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This book explores the debates surrounding eudaimonism, virtue, and happiness. It argues that we should embrace 'ecstatic' or 'goodness-prior' eudaimonism whilst rejecting 'welfare-prior' forms of eudaimonism.
List of contents
- 1: Introduction
- 2: Seeking the Last End: Augustine and Aquinas
- 3: Duty and Obligation from Aquinas to Calvin
- 4: Goodness-Prior Eudaimonism
- 5: Obligation and Divine Commands
- 6: Obligation and Reason-Giving Relationships
- 7: From Form to Substance
- 8: Conclusion: From Responsibility to Friendship
- Postscript: Returning to God
About the author
Jennifer A. Herdt is Gilbert L. Stark Professor of Christian Ethics at Yale University Divinity School, where she has taught since 2010. Educated at Oberlin College, she received her Ph.D. from Princeton University. She has held prior faculty appointments at New College of Florida and the University of Notre Dame, and is the recipient of fellowships from the Mellon Foundation, Whiting Foundation, and Humboldt Foundation, among others. She has served as the 2020 President of the Society of Christian Ethics and on the editorial boards of the Journal of Religious Ethics, Studies in Christian Ethics, and the Journal of Religion.
Summary
This book explores the debates surrounding eudaimonism, virtue, and happiness. It argues that we should embrace 'ecstatic' or 'goodness-prior' eudaimonism whilst rejecting 'welfare-prior' forms of eudaimonism.
Additional text
Jennifer Herdt's Assuming Responsibility is a tightly written and well-crafted monograph focused on answering one of the most fundamental questions of ethics: What is the relationship between the human desire for happiness and morality?...Assuming Responsibility is one of the best books on this particular topic written by a Christian ethicist in a long time. It is lucidly written, well-organized, and learned.
