On the Decline of the Genteel Virtues From Gentility to Technocracy
This innovative book proposes that what we think of as “moral conscience” is essentially the exercise of reflective judgment on the goods and ends arising in interpersonal relations, and that such judgment constitutes a form of taste. Through an ambitious
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Jeff Mitchell
On the Decline of the Genteel Virtues
Jeff Mitchell
On the Decline of the Genteel Virtues From Gentility to Technocracy
Jeff Mitchell History and Political Science Arkansas Tech University Russellville, AR, USA
ISBN 978-3-030-20353-5 ISBN 978-3-030-20354-2 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20354-2 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
In memoriam: To my friend, mentor, and colleague, Dr. Michael Link, who—to borrow Kant’s fine phrase—roused me from my dogmatic slumbers.
Preface
The following monograph is perhaps best described as an essay in virtue ethics informed by the sociology of culture. Two distinct sources served to inspire the undertaking. The more immediate of them was provided by Hans-George Gadamer’s analysis of taste in his magnum opus, Truth and Method (1960). In that work, Gadamer points out that originally the idea of good taste was more of a moral concept than an esthetic one, especially as presented in the thought of Baltazar Gracian. Furthermore, he insightfully describes the ethics of Plato and Aristotle as an ethics of good taste. The more proximate inspiration came from the work of Alasdair MacIntyre, who has done perhaps more than anyone else to rehabilitate the approach known as virtue ethics among contemporary moral philosophers, particularly through the publication of his After Virtue (1981). A word of explanation is perhaps in order as to why I designate MacIntyre’s thought as the more proximate of the twin stimuli. Despite the fact that I was fortunate enough to take several c
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