Cosmopolitanism and the Evils of the World

311 Pages·2020·3.266 MB·English

by  Michael H. DeArmey

Cosmopolitanism and
the Evils of the World
Michael H. DeArmey
Cosmopolitanism and the Evils of the World
Michael H. DeArmey
Cosmopolitanism
and the Evils
of the World
Michael H. DeArmey
School of Humanities
University of Southern Mississippi
Hattiesburg, MS, USA
ISBN 978-3-030-42977-5 ISBN 978-3-030-42978-2 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-42978-2
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Each drop of wine we pour is hope and prayer
That people will cast out the plagues that threaten everyone
Everywhere they are found, beginning in our own hearts:
The making of war,
The teaching of hate and violence,
Despoliation of the earth,
Perversion of justice and government,
Fomenting of vice and crime,
Neglect of human needs,
Oppression of nations and peoples,
Corruption of culture,
Subjugation of science, learning, and human discourse
The erosion of freedoms.
—Passage from A Passover Haggadah, by permission of the Central
Conference of American Rabbis, Copyright 1994.
For my parents, Amy and Mack DeArmey
and
For my professors to whom I owe much
Andrew J. Reck
Carroll R. Bowman
Roy E.Watkins
Preface and Acknowledgements
Itmaybeacommonplacebutitisnonethelesstruethateachperson’slife
is the product of the interplay of choice, chance, and compulsion (ne-
cessity). Such is the case with the writing of this book. One day while
looking through the stacks at the university library I chanced upon a
book by Mary Midgely with the intriguing title,Wickedness. I read this
bookandanotheronasimilartopic,RonaldMilo’sImmorality,andwith
these two in mind I decided that I would design a class on evildoing. I
wassurprisedatthenumberofstudentswhosignedupfortheclass.And
the class discussions were livelier than usual. From that point on I var-
ied the texts whenever the class was being offered, and my investigations
into this topic were increasingly extensive. The present book represents
my efforts over a ten year period at research, reflection, and writing on a
topicIcouldnotputaside.OverandoveragainIwonderedhowpeople
could do such terrible things to themselves and others. When a profes-
sor in my department retired, I assumed responsibility for a course in
environmental ethics. As a result I became increasingly concerned about
thedeleteriouseffectsofhumanbehavioronanimals,plants,andecosys-
tems–indeed the entire biosphere. My concern is manifested in this
ix
x Preface and Acknowledgements
book’s detailed examination of the extent to which we have damaged
the environment.
How can a philosopher contribute to the study of wrongdoing and
evildoing?First,thetermsthatarecommonlyemployedindiscussionsof
evilarenotoriouslyvague.Thisbookaimsatgreaterconceptualprecision
for terms like bad, wrong, evil, genocide, torture, slavery, and terrorism.
Second, philosophers attempt to explain why the behaviors referred to
by these terms are immoral. This book sets out a theory of dignity in-
clusive of human beings and animals. The indicated behaviors are an
assault on the dignity of both. The discussion within these pages owes
much to the writings of Immanuel Kant in the field of ethics and inter-
national politics. Kant is the founder of modern cosmopolitanism, and
thisbookattemptstoadvanceKant’sprojectofaworldorganizationand
world community. My interest in cosmopolitanism probably goes back
to my experience of working with young people from around the world
onsummercharityprojectsinSpainandItaly.InpartsponsoredbyCar-
itas, I was a director of the construction of a food service building in
Baza, Spain for poor gypsies, and the following summer in Italy, a simi-
larbuildingforEthiopianrefugees.Youngpeoplefromaroundtheworld,
from Australia toYemen, gave up their summers to help with this work.
Each evening after work the thirty or so young volunteers and I would
discuss our religions, our views of world peace, and sports. Discussions
aboutreligionswereheatedanddivisive,butwhenthediscussionturned
on what kind of world is desirable, there was almost unanimous agree-
ment.Someoftheseagreed-upon-viewsshowupinthisbookintermsof
the many cosmopolitan recommendations that are necessary for a desir-
able world.That is the third contribution philosophers can make to this
subject matter. A philosopher, Plato noted long ago, is a specialist in the
general.Thechaptersofthisbookamplydemonstratethatphilosophical
work is inherently transdisciplinary.
Reflecting on the dark side of human experience as this book does
leaves the reader with the unavoidable conclusion that much of what we
callcivilizationexistsonafoundationofthesufferingofthehundredsof
millions of poor and struggling people as well as the destruction of the
health of all forms of life and ecosystems on this planet. Being civilized,
ontheotherhand,meansbeingreasonableandjust,evenifanenormous
Preface and Acknowledgements xi
number of practices and artifacts of civilization are corrupt.There is still
time to save ourselves, to correct the course of civilization, to uplift the
lives of the poor, and to preserve and restore the environment.
Many people have contributed to the writing of this book. First and
foremost is my wife Stephanie, who encouraged me, and, as a univer-
sityeditor,proof-readthemanuscript.Variouschaptersofthisbookhave
benefittedfromconversationswithJ.BairdCallicott,JohnHofer,Robert
Kane, Alfred Mele, and Chris Meyers. Long ago I had the good fortune
to attend the best high school in Memphis,Tennessee, East High, and I
am especially indebted to Ms. Gladys Riggs and Ms. Elsie Stone (Latin
andmathematics,respectively).AsanundergraduateattheUniversityof
Memphis I elected to take a course in philosophy, not knowing exactly
what that was, and I was captivated by the fundamental nature of the
questions philosophers ask. My chief advisor was Professor Carroll Bow-
man, a follower of Hegel and Josiah Royce, and this impressed upon me
thevalueofsystematicwork.MygraduateworkatTulanewasbenefitted
by scholarships, especially an Andrew W. Mellon Doctoral Fellowship,
and later at Yale by a post-doctoral fellowship. I am especially indebted
to Andrew J. Reck at Tulane, who has been my teacher, advisor, and
friend throughout my career. At my university, the University of South-
ern Mississippi, I was chosen as a Charles W. Moorman Distinguished
Professor, and I thank then Dean Denise Von Herrmann for her efforts
on my behalf, which included release time from teaching. I would also
like to thank Provost Steven R. Moser for further release time for work
on my book. Finally, I am indebted to Brendan George and others at
Springer Palgrave/Macmillan for their efforts on my behalf.
Hattiesburg, USA Michael H. DeArmey
Contents
1 Introduction 1
Synchronous Catastrophic Causation:TheWorld in Crisis 3
Part I Cosmopolitanism, World Organization and World
Community
2 On Cosmopolitanism 11
Modern Cosmopolitanism:The Kantian Project 14
Other Cosmopolitans in the Eighteenth Century 24
3 Cosmopolitanism and Dignity 29
Accounts of Dignity in CosmopolitanThinkers 31
Analysis of the Concept of Dignity 44
The Basic Dignity of Living Beings 50
The Enhanced Dignity of Pairing and Caring 55
Human Dignity: Autonomy, Epoche, and Regards 63
FinalThoughts on Enhanced Dignity 68
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