Hypocrisy & Integrity – Machiavelli, Rousseau, & the Ethics of Politics: Machiavelli, Rousseau and the Ethics of Politics - Hardcover

Grant, Ruth W

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0226305821 ISBN 13: 9780226305820

Publisher: University of Chicago Press, 1997

Synopsis

Arguing that hypocrisy can be constructive and that strictly principled behaviour can be destructive, this book explores the full range of ethical alternatives, distinguishing the various types of hypocrisy and integrity. Drawing on the work of Machiavelli and Rousseau, who both recognized that the irrationalities of human behaviour made totally honest and rational politics impossible, the book examines the ethical dilemmas experienced by politicians. It shows that the tasks of the politician - building coalitions among conflicting interests, uniting groups with a basic mistrust of one another - cannot be accomplished while remaining inflexibly attached to principle. Clarifying the differences between idealism and fanaticism, moderation and rationalization, this study seeks to uncover the moral limits of compromise and reveal new standards of ethical judgement.

About this title

About the Author

Ruth W. Grant is professor of political science and philosophy and senior fellow in the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University. She is the author of John Locke's Liberalism and Hypocrisy and Integrity: Machiavelli, Rousseau and the Ethics of Politics, the latter of which received the best book award from the North American Society for Political Philosophy in 1997. She is also the editor of Naming Evil, Judging Evil and In Search of Goodness.

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Publication date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0226305821
• ISBN 13: 9780226305820
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 214