Description
Book SynopsisThis volume examines the philosophical thought of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and is an assessment of Kingâs contribution to philosophyâespecially ethics, social philosophy and philosophy of religion. It also explores the relevance of Kingâs thoughts as âœliberatory discourseââinsurgent thinking aimed at enabling contemporary social justice.
Trade ReviewThis is a masterful philosophical portrait of Martin Luther King, Jr. The contributors to this volume demonstrate a marked capacity to communicate the essential ingredients and the profundities of King's philosophy in a strikingly lucid, comprehensive, and provocative way. What an important and stirring gift for those of us who have repeatedly called for more attention to King the intellectual! -- Lewis V. Baldwin, Vanderbilt University
A strikingly original collection assembled by Robert E. Birt! Written primarily by trained and teaching philosophers, these critical essays will appeal to all who are genuinely interested in the thought, work, and witness of Martin Luther King, Jr. Here we see King as philosopher who both influenced and was influenced by Western philosophical tradition, and who was the quintessential nonviolent social activist. Depicted as a man of ideas and ideals, King’s thinking about God, freedom, hope, democracy, the beloved community, nonviolence, and his optimism about the eradication of racism are examined, criticized, and re-envisioned as never before. The result is a more realistic and hopeful view of King’s relevance for today. -- Rufus Burrow, Jr., Author of God and Human Dignity: The Personalism, Theology, and Ethics of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Measured by its ability to display the rich potential for philosophical reflection that engaging with King as a thinker offers us,... Birt’s anthology [is] a success....Birt’s anthology is a very welcome spur to the kind of philosophical work that will treat passages like these as opportunities to take someone who has so deeply shaped our world seriously, with all the sharp, progressive criticism and sympathetic reconstruction necessary to doing so. * APA Newsletter on Philosophy and the Black Experience *
Table of ContentsPart I. King within Philosophical Traditions Chapter 1: Is Our Belief that Martin Luther King, Jr. is a Black Philosopher Justified? John McClendon Chapter 2: Dr. King’s Philosophy of Religion: A Theology of Somebodiness George Yancy Chapter 3: Dr. King as Liberation Theologian and Existential Philosopher James B. Haile, III Chapter 4: King as Philosopher: An examination of the Influences of Hegelian Dialectics on King’s Political Thought and Practice Stephen C. Ferguson Chapter 5: Martin Luther King, Jr. as a Social Movement Intellectual: Trailblazer or Torchbearer? Maurice St. Pierre Part II. King as Engaged Social and Political Philosopher Chapter 6: The Struggle for Loving Communities: Martin Luther King, Jr.s Agape and World House Richard A. Jones Chapter 7: King’s Radical Vision of Community Robert E. Birt Chapter 8: Martin Luther King, Jr.: Toward a Democratic Theory Tim Lake Part III. King’s Ethics of Nonviolence Chapter 9: Ethics as First Philosophy: King, Levinas and the Praxis of Peace Maria del Guadalupe Davison & Dr. Scott Davidson Chapter 10: Martin Luther King on Vietnam: King’s Message Applied to the US Occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan Gail Presbey Chapter 11: Martin Luther King and Frantz Fanon: Reflections on the Politics and Ethics of Violence and Nonviolence Kathryn Gines Chapter 12: A Shocking Gap Made Visible: King’s Pacifist Materialism and the Method of Nonviolent Change Greg Moses Chapter 13: Socrates, Gandhi and King: Politics of Civil Disobedience and the Ethics of Nonviolent Action Benjamin Arah Part IV. Hope Resurgent or Dream Deferred: Perplexities of King’s Philosophical Optimism Chapter 14: Hope and Disappointment in Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Political Theology: Eclipse of the Liberal Spirit Floyd Hayes III Chapter 15: The Aporia of Hope: King and Bell on the Ending of Racism Bill Lawson Chapter 16: The Concept of Hope in the Thinking of Martin Luther King, Jr. C.W. Dawson
