Aristotle is the most influential philosopher of practice, and
Knight’s new book explores the continuing importance of
Aristotelian philosophy. First, it examines the theoretical bases
of what Aristotle said about ethical, political and productive
activity. It then traces ideas of practice through such figures as
St Paul, Luther, Hegel, Heidegger and recent Aristotelian
philosophers, and evaluates Alasdair Mac Intyre’s contribution.
Knight argues that, whereas Aristotle’s own thought legitimated
oppression, Mac Intyre’s revision of Aristotelianism separates
ethical excellence from social elitism and justifies resistance.
With Mac Intyre, Aristotelianism becomes revolutionary.
Mac Intyre’s case for the Thomistic Aristotelian tradition
originates in his attempt to elaborate a Marxist ethics informed by
analytic philosophy. He analyses social practices in teleological
terms, opposing them to capitalist institutions and arguing for the
cooperative defence of our moral agency. In condensing these ideas,
Knight advances a theoretical argument for the reformation of
Aristotelianism and an ethical argument for social change.
İçerik tablosu
Acknowledgements vi
Introduction 1
1 Aristotle’s Theoretical and Practical Philosophy 4
2 Christian Practice and Medieval Philosophy 41
3 Aristotle in Germany 64
4 A Revolutionary Aristotelianism 102
Mac Intyre’s Marxism 104
‘Aristotelianism’ 124
Social Ethics 144
Politics 167
Aristotelianism’s Reformation 189
Conclusion 222
References 226
Index 244
Yazar hakkında
Kelvin Knight is Director of the Centre for
Contemporary Aristotelian Studies in Ethics and Politics at the
London Metropolitan University.