Against Ethics: Contributions to a Poetics of Obligation with Constant Reference to Deconstruction (Studies in Continental Thought) [Paperback]

John D. Caputo (Author)

Book Description

Series: Studies in Continental Thought | Publication Date: October 22, 1993

"Against Ethics is beautifully written, clever, learned, thought-provoking, and even inspiring." —Theological Studies

"Writing in the form of his ideas, Caputo offers the reader a truly exquisite reading experience.... his iconic style mirrors a truly refreshing honesty that draws the reader in to play." —Quarterly Journal of Speech

"Against Ethics is, in my judgment, one of the most important works on philosophical ethics that has been written in recent years.... Caputo speaks with a passion and a concern that are rare in academic philosophy. His profound sense of humor deepens the passion of the viewpoints he develops." —Mark C. Taylor

"Obligation happens!" declares Caputo in this brilliant and witty postmodern critique of ethics, framed as a contemporary restaging of Kierkegaard's Fear and Trembling.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Indiana University Press (October 22, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0253208165
• ISBN-13: 978-0253208163
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #416,403 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John D. Caputo, the Thomas J. Watson Professor of Religion (Syracuse University) is a hybrid philosopher/theologian who works in the area of radical theology. Prof. Caputo is working on a theory of "theo-poetics," by which he means a poetics of the "event" harbored in the name of God, a notion that depends upon a reworking of the notions of event in Derrida and Deleuze. His past books have attempted to persuade us that hermeneutics goes all the way down ("Radical Hermeneutics"), that Derrida is a thinker to be reckoned with by theology ("The Prayers and Tears of Jacques Derrida"), and that theology is best served by getting over its love affair with power and authority and embracing what Caputo calls, following St. Paul, "The Weakness of God." His notion of the weakness of God, an expression that needs to be interpreted carefully by following what he means by "event," is reducible neither to an orthodox notion of kenosis nor to a death of God theology (Altizer, Zizek), although it bears comparison to both. He has also addressed wider-than-academic audiences in "On Religion," "Philosophy and Theology," and "What Would Jesus Deconstruct?" and has an interest in interacting with working church groups like Ikon and the Emergent Church. He is currently working in a book on the weakness of our frail and mortal flesh, probably to be entitled "The Fate of all Flesh: A Theology of the Event, II." At Syracuse, Professor Caputo specializes in continental philosophy of religion, which means both working on radical approaches to religion and theology in the light of contemporary phenomenology, hermeneutics and deconstruction, and tracking down the traces of radical religious and theological motifs in contemporary continental philosophy.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book changed my life, March 26, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Against Ethics: Contributions to a Poetics of Obligation with Constant Reference to Deconstruction (Studies in Continental Thought) (Paperback)

For those who live their philosophical problems this book is essential. It is true that some familiarity with Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Derrida would be helpful in understanding the arguments and in appreciating the striking literary quality of this work. However, what Caputo deals with is fundamental and goes well beyond commentary on any single thinker. His fundamental thesis is that ethics is without any substantial ground beyond the simple and elusive happening of obligation which Caputo valorizes. Ethics becomes something that is dangerous. It is shown that the dangerousness of ethics is vital, that there is no greater danger to ethics than making ethics 'safe'. I think this book would be perfect if some of his criticism of Heidegger didn't occasionally verge on being just rhetoric. Heidegger is more of an ethical thinker than Caputo - a longtime Heidegger scholar - seems willing to recognize in the wake of the Nazism scandals. This is, though, a minor point compared with the overall value of the work. It is a stunning and deeply beautiful book that changed my life and way I think profoundly. I cannot recommend it more highly. Buy it.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great deconstruction of ethics, June 26, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Against Ethics: Contributions to a Poetics of Obligation with Constant Reference to Deconstruction (Studies in Continental Thought) (Paperback)

This book is excellent for anyone who is involved in the study of ethics and metaphysics and wants a challenging viewpoint from a great author.Caputo makes his point and charges through the book without backing down. Challenging read, one should have a background in continental philosophy and Nietzsche, not a book for beginners.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book changed my life, March 26, 2000

By 

"urf7" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Against Ethics: Contributions to a Poetics of Obligation with Constant Reference to Deconstruction (Studies in Continental Thought) (Paperback)

For those who live their philosophical problems this book is essential. It is true that some familiarity with Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Derrida would be helpful in understanding the arguments and in appreciating the striking literary quality of this work. However, what Caputo deals with is fundamental and goes well beyond commentary on any single thinker. His fundamental thesis is that ethics is without any substantial ground beyond the simple and elusive happening of obligation which Caputo valorizes. Ethics becomes something that is dangerous. It is shown that the dangerousness of ethics is vital, that there is no greater danger to ethics than making ethics 'safe'. I think this book would be perfect if some of his criticism of Heidegger didn't occasionally verge on being just rhetoric. Heidegger is more of an ethical thinker than Caputo - a longtime Heidegger scholar - seems willing to recognize in the wake of the Nazism scandals. This is, though, a minor point compared with the overall value of the work. It is a stunning and deeply beautiful book that changed my life and way I think profoundly. I cannot recommend it more highly. Buy it.