Back to the Rough Ground : Practical Judgment and the Lure of Technique

Back to the Rough Ground is a philosophical investigation of practical knowledge, with major import for professional practice and the ethical life in modern society. Its purpose is to clarify the kind of knowledge that informs good practice in a range of disciplines such as education, psychotherapy, medicine, management, and law. Through reflection on key modern thinkers who have revived cardinal insights of Aristotle, and a sustained engagement with the Philosopher himself, it presents a radical challenge to the scientistic assumptions that have dominated how these professional domains have been conceived, practiced, and institutionalized.

Joseph Dunne teaches philosophy of education at St. Patrick's College, Dublin City University. He has co-edited several books and is the author of many scholarly articles and reviews.

Alasdair MacIntyre is Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Contemporary Aristotelian Studies in Ethics and Politics at London Metropolitan University and Rev John A. O'Brien Senior Research Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the University of Notre Dame. He is the author of numerous books, including After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory, A Short History of Ethics, and Three Rival Versions of Moral Enquiry: Encyclopaedia, Genealogy, and Tradition, all published by the University of Notre Dame Press.