The Death of Character : Moral Education in an Age Without Good or Evil

The Death of Character is a broad historical, sociological, and cultural inquiry into the moral life and moral education of young Americans based upon a huge empirical study of the children themselves. The children's thoughts and concerns-expressed here in their own words-shed a whole new light on what we can expect from moral education. Targeting new theories of education and the prominence of psychology over moral instruction, Hunter analyzes the making of a new cultural narcissism.

james Hunter Has A Talent For Writing Important Books...with The Death Of Character He Has Done It Again.--wilfred M. Mcclay, University Of Tennessee

publishers Weekly

turning His Philosophical Gaze Again To Questions Of Cultural Importance, Critic Hunter (culture Wars) Takes On Morality And Character. He Contends (in An Analysis That Unfortunately Remains Somewhat Abstract And Theoretical) That A Sense Of Objective Morality, Of Right And Wrong, Has Been Replaced By A Psychological Approach To Values: Instead Of Being Taught That There Are Absolutes By Which They Must Abide, Children Are Taught, You'll Feel Better, If You Do The Right Thing. Then Hunter Lays Out The Implications--having Replaced Moral Concepts Of Good And Evil With Therapeutic Categories Of Desire And Feeling, We Have Lost The Ability To Instill A Sense Of Character In Young People. Character-building Depends On Self-restraint, Yet Our Focus Today Is On Emotional Self-fulfillment, Not Restraint. Thus, Schools Inevitably Teach A Kind Of Moral Vagueness. By Examining The Changes During This Century In Language Used By Groups Such As The Girl Scouts, Hunter Traces The Historical Emergence Of Psychologized Values From--as He Puts It--their Origins In Theological Ones. He Then Examines The Backlash Attempts Among Some Educators To Recover Objective Values--and Concludes That Their Efforts Are Doomed To Fail. Indeed, We're Looking For Inspiration On The Wrong Side Of The Universal-particular Axis: Artificially Mandated Universal Values Will Never Save Us, He Writes. Only Particulars, Shaped By The Specific Histories Of The Communities That Practice Them, Will. In The End, Hunter's Premise Is Too Sweeping To Ring True. As A Result, His Volume Is Better At Diagnosing The Problems In Contemporary Education Than Solving Them. (june) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

"James Davison Hunter traces the death of character to the disintegration of the moral and social conditions that make character possible in the first place. The dilemma he uncovers in this bold, compelling book is especially acute in the realm of moral education, where society explicitly takes on the task of instilling enduring moral commitments and ideals within young people." "Hunter's broad historical, sociological and cultural inquiry offers a fundamental challenge to the dominant paradigms of moral understanding and the way that these play out in the crucible of moral education. The Death of Character refocuses the national debate over our moral culture - the nature of the problem and the possibilities for constructive response."--Jacket In this controversial viewpoint, Hunter argues that rather than developing moral character and teaching ethics, schools are destroying these ideals. James Davison Hunter. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 297-308) And Index. There is much talk these days about the character of America and its people.