The MacIntyre Reader
1. Edition October 1998
312 Pages, Softcover
Wiley & Sons Ltd
Alasdair MacIntyre is one of the most controversial philosophers and social theorists of our time. He opposes liberalism and postmodernism with the teleological arguments of an updated Thomistic Aristotelianism. It is this tradition, he claims, which presents the best theory so far about the nature of rationality, morality and politics.
This is the first Reader of MacIntyre's work. It includes extracts from and synopses of two famous books from the 1980s, After Virtue and Whose Justice? Which Rationality?, as well as the whole of several shorter works (one published for the first time in English) and two interviews. Taken together, these constitute not only a representative collection of his work but also the most powerful and accessible presentation of his arguments yet available.
The Reader also includes a summary, by the editor, of the development of MacIntyre's central ideas, and an extensive guide to further reading. Students will find the book a useful guide to MacIntyre's case against both capitalist institutions and academic orthodoxies.
Part I: Establishing the Project.
Part II: Combining Social Science with Moral Theory.
Part III: Establishing a Tradition of Practical Rationality.
Part IV: Challenging Contemporary Philosophy.
Part V: Challenging Contemporary Politics.
Part VI: Reflecting on the Project.
Guide to Further Reading.
Bibliography.
Index.
succeeds in exemplifying three virtues which are difficult to
combine. First, they give a good indication of the range of
MacIntyre's work. Secondly, they provide a good sense of the
development of MacIntyre's project. Finally, each of the extracts
is independently comprehensible while taken together they
constitute a coherent whole. In all these respects it is hard to
see how the editor could have better executed what is a difficult
task. This is an accessible text which does full justice to the
range and depth of MacIntyre's thought." John Horton, Keele
University
"Alasdair MacIntyre is one of the most engaging,
thought-provoking and challenging philosophers of our time. Kelvin
Knight's judicious selection of MacIntyre's writings and his
perceptive informative introduction provide an excellent guide to
the full range of MacIntyre's thinking. Knight follows MacIntyre's
intellectual development from his early days when he wrote brashly
for the socialist journal, The New Reasoner through the
development of his neo-Aristotelianism and his more recent turn to
Thomism. The MacIntyre Reader enables one to gain a
sensitive appreciation of the narrative continuity and breaks in
MacIntyre's intellectual journey. Altogether a splendid feast of a
truly independent thinker." Richard J. Bernstein, New School for
Social Research, New York
"This interesting collection offers a clear picture of Alasdair
MacIntyre's powerful critique of modern philosophy and politics.
What is particularly compelling is the critique of modern
epistemology, which is at the heart of so much of today's thought.
MacIntyre shows convincingly how badly modern theories of knowledge
have failed to understand how the subject of knowledge is embedded
- in a collective project of enquiry, in social practices, and in a
(largely implicit) understanding of reality. Many people are
willing to acknowledge this embedding but very few thinkers have
worked out its consequences with the rigour and depth that
MacIntyre has achieved. This is what makes his work indispensable
for whoever wants to understand the blind spots of modern
philosophy. In fact, this collection gives a good sense of how wide
and deep MacIntyre's philosophy has ranged over the last four
decades." Charles Taylor, McGill University
Metropolitan
University.