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Getting What You Want?: A Critique of Liberal Morality
Author(s): Bob Brecher (Author)
- Publisher: Routledge
- Publication Date: December 20, 1997
- Language: English
- Print length: 232 pages
- ISBN-10: 0415129524
- ISBN-13: 9780415129527
Book Description
Getting What You Want? is the first book which calls for the collapse of liberal morality. Bob Brecher claims that it is wrong to think that morality is simply rooted in what people want. He explains that in our consumerist society, we make the assumption that getting 'what people want' is our natural goal, and that this 'natural goal' is a necessarily good one. We see that whether it is a matter of pornography or getting married - if people want it, then that's that. But is this really a good thing?
Getting What You Want? offers a critique of liberal morality and an analysis of its understanding of the individual as a 'wanting thing'. Brecher boldly argues that the Anglo-American liberalism cannot give an adequate account of moral reasoning and action, nor any justification of moral principles or demands. Ultimately, Brecher shows us that the whole idea of liberal morality is not only incoherent but unattainable.
Getting What You Want? offers a critique of liberal morality and an analysis of its understanding of the individual as a 'wanting thing'. Brecher boldly argues that the Anglo-American liberalism cannot give an adequate account of moral reasoning and action, nor any justification of moral principles or demands. Ultimately, Brecher shows us that the whole idea of liberal morality is not only incoherent but unattainable.
Editorial Reviews
Review
"Brechner offers a lively and engaged moral, cultural, and political critique of contemporary society solidly grounded in an historical evaluation of the Anglo-American liberal tradition... ...Getting What You Want? is a provocative argument which deserves to become the focal point of a much needed debate." -- Jeff Noonan, University of Windsor, Philosophy in Review
About the Author
Bob Brecher teaches philosophy at Brighton University. He is the author of Anselm's Argument (1984), and he is the co-editor of The University in a Liberal State (1995) and Liberalism and the New Europe (1992).
