Happiness and BenevolenceChristian philosopher Robert Spaemann takes the reader on a quest for the fundamental principles of ethics. Writing in a clear style accessible to non-specialists, drawing both on ancient and modern philosophy, from Aristotle, Plato and Aquinas to Kant and Hegel, he discovers the intimate relationship between ethics and ontology - the science of being. This book is written for theologians as well as philosophers - indeed for anyone who is concerned with the meaning of a 'life well lived', with good and evil and the search for happiness. |
Contents
Ethics as Teaching How Life Can Turn Out Well | 3 |
Eudaimonism | 17 |
Hedonism | 28 |
SelfPreservation | 40 |
The Aristotelian Compromise | 51 |
The Antinomies of Happiness | 61 |
Part II | 71 |
Specifying the Moral | 73 |
Ordo Amoris | 106 |
Consequentialism | 119 |
Discourse | 131 |
Action or Functioning within a System? | 143 |
Normality and Naturalness | 157 |
Responsibility | 173 |
Forgiveness | 187 |
Robert Spaemanns Philosophische Essays by Arthur Madigan S J | 201 |
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Common terms and phrases
adiaphora agent allow already animal antinomy appears Aristotle autarky awakening become real benevolence character claim concept concerned conditio humana conscious consequences consequentialist consists constitutive contingent defined demand discourse discourse ethics distinction duty Epicurus ethics eudaimonia eudaimonism existence experience fact finite forgiveness freedom fulfillment function goal grounded happiness hedonism hedonistic horizon human action individual insofar instinct interests interpretation justified Kant kind Leibniz life's turning living means ment modern moral natural right Niklas Luhmann normality norms object one's oneself ordo amoris orientation ourselves pain person perspective philosophy Plato pleasure polis possible precisely present preservation presupposes presupposition principle proportional justice pure question rational reality realization reason reflection relationship relativize remains responsibility Robert Spaemann self-being self-preservation sense someone Spaemann speak species Stoics structure teleological theory thing Thomas Aquinas thought tion ultimate unconditioned understand utilitarian viewpoint well-being whole