The Pursuit of Conscience and Justice

Author: He Huahong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: Combining the perspective of intrinsic human nature and external institutions, this book draws on the latest theoretical achievements from both domestic and international sources to discuss the relationship between individuals and collectives, as well as between moral governance and the rule of law. The book is naturally divided into two parts. The first part, "The Quest for Conscience," includes the author's critique of traditional theories of conscience as unsuitable for modern ethics or its foundation, as well as explorations of conscience as the original emotional and driving force of human morality (such as compassion and benevolence), as the moral sense or sense of duty in the Kantian sense (respect for obligations), as a prerequisite for moral reason (on moral perspectives), and as moral will and decision-making (on the meaning of "where to go and accept or reject"). This part has a relatively strong local flavor. The second part, "The Pursuit of Justice," primarily includes research on Western theories of justice, tracing back to ancient contractual ethics, modern discussions on "the state of nature" and principles of justice, and up to the two main liberal theories of justice in contemporary Western mainstream—Rawls and Nozick's theories. The final chapter discusses the possible arguments for the contemporary "global ethics" movement.