Making a Necessity of Virtue: Aristotle and Kant on Virtue [Paperback]

Nancy Sherman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 28, 1997 | ISBN-10: 0521564875 | ISBN-13: 978-0521564878

Recent moral philosophy has seen a revival of interest in the concept of virtue, and with it a reassessment of the role of virtue in the work of Aristotle and Kant. This book brings that reassessment to a new level of sophistication. Nancy Sherman argues that Kant preserves a notion of virtue in his moral theory that bears recognizable traces of the Aristotelian and Stoic traditions, and that his complex anthropology of morals brings him into surprising alliance with Aristotle. She develops her argument through close readings of major texts by both Aristotle and Kant, illustrating points of congruence and contrast.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This book is the first to offer a detailed analysis of Aristotelian and Kantian ethics together in a way that remains faithful to the texts and responsive to debates in contemporary ethics....the book presents a dialogue between Aristotle and Kant that sheds light on contemporary debates about the importance of general principals..." Nancy Sherman, www.worldtrade.com

"Despite this omission, Sherman's study makes a valuable contribution to the growing literature on Kant's theory of virtue and its place in the history of ethics alongside Greek, and especially Aristotelian, conceptions of virtue. Students of Kant, Aristotle, and the history of ethics should study Sherman's book with interest and profit." The Philosophical Review

Book Description

Recent moral philosophy has seen a revival of interest in the concept of virtue, and with it a reassessment of the role of virtue in the work of Aristotle and Kant. This book brings that reassessment to a new level of sophistication. Nancy Sherman argues that Kant preserves a notion of virtue in his moral theory that bears recognisable traces of the Aristotelian and Stoic traditions, and that his complex anthropology of morals brings him into surprising alliance with Aristotle. She develops her argument through close readings of major texts by both Aristotle and Kant, illustrating points of congruence and contrast.

Product Details

• Paperback: 408 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (January 28, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521564875
• ISBN-13: 978-0521564878
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,031,776 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Nancy Sherman, a distinguished University Professor of Philosophy at Georgetown,
writes on ethics and military ethics. She served as the first Distinguished Chair in Ethics at the U.S. Naval Academy and has been a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center. In her new book The Untold War, she argues that the wounds of war are not simply physical or even psychological injuries, but also moral injuries. The book draws on her training as both a philosopher and psychoanalyst, and is based on interviews with some 40 soldiers, most from the current wars. The Untold War was selected as a recommended "pick" by TIME Magazine and as an "Editors' Choice" by the New York Times. Sherman is also the author of Stoic Warriors: The Ancient Philosophy Behind the Military Mind as well as Making a Necessity of Virtue and The Fabric of Character.

Sherman's work on military ethics has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, Newsweek, The Boston Globe, The San Diego Tribune, The Atlanta Journal Constitution, The Baltimore Sun, The Hartford Courant as well as in many other metropolitan and regional newspapers. She has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, PBS, WB11, FOX news and Bob Abernathy's Religion and Ethics Newsweekly. She has been a featured guest on over 50 radio stations nationwide, including NPR's "Diane Rehm Show," "This American Life," and the "Kojo Nnamdi Show." She has also been featured on radio stations abroad, including the Australian Broadcasting Company. Sherman lectures widely at universities, institutes, and war colleges here and abroad. She lives in the Washington D.C. area with her husband, Marshall Presser. They have two grown children.