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After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory
"After Virtue is a striking work. It is clearly written and readable. The nonprofessional will find MacIntyre perspicuous and lively. He stands within the best modern traditions of writing on such matters." --New York Review of Books
"MacIntyre's arguments deserve to be taken seriously by anybody who thinks that the mere acceptance of pluralism is not t
...morePaperback, Third Edition, 286 pages
Published
March 1st 2007
by University of Notre Dame Press
(first published 1981)
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MacIntyre provides a strong critique of contemporary moral theory, dominated as it is by varieties of emotivism: There are no objective standards; moral values are subjective and relative. This is the first half of his book. As much as MacIntyre admires Aristotle, he cannot go back to Aristotle's "metaphysical biology." Aristotle's "classical" perspective was replaced with a variety of rationalistic moral theories (e.g., Kant) that Nietzsche accurately and powerfully in M...more
This is an excellent book on ethics and cause quite a stir when it came out.
It was a very fast read for a philosophy book. Interestingly, while most authors are great at criticism/deconstruction and not so good at building their own constructive arguments, the opposite is the case for MacIntyre in this book.
I tend to agree more with his constructive picture of what virtue ethics is all about and disagree with his characterization of moral discourse in the modern west.
...more
It was a very fast read for a philosophy book. Interestingly, while most authors are great at criticism/deconstruction and not so good at building their own constructive arguments, the opposite is the case for MacIntyre in this book.
I tend to agree more with his constructive picture of what virtue ethics is all about and disagree with his characterization of moral discourse in the modern west.
...more
Josh and I have different opinions on this book. He thinks its gospel and i take it less seriously-indicative of personality differences and majors…the book frowns on social science and glorifies philosophy as the only way to get things done, lol. I find it to be a great conversation piece, because many of the theories are controversial. I felt like the book began ranting at times, because the scope of the argument was so large that the author kept remembering more and more things he wanted to ...more
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MacIntyre's book is a sustained critique of "the modern project." The modern project came about in the 17th and 18th centuries. Thinkers tried to rework ethics and philosophy but in a new way: abandoning the Aristotelian and judeo-Christian ethic, they ended with a schizophrenic autonomy. Man is now seen as an autonomous agent who should further his autonomy but must live in the contradiction with other autonomous agents who also want to protect their autonomy. The modern project ...more
After Virtue is a ubiquitous presence within the field of ethics, as indeed within many discussions of political theory and the predicament of late modernity. Scarcely a week has gone by, it feels, in which I do not hear it referred to in some context or other. And yet, I sheepishly admitted to no one that I had never actually read it. Since I had to read the first ten pages for a Christian Ethics tutorial I was leading this semester, I decided to go ahead and take the opportunity to read the...more
If anything MacIntyre does a wonderful job of explaining all the misguided and quirky cul-de-sacs that the study of Ethics has fallen prey to over the last few centuries (culminating in Nietzsche's big philosophical gut-punch and the legacy of his critique of Enlightenment thought). As to his positive theory--and his attempt at revitalizing virtue ethics--I can only say that the case he makes is equally plausible and problematic, plausible because, say what you will about teleological thinking, ...more
Although this book was published in the '80s, MacIntyre's approach to the ethics of virtue feels extremely topical and fresh in the light of current discussions of "diversity" and "technology." Here is my, admittedly sketchy, summary.
Before moving into a discussion of the tradition of virtues, MacIntyre begins with a consideration of where modern society gets its values. He observes that modern humanity considers the community, social organism, or the state to be ...more
Before moving into a discussion of the tradition of virtues, MacIntyre begins with a consideration of where modern society gets its values. He observes that modern humanity considers the community, social organism, or the state to be ...more
Alasdair MacIntyre examines the historical and conceptual roots of the idea of virtue and its absence in modern life. His research of the classical Aristotle tradition reveals the nature of virtue, how it existed and why. This is a comprehensive book and well-written, although you will often find yourself going back to re-read many sentences and paragraphs because of their depth.
Other key concepts and ideas presented include:
- Tradition of the virtues has predominantly risen ...more
Other key concepts and ideas presented include:
- Tradition of the virtues has predominantly risen ...more
MacIntyre, in the tradition of his self-avowed enemy Nietzsche, makes his ethical argument by telling a story. Imagine, he says, if there were a massive revolution against science in which almost all the scientific writings and work to the present day were destroyed. (I couldn't help but think of "Dune" while reading this.) Then, imagine that many years later, people started to be interested in science again and started to piece things back together. At that time, people might use many...more
Well written, but I found it really tough going. It tested everything I know about philosopy, ethics, morality, and then some. I've read it twice, and stuff is still sinking in. Its worth the effort, but you've got to read it all to get all that it offers.
wrong, and in many ways absurd, but absolutely delightful. This book made me want to do ethics, when I was just a wee lass studying Medieval metaphysics and logic.
Brilliant book, though I probably only understand half of it. He actually talks about Jane Austen as being one of the last great ethicists...
We should all be reading more Aristotle...and Jane Austen.
Pick a virtue you would want to have in spades. Pick a virtue you want others around you to have. Are they the same? Why or why not?
From the Iliad (or Njal’s Saga)
Courage
Allegiance to Kin
Hospitality
Cardinal
Temperance
Prudence
Fortitude
Justice
Aristotle’s (from the Nichomachean Ethics
Courage
Self-Control
Generosity
Magnificence
High-mindedness
(Nameless concerned with ambition)
(Nameless concerned with gent...more
From the Iliad (or Njal’s Saga)
Courage
Allegiance to Kin
Hospitality
Cardinal
Temperance
Prudence
Fortitude
Justice
Aristotle’s (from the Nichomachean Ethics
Courage
Self-Control
Generosity
Magnificence
High-mindedness
(Nameless concerned with ambition)
(Nameless concerned with gent...more
Tyler
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Recommends it for:
Readers of Philosophy
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philosophy
Here Alasdair MacIntyre explains his theory that the loss of the Greek concept of virtues has lead to the failure of modern moral systems, and their replacement by emotivism. Emotivism is a non-cognitive form or ethical reasoning that amounts to this: Everything we think of as moral judgment is really no more than personal preference. The consequence of emotivism is the law of the jungle in place of moral agency.
A principle of modern institutions has been the elimination of moral c...more
A principle of modern institutions has been the elimination of moral c...more
I read the third edition of this famous philosophical/historical study. It is the kind of book where every chapter has its own set of interesting points which might, if expanded, become books in themselves and provides all sorts of ideas which might be serve to be the springboard for other explorations.
It is not an easy book, assuming a background in some the ethical discussions in Western history, such as Hume, Nietzsche, Kant, Mill, as well as Greeks like Plato and, of course, Aristotle....more
It is not an easy book, assuming a background in some the ethical discussions in Western history, such as Hume, Nietzsche, Kant, Mill, as well as Greeks like Plato and, of course, Aristotle....more
What if our contemporary moral discourse were a cargo cult in which we picked up fragments of a long lost, once-coherent moral philosophy, and ignorantly constructed a bunch of nonsense that didn’t work and could not work in principle?
After Virtue argues that this indeed is what happened, and this explains why our moral discourse is such a mess.
Why when we argue about moral issues do we make our case in a form that resembles rational argument, but the effect seems to be o...more
After Virtue argues that this indeed is what happened, and this explains why our moral discourse is such a mess.
Why when we argue about moral issues do we make our case in a form that resembles rational argument, but the effect seems to be o...more
The sheer daring of this text, its bold historicist scope combined with analytical penetration, makes After Virtue, above all, a thoroughly enjoyable read. Beginning with a critique of all modern philosophical attempts to frame a moral philosophy after the abandonment of Aristotelian Thomism, MacIntyre proceeds to frame an argument for re-adopting a largely Aristotelian ethics rooted in practice, in teleological narrative, and in community. What's fascinating (a very great deal of this book is f...more
A phenomenal example of moral philosophy. MacIntyre here presents a compelling account of the decline and fall of substantive moral discourse in the modern world, and subsequently charts a serious proposal for its recovery via ancient traditions that extend from the Greeks, Aristotle, and through medieval scholars. Yet, MacIntyre's proposal is not a return to ancient practices per se, but rather an attunement to those specific traditions in the context of the communities of practice that we pres...more
Just read this for my political communication course. It posits that man's traditional concept of virtue and morals no longer exists. The concept of narrative extended in this book (then appropriated by Fisher later) is particularly insightful.
An esoteric apology for moral philosophy in the post modern--we have either to grab our books and head for the caves to escape these new dark ages--or discover a new new Benedict. No one is or ever could be in charge--what were we thinking?
A great book that really sets Alasdair MacIntyre apart from everyone else. It's not as accessible as it could be, but if you have some patient and a friendly philosopher to trade ideas with, this is worth reading.
It was a very challenging book to read, but it was rewarding as well. I know that I don't understand 100% of it, but the parts I do understand are amazing. There's a lot of sociological and economical writing that I don't have adequate background to appreciate. Fortunately they aren't required to follow the central thesis of the book. Quite a bit of philosophy is required (or at least recommended); but I do have enough of it to follow along.
It's about virtue theory and the ethica...more
It's about virtue theory and the ethica...more
read this in school but felt it was worth reading outside the classroom. A look at what different cultures consider virtue and what affect it has.
The fact that The Closing of the American Mind was published a full six years later only further points out Bloom's stunning lack of scholarship.
This book has new horizons in it for me. I've had to step back many times from reading it to fully digest some of its content. Some of it I just didn't get, much like learning to play a new scale, say the pentatonic minor, on a guitar one might not immediately grasp the use of some of the notes. It is only in playing the notes, a lot, that one learns them. So too the ideas in this book. I will need to revisit some of its pages, filled with underlinings, and take many walks before I can say ...more
This is possibly the most important book I've ever read. It's a cipher for understanding our modern predicament.
This book was a slow read for me. I plan on rereading it sometime in the future. I would recommend reading the final chapter and postscript first in order to start with a clearer sense of his arguments.
Quintessential book on the History of Virtue Ethics.
Martin Murphy
is currently reading it
After Virtue is an excellent analysis of moral philosophy under the influence of modernity. This book identifies the social and thus the moral manipulators of the modern world. They are "the manager, the therapist, and the rich aesthete." Untangling a very complicated argument in this book is a challenge, but it seems to me that he argues for a return of an Aristotelian ethic. I believe the true value of this book will be, in the distant future, interpreted as an argument for the p...more
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Alasdair Chalmers MacIntyre is a leading philosopher primarily known for his contribution to moral and political philosophy but known also for his work in history of philosophy and theology. He is the O'Brien Senior Research Professor of Philosophy at the University of Notre Dame.
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