The Moral of the Story: Literature and Public EthicsHenry T. Edmondson The contributors to The Moral of the Story, all preeminent political theorists, are unified by their concern with the instructive power of great literature. This thought-provoking combination of essays explores the polyvalent moral and political impact of classic world literatures on public ethics through the study of some of its major figures-including Shakespeare, Dante, Cervantes, Jane Austen, Henry James, Joseph Conrad, Robert Penn Warren, and Dostoevsky. Positing the uniqueness of literature's ability to promote dialogue on salient moral and intellectual virtues, editor Henry T. Edmonson III has culled together a wide-ranging exploration of such fundamental concerns as the abuse of authority, the nature of good leadership, the significance of "middle class virtues" and the needs of adolescents. This collection reinvigorates the study of classic literature as an endeavor that is not only personally intellectually satisfying, but also an inimitable and unique way to enrich public discourse. |
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Page 59
... character unfolds , revealing successively the salient features of a virtuous leader . In the Prologue , the Chorus invites the reader to approach the play by parsing the vari- ous dimensions of his ethical character- " Into a thousand ...
... character unfolds , revealing successively the salient features of a virtuous leader . In the Prologue , the Chorus invites the reader to approach the play by parsing the vari- ous dimensions of his ethical character- " Into a thousand ...
Page 102
... character of each individual . Given the failures of all the characters ' strategies , we are left with the ancient transcultural question of " what is to be done ? " At one point , Obi reflects on how large - scale social change might ...
... character of each individual . Given the failures of all the characters ' strategies , we are left with the ancient transcultural question of " what is to be done ? " At one point , Obi reflects on how large - scale social change might ...
Page 165
... character , Oscar " Shad " Ledue . Ledue is a character who ranks with George Babbitt and Elmer Gantry as a powerful and memorable portrayal of a certain type of individual . Ledue is , among other things , representative of certain ...
... character , Oscar " Shad " Ledue . Ledue is a character who ranks with George Babbitt and Elmer Gantry as a powerful and memorable portrayal of a certain type of individual . Ledue is , among other things , representative of certain ...
Contents
Revolution | 15 |
The Teachings of Francesca | 27 |
Aliens Are Us? Walker Percys Response to Carl Sagan | 43 |
Copyright | |
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Achebe Achebe's African American Aristotle Austen authority believe C. S. Lewis Carl Sagan Cervantes chapter character Chinua Achebe Christian classical Conrad conventional right cosmos culture Dante Dante's democracy democratic divine Dutourd equality essay ethical evil extraterrestrial father Flannery O'Connor Francesca French Grandgousier great-souled individual Hank Henry Henry's human Hyacinth ideal Igbo Inquisitor irony Jane Austen Jean Dutourd Jefferson Jessup Joseph Conrad justice king leader Ledue Leggatt liberal literary literature live Longer at Ease magnanimity Mary Grace means modern Monipodio moral mystery never novel O'Connor Okonkwo Paolo Pascal peasant Percy philosophical Picrochole Plato poem political pride Princess Casamassima Rabelais reading regime revolution Rinconete Russian Sagan seems sense Shad Shakespeare Sinclair Lewis social society Solzhenitsyn soul statesmanship Stolypin storm story teaches tells tion Tocqueville traditional tragedy truth Turpin Twain Umuofia understand University Press virtue Willa Cather wonder writes York young captain