Description
Book SynopsisIn Subjectivity, sixteen leading scholars examine the turn to the subject in modern philosophy and consider its historical antecedents in ancient and medieval thought. Some critics of modernity reject the turn to the subject as a specifically modern error, arguing that it logically leads to nihilism and moral relativism by divorcing the human mind from objective reality. Yet, some important thinkers of the last half-century--including Leo Strauss, Eric Voegelin, John Finnis, and Bernard Lonergan--consider a subjective starting point and claim to find a similar position in ancient and medieval thought. If correct, their positions suggest that one can adopt the subjective turn and remain true to the tradition. This is a timely question. The common good of our polity encounters a situation in which many believe that there is no objective reality to which human minds and wills ought to conform, a conclusion that suggests we can define and construct reality. In light of this, the notion of
Trade ReviewFor those who already have an interest in these debates, the anthology makes some significant contributions. A primary strength of the book is that, reading essays side-by-side on thinkers that you would prima facie rarely associate with one another, you come to see overlapping themes regarding subjectivity across philosophical schools.... This book is a[n]...important contribution to a central debate of our times. * Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *
In Subjectivity: Ancient and Modern, editors R. J. Snell and Steven F. McGuire have assembled a high-quality group of scholars to take up the philosophical and political roots of the problematic question not only of "subjective rights" but of subjectivity more broadly conceived.... This volume would be of obvious appeal to anyone interested in the question of the modern subject and the manner with which a variety of premodern voices can help both to understand it and to bring out its better potential. * Anamnesis Journal *
Table of ContentsIntroduction 1.Subjectivity and Metaphysics in Voegelin’s Reading of Aristotle Steven F. McGuire Response by Lee Trepanier 2.Objectivity as Authentic Subjectivity Elizabeth A. Murray Response by Matthew B. O’Brien 3.Subjectivity without Subjectivism: Revisiting the Is/Ought Gap Sherif Girgis Response by Mark Shiffman 4.First and Third Person Standpoints in the New Natural Law Theory Christopher O. Tollefsen Response by Amy Gilbert Richards 5.The Claims of Subjectivity and the Limits of Politics Ralph C. Hancock Response by Richard Velkley 6.The Turn to the Subject as the Turn to the Person David Walsh Response by Phillip Cary 7.Personalism and Common Good: Thomistic Political Philosophy and the Turn to Subjectivity V. Bradley Lewis Response by Daniel Mark 8.Existential Authority, Belonging, and the Commissioning that is Subjectivity: A Medieval Philosophical Anthropology James Greenaway Response by Jeremy D. Wilkins
