Philosophy, Literature and the Human Good / Edition 1

by Michael Weston

Overview

In this provocative new examination of the philosophical, moral and religious significance of literature, Michael Weston explores the role of literature in both analytic and continental traditions. He initiates a dialogue between them and investigates the growing importance of these issues for major contemporary thinkers.
Each chapter explores a philosopher or literary figure who has written on the relation between literature and the good life, such as Derrida, Kierkegaard, Murdoch and Blanchot. Challenging and insightful, Philosophy, Literature and the Human Good is ideal for all students of philosophy and literature.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780415243384
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	03/15/2001
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	222
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

About the Author

Michael Weston is Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Essex

Table of Contents

Preface. Introduction. 1. Life as Art: Kant, Schlegel, Nietzsche 2. Georges Bataille: The Impossible 3.Maurice Blanchot: Literature's Space 4. Jacques Derrida: The Staging of Deconstruction 5. Iris Murdoch: The Transcendant Goog 6. Martha Nussbaum: Moral Fortune 7. Richard Rorty: Philosophy as Literature 8. Stanley Cavell: Language, Therapy and Pefectionism 9. A Kierkegaardian Intervention 10. D.Z. Philipps: The Mediation of Sense 11. A Concluding Reading: Joseph Conread's Lord Jim

Editorial Reviews

..." a very useful introduction to the philosophy of literature... clear, detailed, and insightful."
-Vincent Colapietro, "Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews

From the Publisher

Weston (philosophy, University of Essex) considers the relationships between philosophy and literature, both in terms of the values they promote and with a view to their separate approaches to understanding human life. Each chapter considers one element in the connection between literature and philosophy, relating it to the work of a particular thinker. Among the philosophers discussed are Kant, Nietzsche, Bataille, Blanchot, Derrida, Murdoch, Nussbaum, Rorty, Cavell, Kierkegaard, and Philips. The final chapter offers a philosophical reading of Conrad's novel . ^ Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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