Kantian Dignity and Trolley Problems in the Literature of Richard Wright

by Michael Wainwright

Overview

This book examines the literature of African-American author Richard Wright and the philosophy of Immanuel Kant, arguing that Wright was not only the foremost proponent of minoritarian protest literature, but also a groundbreaking minoritarian exponent of philosophical literature. In presenting this argument, the volume defends trolley problems from the criticism that some philosophers level against them by promoting their use as an interpretive tool for literary scholars. Starting with Martha C. Nussbaum’s interventions in literary theory concerning Henry James and perceptive equilibrium, this book draws on the philosophical thoughts of her contemporaries—Philippa Foot, John Rawls, Judith Jarvis Thomson, and Derek Parfit—to analyze Uncle Tom’s Children, especially “Down by the Riverside,” alongside other works by Wright. This approach emphasizes Wright’s recognition of the importance and integrity of Kant’s concept of dignity.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9783031402159
Publisher:	Springer Nature Switzerland
Publication date:	10/28/2023
Series:	American Literature Readings in the 21st Century
Edition description:	1st ed. 2024
Pages:	228
Product dimensions:	5.83(w) x 8.27(h) x 0.00(d)

About the Author

Michael Wainwright is Honorary Research Associate at the University of London, UK. He is the author of numerous books, including most recently Faulkner’s Ethics: An Intense Struggle (2021), The Rational Shakespeare: Peter Ramus, Edward de Vere, and the Question of Authorship (2018), and Game Theory and Postwar American Literature (2016), all published by Palgrave.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction: Contesting Equilibria: Nussbaum versus Rawls .- Chapter 2 Kantian Dignity .- Chapter 3 Philosophical Literature .- Chapter 4 Trolley Problems .- Chapter 5 Lifeboats .- Chapter 6 Richard Wright’s Travails of Mann .- Chapter 7 Conclusion: Be Reasonable.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“In a scholarly world increasingly separated into narrow specialties, Michael Wainwright draws disparate fields of study together, enlarges our understanding of both the power of story and the setting of our moral compass, and, as a result, he helps us think more clearly and feel more deeply about race, culture, and tradition. By putting down the weapons and picking up the tools, he turns spears into plowshares.”

–Charles A. Peek, Professor Emeritus, University of Nebraska (Kearney Campus) and Fulbright Senior Lecturer, USA