. This book embodies the spirit of such a criticism-oriented MacIntyrean community.
The Classical Review

From the Publisher