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Moral Illiteracy: "Who's to Say?": . . . and other ways to avoid moral reflection Paperback – June 18, 2017

by Richard Kirk (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 7 ratings
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Most Americans are now morally illiterate—incapable of engaging in serious moral analysis. Exhibit A in favor of this proposition is the frequency with which the rhetorical challenge, "Who's to say what's right or wrong?" is used to shut down moral discussion--and then met with confused silence by the question's victim. The first chapter of this book provides a succinct and convincing reply to that challenge. Subsequent chapters analyze other comments designed to avoid serious moral reflection--statements like the following: "It's just entertainment," "Ethics is really personal," "I gotta be me," "Be true to what you believe." The substitution of the term "value" for "virtue" and the modern redefinition of the term "hypocrisy" are additional linguistic shell games that have contributed to Americans' inability and unwillingness to engage in meaningful moral discourse. The former change makes possible the morality-negating declaration that one is "entitled to his own values," while the latter disposes of the no-longer-popular aphorism, "Hypocrisy is the tribute that vice gives to virtue." A concluding chapter explains "What went wrong?" and points an accusing finger at the electronic traveling salesmen who replaced the moral guides that provided most of our ethical instruction prior to the advent of mass electronic communication. This changing of the moral guard is an immensely important and little-discussed cultural event that substituted advertisers, celebrities, and media big-wigs for the ministers, parents, and persons of character who traditionally provided the lion's share of moral messaging in actual communities. The philosophical roots of our nation's moral illiteracy are also discussed briefly in this work, but these comments do not by any stretch of the imagination constitute a ponderous philosophical lecture. On the other hand, individuals for whom moral discourse is quite distasteful may find the contents of this book hard to swallow.
Previous page
  1. Print length
    119 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    June 18, 2017
  4. Dimensions
    6 x 0.3 x 9 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1521217351
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1521217351
  7. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Independently published (June 18, 2017)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 119 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1521217351
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1521217351
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.3 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.3 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 7 ratings

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
7 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

paula b.
5.0 out of 5 stars Relevant and important.
Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2023
Verified Purchase
As true today as when it was written. A must read.
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Pete Stanley
4.0 out of 5 stars Very relevant topic for current times..
Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2019
Verified Purchase
Some difficult and inconvenient observations for the "woke" culture that has for years, been methodically attempting to redefine morality, and traditional values! Our society is being conditioned to believe that everyone can define for themselves what truth is or is not. It is a self-deceptive way of rationalizing ANY behavior!
3 people found this helpful
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Lindsay M. Owens
5.0 out of 5 stars This book is a highly intelligent and direct response to the self serving and twisted ...
Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2017
Verified Purchase
This book is a highly intelligent and direct response to the self serving and twisted logic of today. Miss guided notions of relative ethics being
applied to every aspect of our society is cleverly addressed and astutely denounced in this very well written and entertaining book.

I strongly recommend it.
11 people found this helpful
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Norman Rogers
5.0 out of 5 stars A voice crying in the wilderness
Reviewed in the United States on August 28, 2018
"...what Americans see when they look at images on television and the silver screen are narcissistic projections of morally vacuous personalities who have been ceded this vast power by an electronically lobotomized public." Kirk rips away the moral pretenses of America, especially the totally ignorant youth. No doubt popular moral stands are without substance. The main question is are things really a lot worse than when the nation was God fearing and supposedly more moral.
6 people found this helpful
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