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The Virtue of Loyalty presents ten new academic essays on the topic of loyalty considered as a virtue, written by scholars from a variety of disciplines including philosophy, law, religious studies, empirical psychology, and child development. Many of the essays are concerned with the issue of whether loyalty is a virtue, and under what conditions. Others confront questions pertaining to the psychological traits and commitments that accompany or enable loyalty.
List of contents
- Title page
- Table of contents
- Contributors
- Chapter abstracts and keywords
- Troy Jollimore, Introduction
- 1. Constance Flanagan and Alisa Pykett, "Foundations of Loyalty in Child and Adolescent
- Development"
- 2. Diane Jeske, "Loyalty and the Selves We Are as Friends"
- 3. Margaret Gilbert, "Loyalty Dilemmas"
- 4. John Kleinig, "Betrayal"
- 5. Troy Jollimore, "Is Loyalty Redundant?"
- 6. Leah Kalmanson, "Loyalty and the Reception of Buddhism in China"
- 7. Mathew Foust, "Exemplars of Loyalty"
- 8. Sanford Levinson, "Loyalty to the Constitution"
- 9. Sharon Krishek, "Love and Loyalty"
- 10. Tony Milligan and Heidi Cobham, "A Dubious Virtue"
About the author
Troy Jollimore is a Professor of Philosophy at California State University, Chico. He is the author of three books of philosophy: Friendship and Agent-Relative Morality (Taylor & Francis, 2001), Love's Vision (Princeton University Press, 2011), and On Loyalty (Routledge, 2012). He has also published several books of poetry, and has received fellowships from the Stanford Humanities Center and the Guggenheim Foundation.
Summary
Loyalty is a highly contested virtue. One the one hand, some have wondered whether it is really a virtue at all. On the other, we might doubt whether a person who was not loyal to anything could be said to have a defined moral character. Loyalty is so fundamental to so many of our relationships and commitments that it is hard to imagine a world without it. Because it structures our lives by setting horizons and limits within which we make choices and conduct our affairs, it is difficult to appreciate how significant, profound, and pervasive its influence is. That said, loyalty is a particularly salient moral concept in the public sphere, where demands for loyalty of various sorts, not to mention accusations of disloyalty, often inspire fervently passionate responses. Although loyalty invites moral objections and poses philosophical puzzles, it is undeniably held in high regard and viewed with great significance by many people. This volume presents ten new academic essays on the topic of loyalty considered as a virtue, written by scholars in philosophy, law, religious studies, empirical psychology, and child development, and approached from a diverse array of backgrounds and perspectives. The Virtue of Loyalty aims to help readers attain a greater understanding of this complex and multifaceted virtue.
