Assholes: A Theory
Assholes: A Theory
复制标题
混蛋：一个理论
DOI：
--
复制
发表时间：
2013
期刊：
影响因子：
--
通讯作者：
H. Doughty
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
H. Doughty
混蛋：一个理论亚伦詹姆斯混蛋：一个理论纽约：双日，2012年审查霍华德A。几年前，我详细评论了哈里法兰克福的一本书《论狗屎》（道蒂，2005年）。这是一个红极一时（这本书，而不是我的评论）。单凭它的挑衅性标题并不能确保它的成功。脏话随处可见，你不需要像法兰克福这样的世界知名的道德哲学家来制造少年的欢乐。《论狗屁》可能不是哈利·法兰克福最深刻的书，但它确实在无处不在的虚拟书店的意想不到的角落为他赢得了一批读者。其中一个原因是，一旦一个细心的读者超越了标题，这本书有一些关于争论和公共话语的本质的重要事情要说。事实上，亚伦·詹姆斯的《混蛋》只是关于这个主题的一些半严肃作品之一。还有杰弗里·农伯格（Geoffrey Nunberg）的《A字的上升》（Ascent of the A-Word，2012年）和罗伯特·萨顿（Robert Sutton）的《没有混蛋的规则》（The No Asshole Rule，2010年）--这是一本为有抱负的企业高管撰写的获奖书籍。詹姆斯的这本书大致上是一个哲学沉思，一个流行的历史调查和一个实用的指南，以通过我们游泳的危险的直肠沃茨;但是，它的真正价值在于他试图精确地定义这个词。乍一看，詹姆斯的《混蛋》似乎与法兰克福的《胡说八道》属于同一类--一本关于一个严肃主题的严肃著作，既有学术界的兴趣，也有大众的兴趣，但有一个标题是为了挑逗（可以这么说）。有时第一眼是不会骗人的，你可以从封面看出一本书;有时不是，你不能。亚伦·詹姆斯（Aaron James）可能（还）没有获得哈利·法兰克福（Harry Frankfurt）的地位，但他要年轻得多。仍然有希望。与此同时，他将把他对理性主义和道德判断基础的兴趣带到纽约大学，从他在加州大学欧文分校的家乡担任2013年秋季的客座教授。他已经有了大量值得称道的专业出版物。如果再给他半个世纪的时间，他很可能会取代83岁的哈利·法兰克福（Harry Frankfurt），不管他在书的封面上是否使用了引人注目的粗俗语言。乍一看，詹姆斯的《混蛋》似乎和法兰克福的《狗屎》属于同一类--一本关于严肃主题的严肃书籍，既有学术意义，也有大众兴趣，但标题是为了挑逗（可以这么说）。然而，与其进一步纠缠于这本书的名字，不如让我们深入探讨。亚伦·詹姆斯（Aaron James）曾在斯坦福大学行为科学高级研究中心（Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University）工作，并撰写了关于公平等问题的文章，并对约翰·罗尔斯（John Rawls）表示了适当的点头（詹姆斯，2012）。他致力于将道德理论应用于实际生活。他的下一个大项目是一本关于"基于实践的辩护和全球正义"的书。"他是一个年轻人，有着健康的抱负。在《混蛋》中，他所做的不仅仅是嘲笑所有我们喜欢鄙视的人。他的例子很熟悉。我们知道他说的是谁。我最喜欢的例子是一个傻瓜，他坚持要给琼·贝兹一支烟，知道她不抽烟，但（我想）希望通过让她感到非常不舒服来提高自己的地位。混蛋通常在法律范围内行事，不会对社会造成巨大的物质损失。他们不完全是反社会者。然而，它们是习惯性的和不可治愈的。他们就是他们自己，通常是不可挽回的。混蛋，正如他所描述的，并不是显著的邪恶。他们只是令人讨厌的轻率的例子，对他人的敏感性漠不关心，对社会背景视而不见。他们属于边缘型反社会者，他们的行为还没有上升（或者说下降）到病理学所必需的程度，不值得被列入美国精神病学协会《诊断和统计手册》认证的官方精神疾病和障碍的名单。…
Assholes: A TheoryAaron James Assholes: A Theory New York: Doubleday, 2012Reviewed by Howard A. DoughtyA few years ago, I commented at length upon a book called On Bullshit (Doughty, 2005) by Harry Frankfurt. It was a smash hit (the book, not my comment). Its provocative title alone would not have ensured its success. Dirty words can be found anywhere and you don't need a world-renowned moral philosopher like Frankfurt to generate juvenile jollies. On Bullshit might not have been Harry Frankfurt's most profound book, but it did win him an audience in unexpected corners of the ubiquitous virtual bookstore. One of the reasons was that, once an attentive reader got beyond the title, the book had some important things to say about the nature of argument and public discourse.The times are right for a follow-up. In fact Aaron James's Assholes is just one of a number of semi-serious works on the subject. There's also Geoffrey Nunberg's Ascent of the A-Word (2012) and Robert Sutton's The No Asshole Rule (2010)-an award-winning book for aspirant business executives. James's volume is in roughly equal parts a philosophical meditation, a pop historical survey and a practical guide to negotiate the treacherous rectal waters in which we swim; but, its true value lies in his attempt to define the term precisely.At first glance, James's Assholes seems to fit into the same category as Frankfurt's Bullshit-a serious book about a serious subject which is of both scholarly and popular interest, but with a title meant to titillate (so to speak). Sometimes first glances are not deceiving and you can tell a book by its cover; sometimes they are not and you can't.Aaron James may not (yet) have acquired the stature of Harry Frankfurt, but he is a much younger man. There is still hope. Meanwhile, he will be taking his interest in rationalism and the foundations of moral judgement to New York University from his home base at the University of California at Irvine as a Visiting Professor in the Fall of 2013. He already has a substantial inventory of professional publications to his credit. Given another half-century, he may well supersede Harry Frankfurt (age 83) with or without the use of attention-grabbing vulgarities on his book covers.At first glance, James's Assholes seems to fit into the same category as Frankfurt's Bullshit-a serious book about a serious subject which is of both scholarly and popular interest, but with a title meant to titillate (so to speak).Rather than further obsessing on the name of the book, however, let us probe within. Aaron James has spent time at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University and has written about matters such as fairness, with a suitable nod to John Rawls (James, 2012). He is deeply engaged in the application of moral theory to practical life. His next big project is a book on "practice-based justification and global justice." He is a still young man with healthy ambitions.In Assholes, he is doing more than poking fun at all the people we like to despise. His examples are familiar. We know who he's talking about. My favourite example is the dolt who insisted on offering Joan Baez a cigarette, knowing she didn't smoke, but (I suppose) hoping to enhance his status by making her feel ever-so-slightly uncomfortable.- assholes normally act within the law and do not exact a great material toll on society. They are not quite sociopaths. They are, however, habitual and incurable. They are what they are and generally irredeemable.Assholes, as he describes them, are not significantly evil. They are merely annoying examples of thoughtlessness, indifference to others' sensitivities and blindness to social contexts. They are borderline sociopaths whose actions do not quite rise (or, rather, descend) to the degree of pathology necessary to merit inclusion in the always expanding list of official mental diseases and disorders certified by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association. …