Perfectionism

by Thomas Hurka

Perfectionism is one of the great moralities of the Western tradition. It holds that certain states of humans, such as knowledge, achievement, and friendship, are good apart from any pleasure they may bring, and that the morally right act is always the one that most promotes these states. Defined more narrowly, perfectionism identifies the human good by reference to human if knowledge and achievement are good, it is because they realize aspects of human nature. This book gives an account of perfectionism, first in the narrower sense, analyzing its central concepts and defending a theory of human nature in which rationality plays a central role. It then uses this theory to construct an elaborate account of the intrinsic value of beliefs and actions that embody rationality, and applies this account to political questions about liberty and equality. The book attempts to formulate the most defensible version of perfectionism, using contemporary analytic techniques. It
aims both to regain for perfectionism a central place in contemporary moral debate and to shed light on the writings of classical perfectionists such as Aristotle, Aquinas, Hegel, Marx, Nietzsche, and T.H. Green.

Genres: Philosophy

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

Reviews

[Cooper Ackerly · Rating 3 out of 5]

obviously the human nature -> goodness move is completely untenable but many of the general comments on specific goods (balance, understanding, etc.) are interesting! also achievement is 100% not a non-derivative intrinsic good

[Polo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book. Not a huge fan of Perfectionism. I recommend this book to anyone interested in the philosophy of well-being.