Alasdair MacIntyre: Critic of Modernity

237 Pages·1993·1.02 MB·English

by  Peter McMylor

Alasdair MacIntyre
Alasdair MacIntyre is widely recognised today as one of the most
significant philosophers working in the English-speaking world. His
intellectual impact has not been confined entirely to the world of
philosophy for, unlike many technically minded philosophers,
MacIntyre has avoided separating the issues of both general
philosophy and moral philosophy from the social and historical
context in which they are embedded.
This study seeks to set before a largely non-philosophically
minded social science readership something of the social and
cultural significance of MacIntyre’s work. It does this by first
outlining the main political and cultural influences that have shaped
the outlook of MacIntyre’s writing. The most important of these
influences are undoubtedly, on the one hand, Christianity and, on
the other, the Marxist tradition, as well as the broad intellectual
inheritance of the classical world. This book argues that it is out of
these traditions that MacIntyre has produced his radically
distinctive critique of contemporary liberal societies. The book then
examines the significance for the social sciences of MacIntyre’s
elaboration and restatement of an Aristotelian critique of the moral
culture of modernity. MacIntyre’s work is shown to be deeply
connected to the historical narrative of social change presented by
Karl Polanyi, and this work is shown to be more plausible than
some contemporary critics would allow. MacIntyre’s
characterisation of modernity, as being based around an unfounded
managerialist culture and a rhetorically emotivist moral discourse,
is seen to reveal the potential of a critical social science based on
Aristotelian moral categories.
Peter McMylor lectures in Sociology at the University of
Manchester.
Alasdair MacIntyre
Critic of modernity
Peter McMylor
London and New York
First published 1994
by Routledge
11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005.
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Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
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© 1994Peter McMylor
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced
or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means,
now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording,
or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the
British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
McMylor, Peter, 1958-
Alasdair MacIntyre: critic of modernity/Peter McMylor.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. MacIntyre, Alasdair C.–Contributions in philosophy
and social sciences. 2. Philosophy and social sciences.
I. Title.
B1647.M124M38 1993
192–dc20 93–3490
CIP
—
ISBN 0-203-99103-6 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-415-04426-X (Print Edition)
0-415-04427-8 (pbk)
iv
Contents
Preface vi
Part I MacIntyre—Christianity and/or Marxism?
1 Christianity and Marxism: acceptance and 3
rejection
2 An excursus on the possibility of an 45
Aristotelian Marxism
Part II Markets, managers and the virtues
3 MacIntyre’s evaluative history and Polanyi’s 75
historical sociology
4 The morality of markets and the ‘crisis of 107
authority’: notes for a sociology in a world
after virtue
5 Managerialism and the culture of 125
bureaucratic individualism
6 Conclusion: narrative and communities 147
Notes 173
Bibliography 207
Index 225
Preface
This is not a book written by a philosopher, although it is about
someone who for most of his academic life has carried that official
designation. Nor is it to be understood as being in any way a
substitute for reading MacIntyre’s diverse writings. The substance
of MacIntyre’s work lies in the detail of the argument on the printed
page. No summary can do justice to the richness and complexity of
his later books especially. As a sociologist who lacks the particular
academic skills of a philosopher I can only say in justification for
having written this text that what interests me about the work of
Alasdair MacIntyre is its intent and potency as social criticism,
albeit sharpened by the analytic bite of philosophical rigour.
MacIntyre is, in the very best sense of the word, a moralist: the
limitations and the impoverished quality of life under contemporary
liberalism are his real concern and he is consequently too important
a writer to be left only to the philosophers. This is particularly the
case given the rather complacent consensus emerging within Anglo-
American sociology on the enduring value of liberalism, even when
decked out in fashionable French or German conceptual clothing.
MacIntyre’s work contains so many substantive issues, as well as
numerous hints and asides that merit the attention of a sociologist,
that it is impossible to follow up more than a few of them within
the space of a book of modest size. I would very much like to have
attempted to connect MacIntyre to a rich vein of American social
criticism in particular. The writers who MacIntyre clearly has much
in common with, at least in relation to their perception of the ills
of liberalism, are figures like Richard Sennett, Chrisopher Lasch
and, above all, Philip Rieff. The omission of Rieff is a particular
misfortune, because in recent years MacIntyre has made particular
reference to his work on our therapeutic culture, as a basis for
vii
understanding contemporary western society. I hope to remedy this
omission elsewhere.
In the course of writing this book I have naturally incurred a
number of intellectual debts. The most obvious of these is to Huw
Beynon, who supervised my PhD thesis from which this book in
part derives. Without Huw’s patient and wise advice nothing would
have been produced. I would also like to thank Richard Brown and
John Maguire for their encouragement when I began to write. As
is obvious from the text, Scott Meikle has been an important
influence on what follows, but is unlikely to be very happy about
the result and bears no responsibility for any of the conclusions
drawn from his work. Lastly, I would like to acknowledge the
support of many friends and colleagues who, frequently without
realising it, make many things possible.
Peter McMylor
Manchester 1993
viii
Part I
MacIntyre—Christianityand/or
Marxism?