The Retrieval of Ethics

by Talbot Brewer

Talbot Brewer presents an invigorating new approach to ethical theory, in the context of human selfhood and agency. The first main theme of the book is that contemporary ethical theorists have focused too narrowly on actions and the discrete episodes of deliberation through which we choose them, and that the subject matter of the field looks quite different if one looks instead at unfolding activities and the continuous forms of evaluative awareness that carry them forward and that constitute an essential element of those activities. The second is that ethical reflection is itself a centrally important life activity, and that philosophical ethics is an extension of this practical activity rather than a merely theoretical reflection upon it.

Brewer's approach is founded on a far-reaching reconsideration of the notions of the nature and sources of human agency, and particularly of the way in which practical thinking gives shape to activities, relationships and lives. He contests the usual understanding of the relationship between philosophical psychology and ethics. The Retrieval of Ethics shows the need for a new contemplative vision of the point or value of human action -- without which we will remain unable to make optimal sense of our efforts to unify our lives around a tenable conception of how best to live them, or of the yearnings that draw us to our ideals and to each other.

Genres: Philosophy

354 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Elijah · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the greatest books I've ever read. Enchanting and enrapturing. Dense as all hell. He was also nice enough to buy me lunch and sign my copy after I cold emailed him!

[Marina E · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful philosophical writing. You can sense in his words that Brewer is passionate about what he writes and this reflects on how passionately you read the material. His focus is on ethics and it's demands being arrived at through dialectical activity, not by following a rigid ethical theory with set obligations and universal propositions, however the book is thorough in its investigation of all ethical issues that are part of the virtue ethics conversation. I highly recommend this book, full of meaningful analogies and powerful insight into daily life activities and relationships, rare features in works in analytical philosophy.

[Ft. Sheridan · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Philosophy could be characterized with only a bit of irony as what is left if you begin with the sum total of human thought and subtract those areas in which clear progress has been made. Matters are made even less encouraging when it comes to philosophical ethics. The history of ethics looks like a story of progress only if its main texts are read in reverse chronological order."