E-Book Overview
For much of the twentieth century it was common to contrast the characteristic forms and preoccupations of modern ethical theory with those of the ancient world. However, the last few decades have seen a growing recognition that contemporary moral philosophy now has much in common with its ancient incarnation, in areas as diverse as virtue ethics and ethical epistemology. Christopher Gill has assembled an international team to conduct a fascinating exploration of the relationship between the two fields, exploring key issues in ancient ethics in a way that highlights their conceptual significance for the study of ethics more generally. Virtue, Norms, and Objectivity will be as interesting and relevant to modern moral philosophers, therefore, as it will be to specialists in ancient thought.
E-Book Content
VIRTUE, NORMS, AND OBJECTIVITY
This page intentionally left blank
Virtue, Norms, and Objectivity Issues in Ancient and Modern Ethics C H R I S TO P H E R G I L L
C L A R E N D O N P R E S S OX F OR D
3
Great Clarendon Street, Oxford ox2 6dp Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide in Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offices in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan South Korea Poland Portugal Singapore Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Published in the United States by Oxford University Press Inc., New York ß the several contributors 2005 The moral rights of the author have been asserted Database right Oxford University Press (maker) First published 2005 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reprographics rights organization. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above You must not circulate this book in any other binding or cover and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Data available Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Data available ISBN 0–19–926438–4 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2 Typeset by Kolam Information Services Pvt. Ltd, Pondicherry, India Printed in Great Britain on acid-free paper by Biddles Ltd, King’s Lynn, Norfolk
PREFACE This volume of new essays is based on papers given at a conference, ‘Ancient and Modern Approaches to Ethical Objectivity’, held at the University of Exeter in July 2002. The chapter by Timothy Chappell was written specially for the volume. I am most grateful to all the contributors for their willingness to collaborate in exploring cognate issues in ancient and modern ethical theory. Thanks are due too to all others who participated in the conference, especially Richard Sorabji, and Exeter colleagues who chaired sessions, including John Dupre´, Professor of the Philosophy of Science. John Dupre´’s involvement in the conference indicates the welcome fact that the University of Exeter is the first British university (as far as we are aware), of those which discontinued teaching philosophy in the funding cuts of the 1980s, to restart a philosophy programme, based in the Department of Sociology and Philosophy. I would like to acknowledge with thanks the contribution to the funding of the conference of the British Academy, the Classical Association of England and Wales, the A. G. Leventis Foundation, the Soc