Process and Morality
In Weber (ed.), Handbook of Whiteheadian Process Thought. De Gruyter. pp. 198-206 (2008)
Abstract
Whereas traditional ethical theories limit morality to the relations between human beings, Whitehead seems committed to a fundamentally different model. Yet despite the longstanding consensus among process scholars that Whitehead’s philosophy of organism provides an ideal ground for a rich moral philosophy, particularly one encompassing ecological concerns, there is a relative dearth of scholarship on the topic. What is more, among those who do engage in such scholarship, there seems to be no agreement as to how to classify Whitehead’s ethics, which has at different times been labeled, among other things, a moral interest theory, a totalizing form of utilitarianism, and a virtue ethic.1 Some have even suggested that Whitehead’s metaphysics is consistent with a deontological approach (e.g. Lango 2001). Given the diversity of such conflicting interpretations, one might well wonder whether Whitehead can even be said to have a moral philosophy. In this essay, my primary aim is to bring clarity to the debate over Whitehead’s ethics by systematically examining Whitehead’s own scattered remarks on morality. I will demonstrate that, although he may not have systematically elaborated a complete moral philosophy, he did indeed affirm a model of morality that is every bit as unique, fallible, and speculative as his metaphysics.Author's Profile
DOI
10.1515/9783110333299.1.215
My notes
Similar books and articles
Organic virtue: Reading mencius with Rousseau.Katrin Froese - 2008 - Asian Philosophy 18 (1):83 – 104.
A Kierkegaardian Approach to Moral Philosophy: The Process of Moral Decision-Making.Virginia L. Warren - 1982 - Journal of Religious Ethics 10 (2):221 - 237.
Nietzsche's Affirmative Morality: A Revaluation Based in the Dionysian World-View.Peter Durno Murray - 1999 - De Gruyter.
The genealogy of morality and its relation to morality.Henning Ottmann - forthcoming - Hegel-Studien.
Politics and morality in Habermas' discourse ethics.Gulshan Khan - 2012 - Philosophy and Social Criticism 38 (2):149-168.
Divine Determinateness and the Free Will Defense: Some Clarifications.David Basinger & Randall Basinger - 1982 - Philosophy Research Archives 8:531-534.
Morality and the Historical Process.Gersghom K. Freyer - 1964 - Science and Society 28 (4):409 - 431.
The role of morality in the process of the socialization of man.Lm Sobotka - 1975 - Filosoficky Casopis 23 (1):106-118.
Evolution, naturalism, and the worthwhile: A critique of Richard Joyce's evolutionary debunking of morality.Christopher Toner - 2011 - Metaphilosophy 42 (4):520-546.
Morality and ethics in organizational administration.Howard Adelman - 1991 - Journal of Business Ethics 10 (9):665 - 678.
Analytics
Added to PP
2014-01-27
Downloads
9 (#937,200)
6 months
1 (#449,844)
2014-01-27
Downloads
9 (#937,200)
6 months
1 (#449,844)
Historical graph of downloads