The question of ethics in contemporary Maltese literature

Abstract

For some time now the discourse of postmodernism has been insisting on a return to ethics and in particular to the classical concern with the virtues. The return to classical ethics has been motivated by a feeling of exhaustion with both the metaphysical and epistemological questions that have dominated the centre stage of traditional western philosophy. In terms of importance ethics has always been placed low on the scale of philosophical values, though in a slightly higher position than aesthetics. Some philosophers are suggesting that abandoning wholesale classical ethics was mistaken: in this respect, Aristotle is receiving renewed interest after the modern turning towards ethics with Kant. Macintyre’s pivotal work After Virtue restores teleology to human affairs arguing that when Newton and Darwin dropped teleology as an explanatory principle of nature, the further step of dropping teleology from human affairs was mistaken. Human life can only be explained in terms of goals or purposes and this is why classical philosophy placed great emphasis on the acquisition of virtues. Macintyre reads the narratives of Jane Austin as examples of Christian-Aristotelian practical ethics identifying her as the last great voice of this tradition. It is not incidental that Macintyre uses examples from literature to demonstrate the virtues. Macintyre’s hope is that the return of virtue theory will help resolve the crisis of values in the contemporary world.