16th-17th Century French Literature - Literary Criticism, Ethics & Moral Philosophy - Theoretical
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Overview
Rather than analyzing Montaigne's (1533-92) essays as literature or art, as most scholars do, Gauna (French studies, U. of Sheffield) looks at them as philosophy. He points out that though many of his ethical positions are characteristic of liberal thought in modern western culture, they directly contradicted the ethos of his own age and culture. He argues that such deviation could not be the result of the inconsistent short-term thinking and moral relativism that are normally attributed to his work, and undertakes to establish from them a coherent ethical system and to elucidate the manner in which that system is expounded. He looks at the principles and psychology underlying the ethics and their consequences, which include condemning cruelty even to animals and mocking coercion of belief. The text is double spaced. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, ORBook Details
Published
January 1, 2000
Publisher
Mellen, Edwin Press, The
Pages
352
Format
Hardcover
ISBN
9780773477063