Title

The Unity of the Virtues Revisited

Department/School

Philosophy

Date

2021

Document Type

Book Chapter

Keywords

the unity of the virtues, cardinal virtues, virtue ethics, virtuous action, arguments for disunity

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-24466-8_6

Abstract

The classical doctrine of the unity of the virtues is generally rejected today. After arguing that the doctrine is more tenable than is commonly allowed, I consider a new and possibly cogent objection based on the idea that some virtues, in some cultural settings, are of diminished importance, and thus are not necessary for the possession of other virtues. I develop a revised version of the doctrine which maintains that certain central virtues are unified, and that any other virtues are dependent upon them, but allows that an agent might have these central virtues without possessing certain other virtues. The upshot will be that a revised but still quite strong version of the unity doctrine remains interesting and defensible.

Published in

Handbuch Tugendethik

Citation/Other Information

Christopher Toner. "The Unity of the Virtues Revisited." In Handbuch Tugendethik, 65-79, 2021.

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