Book description
The great German novelist Thomas Mann implored readers to resist the
persistent and growing militarism of the mid-twentieth century. To
whom should we turn for guidance during this current era of global
violence, political corruption, economic inequality, and environmental
degradation? For more than two millennia, the world's great thinkers
have held that the ethically "good life" is the highest
purpose of human existence. Renowned political philosopher Fred
Dallmayr traces the development of this notion, finding surprising
connections among Aristotelian ethics, Abrahamic and Eastern religious
traditions, German idealism, and postindustrial social criticism. In
Search of the Good Life does not offer a blueprint but rather invites
readers on a cross-cultural quest. Along the way, the author discusses
the teachings of Aristotle, Confucius, Nicolaus of Cusa, Leibniz, and
Schiller, in addition invoking more recent writings of Gadamer and
Ricoeur, as guideposts and sources of hope during our troubled times.
Among contemporary themes Dallmayr discusses are the role of the
classics in education, proper and improper ways of spreading democracy
globally, the possibility of transnational citizenship, the problem of
politicized evil, and the role of religion in our predominantly
secular culture. Dallmayr restores the notion of the good life as a
hallmark of personal conduct, civic virtue, and political engagement,
and as the road map to enduring peace. In Search of the Good Life
seeks to arouse complacent and dispirited citizens, guiding them out
of the distractions of shallow amusements and perilous resentments in
the direction of mutual learning and civic pedagogy -- a direction
that will enable them to impose accountability on political leaders
who stray from fundamental ethical standards.
"Drucilla Cornell, author of Between Women and Generations:
Legacies of Dignity" -- Fred Dallmayr recognizes the specific
content of community, freedom, equality, a
