Citizenship and the Pursuit of the Worthy Life

This book argues that the insulation of public life from the ethical standpoint puts in jeopardy the legitimacy and survival of our political communities.

David Thunder (Author)

9781107068933, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 11 August 2014

225 pages
23.5 x 15.6 x 1.9 cm, 0.5 kg

'Thunder's account of the role of citizenship in a worthy life is a broadly attractive on, and he defends it quite able in his penultimate chapter against six important objections to his integrationist thesis. He writes, moreover, with clarity and grace.' Richard Dagger, The Review of Politics

What does citizenship have to do with living a worthy human life? Political scientists and philosophers who study the practice of citizenship, including Rawlsian liberals and Niebuhrian realists, have tended to either relegate this question to the private realm or insist that ethical principles must be silenced or seriously compromised in our deliberations as citizens. This book argues that the insulation of public life from the ethical standpoint puts in jeopardy not only our integrity as persons but also the legitimacy and long-term survival of our political communities. In response to this predicament, David Thunder aims to rehabilitate the ethical standpoint in political philosophy, by defending the legitimacy and importance of giving full play to our deepest ethical commitments in our civic roles and developing a set of guidelines for citizens who wish to enact their civic roles with integrity.

Part I. Charting the Conceptual Terrain: 1. Resurrecting an ancient question: the place of citizenship in a worthy life
2. The concept of ethical integrity
3. The practice of citizenship
Part II. Prospects for Integrity in the Public Square: 4. A pre-emptive strike against the separationist thesis
5. The integrationist ideal of citizenship
6. Objections and replies.

Subject Areas: Political science & theory [JPA], Politics & government [JP], History of ideas [JFCX], Social & political philosophy [HPS]