Moral Blindness

The Loss of Sensitivity in Liquid Modernity

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Anthropology
Cover of the book Moral Blindness by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis, Wiley
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis ISBN: 9780745669625
Publisher: Wiley Publication: April 24, 2013
Imprint: Polity Language: English
Author: Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
ISBN: 9780745669625
Publisher: Wiley
Publication: April 24, 2013
Imprint: Polity
Language: English

Evil is not confined to war or to circumstances in which people are acting under extreme duress. Today it more frequently reveals itself in the everyday insensitivity to the suffering of others, in the inability or refusal to understand them and in the casual turning away of one’s ethical gaze. Evil and moral blindness lurk in what we take as normality and in the triviality and banality of everyday life, and not just in the abnormal and exceptional cases.

The distinctive kind of moral blindness that characterizes our societies is brilliantly analysed by Zygmunt Bauman and Leonidas Donskis through the concept of adiaphora: the placing of certain acts or categories of human beings outside of the universe of moral obligations and evaluations. Adiaphora implies an attitude of indifference to what is happening in the world – a moral numbness. In a life where rhythms are dictated by ratings wars and box-office returns, where people are preoccupied with the latest gadgets and forms of gossip, in our ‘hurried life’ where attention rarely has time to settle on any issue of importance, we are at serious risk of losing our sensitivity to the plight of the other. Only celebrities or media stars can expect to be noticed in a society stuffed with sensational, valueless information.

This probing inquiry into the fate of our moral sensibilities will be of great interest to anyone concerned with the most profound changes that are silently shaping the lives of everyone in our contemporary liquid-modern world.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Evil is not confined to war or to circumstances in which people are acting under extreme duress. Today it more frequently reveals itself in the everyday insensitivity to the suffering of others, in the inability or refusal to understand them and in the casual turning away of one’s ethical gaze. Evil and moral blindness lurk in what we take as normality and in the triviality and banality of everyday life, and not just in the abnormal and exceptional cases.

The distinctive kind of moral blindness that characterizes our societies is brilliantly analysed by Zygmunt Bauman and Leonidas Donskis through the concept of adiaphora: the placing of certain acts or categories of human beings outside of the universe of moral obligations and evaluations. Adiaphora implies an attitude of indifference to what is happening in the world – a moral numbness. In a life where rhythms are dictated by ratings wars and box-office returns, where people are preoccupied with the latest gadgets and forms of gossip, in our ‘hurried life’ where attention rarely has time to settle on any issue of importance, we are at serious risk of losing our sensitivity to the plight of the other. Only celebrities or media stars can expect to be noticed in a society stuffed with sensational, valueless information.

This probing inquiry into the fate of our moral sensibilities will be of great interest to anyone concerned with the most profound changes that are silently shaping the lives of everyone in our contemporary liquid-modern world.

More books from Wiley

Cover of the book The Severe and Persistent Mental Illness Treatment Planner by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book Change One Thing! by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book Fertility and Infertility For Dummies by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book Sexual and Reproductive Health at a Glance by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book The Wiley Handbook on Offenders with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book BWL für Dummies by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book Collisionless Plasmas in Astrophysics by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book Handbook of Battery Materials by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book Structural Equations with Latent Variables by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book Audience by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book Principles of Solar Cells, LEDs and Diodes by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book Energy-Efficient Distributed Computing Systems by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book Sleep Medicine in Neurology by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book Scanning Probe Microscopy¿in Industrial Applications by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
Cover of the book A Companion to Ancient Greece and Rome on Screen by Zygmunt Bauman, Leonidas Donskis
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy