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"Finely Aware and Richly Responsible"
Although Iris Murdoch, Martha Nussbaum, and Maxine Greene all argue for the centrality of literature in ethical inquiry, their arguments have not yet been systematically examined in relation to each other. This dissertation explores the relationship between literature and the "moral imagination" and its implications for education through the theory and practice of these three philosophers. Their primary philosophical influences are Plato, Aristotle, and existentialism, respectively. The three inevitably disagree on some issues, such as what kind of literature is best for ethical reflection, but they all agree that cultivating the moral imagination through literature is a richer alternative to the rules-based or case-study approach to ethics currently prevalent in professional education. Inspired by Murdoch's reference to Plato and Aristotle in Raphael's painting, "The School of Athens," this dissertation uses such images to illustrate important differences in the moral philosophies of Murdoch, Nussbaum, and Greene. Athens According to Murdoch, literature can provide moral exemplars, developing our moral attention; for Nussbaum, it can increase our compassion and moral perception to help human flourishing; and for Greene, it can provide the moral outrage that can be a catalyst for situated freedom and social change. In addition to analyzing the differences among the three, this dissertation focuses closely on the concept of moral attention as a significant link among them, and offers a new way of integrating the three perspectives. The argument is made that teacher education, in particular, should aim to cultivate the moral imagination, and that in an increasingly globally interdependent world, postcolonial literature is well suited for this task. The purpose of this dissertation is not to prescribe a rigid reading list, but instead to explore an approach to literature that uses the moral imagination to consider ethical issues, an approach based on the shared understandings of human beings as we seek to define and to live a good life in challenging times. Back to Resume. |