1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910777774703321

Autore

Devigne Robert

Titolo

Reforming liberalism [[electronic resource] ] : J.S. Mill's use of ancient, religious, liberal, and romantic moralities / / Robert Devigne

Pubbl/distr/stampa

New Haven [Conn.], : Yale University Press, c2006

ISBN

1-281-72295-2

9786611722951

0-300-13390-1

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (1 online resource (x, 309 p.))

Disciplina

192

Soggetti

Liberalism

Liberty

Ethics

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references (p. 283-299) and index.

Nota di contenuto

The moderns and Plato -- Liberty and the just moral conscience -- The cultivation of the individual and society : J.S. Mill's use of ancient and romantic dialectics -- On liberty : overcoming the west's one-sided moral development -- Reforming reformed religion: J.S. Mill's critique of the natural religion of the Enlightenment -- On liberty : the summum bonum of modern liberalism -- Mill and political philosophy.

Sommario/riassunto

In Reforming Liberalism, Robert Devigne challenges prevailing interpretations of the political and moral thought of John Stuart Mill and the theoretical underpinnings of modern liberal philosophy. He explains how Mill drew from ancient and romantic thought as well as past religious practices to reconcile conflicts and antinomies (liberty and virtue, self-interest and morality, equality and human excellence) that were hobbling traditional liberalism. The book shows that Mill, regarded as a seminal writer in the liberal tradition, critiques liberalism's weaknesses with a forcefulness usually associated with its well-known critics. Devigne explores Mill's writings to demonstrate how his thought has been misconstrued--as well as oversimplified--to the detriment of our understanding of liberalism itself.