Iris Murdoch, Philosopher: A Collection of Essays

by Justin Broackes (Editor), Iris Murdoch (Contributor), John Bayley (Contributor)

Iris Murdoch was a notable philosopher before she was a notable novelist and her work was brave, brilliant, and independent. She made her name first for her challenges to Gilbert Ryle and behaviourism, and later for her book on Sartre (1953), but she had the greatest impact with her work in moral philosophy--and especially her book The Sovereignty of Good (1970). She turned expectantly from British linguistic philosophy to continental existentialism, but was dissatisfied there too; she devised a philosophy and a style of philosophy that were distinctively her own. Murdoch aimed to draw out the implications, for metaphysics and the conception of the world, of rejecting the standard dichotomy of language into the 'descriptive' and the 'emotive'. She aimed, in Wittgensteinian spirit, to describe the phenomena of moral thinking more accurately than the 'linguistic behaviourists' like R. M. Hare. This 'empiricist' task could be acheived, Murdoch thought, only with help from the idealist tradition of Kant, Hegel, and Bradley. And she combined with this a moral psychology, or theory of motivation, that went back to Plato, but was influenced by Freud and Simone Weil. Murdoch's impact can be seen in the moral philosophy of John McDowell and, in different ways, in Richard Rorty and Charles Taylor, as well as in the recent movements under the headings of moral realism, particularism, moral perception, and virtue theory.
This volume brings together essays by critics and admirers of Murdoch's work, and includes a longer Introduction on Murdoch's career, reception, and achievement. It also contains a previously unpublished chapter from the book on Heidegger that Murdoch had been working on shortly before her death, and a Memoir by her husband John Bayley. It gives not only an introduction to Murdoch's important philosophical life and work, but also a picture of British philosophy in one of its heydays and at an important moment of transition.

Contents:
Introduction / Justin Broackes
Sein und Zeit: Pursuit of Being / Iris Murdoch
Iris on Safari: A Personal Record / John Bayley
1 Holy Fool and Magus: The Uses of Discipleship in Under the Net and The Flight from the Enchanter / Peter J. Conradi
2 ‘Faint with Secret Knowledge’: Love and Vision in Murdoch’s The Black Prince / Martha Nussbaum
3 The Virtues of Metaphysics: A Review of Iris Murdoch’s Philosophical Writings / Maria Antonaccio
4 Iris Murdoch and Existentialism / Richard Moran
5 The Exploration of Moral Life / Carla Bagnoli
6 Iris Murdoch and the Prospects for Critical Moral Perception / Bridget Clarke
7 Social Convention and Neurosis as Obstacles to Moral Freedom / Margaret Holland
8 Iris Murdoch on Nobility and Moral Value / Roger Crisp
9 ‘For every Foot its own Shoe’: Method and Moral Theory in the Philosophy of Iris Murdoch / Julia Driver
10 Visual Metaphors in Murdoch’s Moral Philosophy / Lawrence Blum
11 Psychopathy, Empathy, and Moral Motivation / A. E. Denham

Genres: Philosophy

398 pages, Hardcover

First published December 8, 2011

About the author

Justin Broackes received his DPhil from Oxford University and has now taught at Brown for over a decade. His central research Interests include metaphysics and epistemology, the history of 17th and 18th century philosophy, some topics in ancient philosophy, and the philosophy of mind. His current work focuses on the theory of perception from the ancient Greeks to Wittgenstein; on colour and colour-blindness; and on the notion of substance in early modern philosophy and later.

Recent seminar topics include colour, substance, Hume, and Locke.

Reviews

[Robbie Govus · Rating 5 out of 5]

A philosophical treasure

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

There were a few moments while reading the 92 page (!) introduction I thought that maybe I should have stopped on page 2 where editor Justin Broackes states that Iris Murdoch “From the start seemed to have led a rather fabulous life,” smiled and nodded in agreement, then went off to re-read an Iris novel. But I am very glad I kept going. As with any philosophy text, some of the writing is very complex & challenging. But the payoff, a more expansive and deeper way of looking at not just morality but at human life, is well worth the effort. As noted in one essay, “one place in which it is always going to be profitable to look for illumination and insight is the work of Iris Murdoch.” She asked whether and how we can become better people, even when it wasn’t fashionable to do so.

Iris, despite how she greatly “expanded the field of the philosophically imaginable” and brought new insight into moral philosophy, is often cited in passing, if at all, and has been excluded from many texts that include the work of people directly influenced by her. Of course it’s more fun to read her many incredibly excellent novels, or her letters and diaries, but her philosophical work is not separate, not really. As one essayist beautifully notes, “There are many strands in [her] work, woven into a colorful and complex tapestry rather than bound tightly into a rope.” She didn’t develop a moral theory, a formulation (a rope) because she saw moral life as a multifaceted practice, one that is difficult and complex. Her concept of a moral vision, a just and loving vision, isn’t without its problems, but it is important and distinctive & pretty incredible to read, despite the sometimes “maddening difficulty of it.”

From noting that the Dantean view of sexual love is very much like Murdoch’s own view, to asking whether her concept of moral motivation takes into account psychopathy and if her disagreement with existentialism is unfairly based on a caricature of it, these essays are deep dives of her work and challenges to it, great insights and much food for thought. I am always moved, though, by how Iris returned to love. Not personal love, which is possessive, but an impersonal love that allows a true vision of reality and of others, unobscured by fantasy or delusion. It’s an unfinished philosophy that failed to take some vital things into account, but it’s important and too often underappreciated.

Some philosophy knowledge, like a basic philosophical vocabulary, is needed to read this book and get anything out of it. Familiarity with Murdoch's work would probably be helpful as well. But anyone curious about her or who likes her or just wants to read some insightful and challenging contributions to moral philosophy will likely find at least a few essays in here that interest them. I also always encourage anyone who reads and enjoys her novels to read some of Murdoch's philosophy, because it's all connected.