Fragmentation and Consensus

Kuczewski, Mark G.

ISBN 10: 0878407545 / ISBN 13: 9780878407545

Published by Georgetown University Press, 1999

About this Item

Both communitarianism and casuistry have sought to restore ethics as a practical science - the former by incorporating various traditions into a shared definition of the common good, the latter by considering the circumstances of each situation through critical reasoning. This title analyzes the origins and methods of these two approaches. Num Pages: 192 pages, black & white illustrations. BIC Classification: HPQ; MBDC. Category: (P) Professional & Vocational; (UP) Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly; (UU) Undergraduate. Dimension: 229 x 152 x 13. Weight in Grams: 320. . 1999. Paperback. . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland.

Seller Inventory # V9780878407545

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Fragmentation and Consensus
• Publisher: Georgetown University Press
• Publication Date: 1999
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0878407545
• ISBN 13: 9780878407545
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

Both communitarianism and casuistry have sought to restore ethics as a practical science―the former by incorporating various traditions into a shared definition of the common good, the latter by considering the circumstances of each situation through critical reasoning.

Mark G. Kuczewski analyzes the origins and methods of these two approaches and forges from them a new unified approach. This approach takes the communitarian notion of the person as its starting point but also relies upon the narrative and analogical tools of case-based reasoning. He separates out the rhetoric that is incongruent with the Aristotelian aspirations of each method to show that the two are complementary, and that consensus can emerge from fragmentation.

He then applies his resulting method to three major problems in bioethics: the difficulties that the issue of personal identity poses for advance directives, the role of the family in medical decision making, and the refusal of treatment because of religious beliefs. He analyzes the need to assume a communitarian notion of the person as a starting point for the application of casuistic insights.

Combining theoretical, practical, and scholarly insights, this book will be of interest to philosophers, political and social scientists, and bioethicists.

About the Author

Mark G. Kuczewski is an assistant professor of bioethics and director of graduate studies at the Center for the Study of Bioethics, Medical College of Wisconsin, in Milwaukee. He is the former associate director of the Consortium Ethics Program at the University of Pittsburgh Center for Medical Ethics.