Foucault and the Art of Ethics

Description

This comprehensive assessment of Michel Foucault's later work responds to the contemporary crisis in ethics, focusing on the way Foucault attempts to bring together the two seemingly-incompatible spheres of ethics and aesthetics through his reassessment of the Greek tradition. The book argues that Foucault's exploration of the history of sexuality and his re-interpretation of the critical philosophical tradition combine to frame a new approach both to the way we understand the tasks of philosophy and to the way we live our lives. It is aimed at those working at the intersection of contemporary debates in philosophy, ethics, politics and cultural studies.

Timothy O'Leary is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of Hong Kong. He has spent several years working in the Foucault Archives and has published on Foucault, aesthetics and literature. He is the author of Foucault and the Art of Ethics (Continuum 2006).

"Timothy O'Leary's Foucault and the Art of Ethics is an excellent, critical exploration of the contribution which Foucault's philosophy makes to the contemporary discussion of morality. O'Leary shows that Foucault is a significant thinker because, unlike so many other contemporary philosophers, he asked the most important of questions: How are we to live?"--James Bernauer, Boston College "Foucault and the Art of Ethics provides a well-detailed and exhaustive study of Foucault's ethical thinking while providing worthy arguments to feed the debates...a definitive contribution to the understanding of Foucault's etho-poetics in relation to ancient ethical practices and to contemporary philosophers." --Grasp -- Grasp "Foucault and the Art of Ethics provides a well-detailed and exhaustive study of Foucault's ethical thinking, providing worthy arguments to feed the debates...O'Leary's book makes a definitive contribution to the understanding of Foucault's etho-poetics in relation to ancient ethical practices and to contemporary philosophers." -- Foucault Studies 'Foucault and the Art of Ethics is an excellent, critical exploration of the contribution which Foucault's philosophy makes to the contemporary discussion of morality. It shows that Foucault is a significant thinker because, unlike so many other contemporary philosophers, he asked the most important questions: How are we to live?' James Bernauer, Boston College * Blurb from reviewer *