Since Hannah Arendt highlighted the stunning "banality" of his "evil" crimes, Adolf Eichmann has served posterity as a prime example of thoughtlessness. This book asks: as civilizations become ever more integrated, how will the complexities of our activities respond to the growing proclivity for thoughtlessness? When administrative necessity eclipses personal responsibility, the result is often complicity and apathy. Mueller argues for a practical wisdom in order to meet the challenge of thoughtlessness that arises in an increasingly bureaucratic world. Her investigations into the philosophical problems of thoughtlessness are motivated less by a concern than a desire to solve puzzles than a concern about the fate of our world, plagued as it is by social, environmental, political, and moral injustices. How might we help one another develop the courage to challenge the common view that the good life must be sought through an unthinking pursuit of ends, even as that pursuit damages and destroys rather than building a better world? This book uses Arendtian notions of reflective thinking and judgment in order to supplement the Aristotelian conception of practical wisdom. This inquiry helps readers to understand the particular modes of thinking necessary to grasp, in a thoughtful, reflective manner, correct aims for action. Furthermore, it shows that experience that enlarges moral imagination by considering alternative perspectives can highlight lived experience in a way that prepares us for virtuous ethical decision-making. Contrary to Thoughtlessness demonstrates that reflective thinking and judgment offer critical avenues for recognizing reliable, yet flexible norms that can serve as reasonable ends for action. This conception of the thinking and judging involved in practical wisdom can enhance ethical deliberations, thereby informing the development of character by clarifying ends for the pursuit of flourishing.
Industry Reviews
Contrary to Thoughtlessness: Rethinking Practical Wisdom is a significant contribution to virtue ethics. Monica Mueller enriches Aristotelian thought by drawing on the work of Hannah Arendt. Her important innovation is to reconceive practical wisdom in a way that makes explicit the crucial role of reflection. She offers insightful correctives to the existing scholarship on Aristotle, and illustrates concretely the difference that a 'thinking dialogue with oneself' can make. The book is engaging, complex, and deeply thought-provoking. Readers interested in moral development will find much of value here. -- Lisa Tessman, Professor of Philosophy, Binghamton University
This book will appeal to Aristotle scholars, to Arendt scholars, and to those of us interested in how virtue ethical approaches are equipped to deal with the evils of our age, with its ''devastating social, environmental, political, and moral injustices'' (p. 2). Mueller's virtue ethics provides a novel treatment of the problem of ''thoughtlessness,'' that is, the unreflective compliance with social norms that Arendt finds so dangerous.
In addition to the treatment of the spectator, the main strength of this book is Mueller's nuanced treatment of Arendtian thinking and judging without presenting them as conceptually linear mental activities
In Contrary to Thoughtlessness, Mueller succeeds in opening up Aristotelian practical wisdom in a new way, by supplementing it with ideas inspired by Arendtian thinking and judgment. Like Arendt, Mueller is an exemplar in beginning a conversation that others can take up to work together towards a richer understanding of practical wisdom. In this case, I suspect that Aristotle and virtue ethics scholars, Arendt scholars, and moral and political philosophers concerned about judgment as a way to address global problems will be eager to purchase thisbook and enter with Mueller into this conversation. * Springer Science + Business Media *
