Abstract

In this dissertation I present the thesis that Albert Camus' philosophic and literary work represents an important and robust contribution to the general problem of fallibility in human thought and action. I argue that Camus' work is a study in ethical fallibilism. That is, Camus' work can be fruitfully read as a body of work which both notes human fallibility and finitude, and which constructs a positive thesis in light of such fallibility. I make Camus' text The Rebel the central work which I consider, while I utilize additional Camus texts to clarify and buttress Camus' work in The Rebel. ;Chapter One of this dissertation consists of two parts: The issue of fallibility in ethical judgment and the most pressing challenges to any theory of ethical fallibilism. I present in Chapter Two Camus' awareness of the criticisms of ethical fallibilism discussed in Chapter One, and an initial account of Camus' resources to address these criticisms. In Chapter Three I offer Camus' cautionary or negative thesis at the heart of The Rebel, presenting in sequence Camus' account of Rebellion, and Camus' use of the concept of Rebellion to present the danger of ideology. In Chapter Four I defend the set of positive claims that Camus draws from rebellion, which are gathered under two main topics. These are the taking of human life as a violation of limit, and Camus' presentation of the Mediterranean way of life as a model for human flourishing. In Chapter Five I present Camus' resources for "keeping voices alive" via the practice of literature and the creation of texts. I conclude Chapter Five with a presentation of Camus' full resources, in terms of his theses and methods, for elaborating a sustained lucidity, an awareness of fallibility in human ethical judgment