Character

Description

Why do people do evil? How can we learn to do better? Philosophers in the long-standing tradition of 'virtue ethics' argue that we act badly because of shortcomings in our character, and that we can improve by practicing virtues such as courage, honesty, and compassion. Recently, philosophical 'situationists' have issued a profound challenge to this tradition: they argue that anyone can act badly if placed in a sufficiently tempting situation, and that the goal of cultivating good character is misguided and may even be harmful. Rather than encouraging us to pursue the ideal of virtue, these philosophers propose that ethics should instead begin by recognizing the profound limits of human self-knowledge and self-control. This book critically examines the arguments and evidence on each side of this debate, with a special focus on the connections between the philosophical issues and current research in social and personality psychology. Character also includes guides to further reading that will help students deepen their understanding of this essential topic in contemporary ethics. Title Page Copyright Page Contents Acknowledgments Introduction The experiments The debate The book Part 1 Character and action in virtue ethics Chapter 1 Virtues as character traits Introduction Normativity Voluntariness Rationality Consistency Robustness Integration Conclusion Further reading Chapter 2 Acting against character Introduction Involuntary action Ignorance Unendurable force Tragic dilemmas Conclusion Further reading Part 2 Traits and behavior in psychology Chapter 3 Six classic experiments Introduction The traditional trait concept in psychology Hartshorne and May 1928 Darley and Batson 1973 Isen and Levin 1972 Latané and Darley 1968 Haney et al. 1973 Milgram 1974 Conclusion Further reading Chapter 4 Reconstructing traits in psychology Introduction Idiographic traits CAPS theory Aggregation Longitudinal studies Conclusion Further reading Part 3 Understanding the virtue ethics-situationism debate Chapter 5 The varieties of situationist challenge Introduction Inconsistency Error theory Indeterminacy Dependence Dissociation Conclusion Further reading Chapter 6 How not to defend virtue ethics Introduction Direct responses Indirect responses Conclusion Further reading Notes Bibliography Index