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Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:25:23Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2009-03-18Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T20:53:10Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 ianuskiewtz_apd_me_arafcl.pdf: 2818002 bytes, checksum: fbf68e8a5d1520071e4ff57d4903c3da (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / Iris Murdoch é uma figura dominante na literatura britânica do pós-guerra e também, uma filósofa notável que constantemente denunciou o interesse excessivo da filosofia moral moderna pelos temas da vontade, da deliberação e ação. Para ela, o estudo da ética deveria ter como prioridade o desenvolvimento da percepção estética, a atenção à realidade e, principalmente, a intensa apreensão de outros indivíduos. Murdoch considera a apreciação da beleza na arte e na natureza, não apenas como um exercício espiritual mas também, como uma maneira para alcançar a bondade, evitar o egocentrismo e ganhar o progresso moral. Seus romances são centrados na arte e no amor, pois Murdoch afirma que a boa arte e o amor intenso são intimações da verdade que levam o indivíduo ao aprimoramento moral. The Bell, seu romance publicado em 1958, descreve uma comunidade religiosa anglicana e os vários incidentes decorrentes da substituição do antigo sino da catedral. Esses eventos incitam reflexões em relação a várias questões morais, como por exemplo: a influência da religião e das instituições de poder na conduta moral; o modo de suplantar interesses próprios e o egoísmo em benefício do próximo, o papel das mulheres na sociedade e a maneira pela qual a sociedade é injusta e intolerante com aqueles cuja sexualidade difere da maioria. Assim, o objetivo desta pesquisa é analisar como certas questões da filosofia moral de Murdoch estão apresentadas nesse romance, The Bell, por meio da expressão literária, mostrando que a arte literária e visual estão amplamente relacionadas à sua teoria moral. / Iris Murdoch is a dominant figure of postwar British literature and also a remarkable philosopher who constantly denounced the excessive interest of modern moral philosophy in the themes of will, deliberation and action. According to her, the study of ethics should prioritize the development of aesthetic perception, the attention towards reality and mainly, the intense apprehension of other individuals. Murdoch considers the appreciation of beauty in arts and nature not only as a spiritual exercise but also, as a way to reach goodness, to avoid egocentrism and to gain moral improvement. Her novels are centered on art and love because she considers that great art or intense love can give intimations of truth, and move one towards moral perfection. The Bell, her novel published in 1958, describes an Anglican religious community and the incidents that happened due to the replacement of the old bell of the cathedral. These events incite moral reflections such as: the influence of religion and of the institutions of power in moral conduct; the way to supplant egoism for the benefit of others, the role of women in society and the ways society is unfair and intolerant of those whose sexuality differs from the majority. Thus, the aim of this study is to analyse in which ways some issues of Iris Murdoch moral philosophy are presented in The Bell, by means of the literary expression showing that the literary and the visual arts are closely related to ethics in her moral theory.

In this thesis I look at possible implications of the philosophical use of sight metaphors as rendered visible in the philosophy of Iris Murdoch. Through Murdoch’s reading of Plato, and together with the perspectives added by Ludwig Wittgenstein, Paul de Man, Carolyn Korsmeyer, and Mats Persson, I argue that some contemporary philosophy as shaped by science and logic might be partially blind to essential aspects of human life and human awareness. I show that this partial blindness becomes visible in an inability to acknowledge and understand the philosophical importance of that which cannot be seen from a distance, and I argue that this may be due to a modern understanding of clarity. I claim that this understanding of clarity essentially differs from that of Plato and that it becomes particularly evident in Plato’s reliance on metaphors and allegories, not as unclear and obfuscating aspects to be untangled, but as depicting essential dimensions of the inexhaustible complexity of life. I finally argue that it is vital to recover and to philosophically consider these obscurer aspects if philosophy is to stay relevant to actual human beings living in the muddle that is everyday life.

This dissertation is a study in philosophy of education and focuses on the moral dimensions of an individual’s formation, and on how reading fictional literature can contribute to the process of formation. The point of departure is the notion that education contains – or should contain – moral dimensions and thus contributes to the formation of individual life and a life shared with others. The study revolves around the philosophical works of Iris Murdoch (1919-1999) and what she calls “moral transformation” - a task and a striving towards realism and unselfishness. The study is concluded by a discussion of how Murdoch’s thinking contributes to the understanding of formation within philosophy of education. It is argued that Murdoch’s ideas about moral transformation can be summarised in four theses and that these show that transformation is a process of profound individual change. The theses are in short: 1) imagination supports moral transformation by allowing the individual to understand the world in a more realistic way, 2) attention supports transformation by directing the individual towards the good, 3) unselfing is a moral state of consciousness and a transformative process that leads towards unselfishness. The ego is subdued and the individual opens up to the influence of his or her surroundings, 4) reading fictional literature supports the moral transformation of the individual if the text has a quality of imagination. The study shows that Murdoch’s work can make an important contribution to the understanding of formation within the philosophy of education: With the idea of moral transformation as a point of departure the study develops questions of the individual’s formation by highlighting individuality and imagination. Moral transformation means gaining a deeper presence in one’s relationships, and it is a continuous process of discovering the world that the individual needs to endeavour to maintain. It is a striving towards unselfing.

The novels of Iris Murdoch, Doris Lessing and V.S. Naipaul are studied in the light of statements they have made in essays and interviews regarding the ethical implications of writing fiction. The purpose of this research is to examine the nature of the problems they have identified in the creative process of writing and the strategies each has used to address the ethical problems they perceive, and to assess the relative success of their chosen methods. It can be seen that, although for each of them the quest for truth is their highest concern, they have each developed very different ways of dealing with the problems they believe are connected with writing truthfully, and in addition, they have defined the particulars of these problems in different ways. It is concluded that the more carefully examined and individually defined these problems are, the greater the internal consistency and credibility which is achieved by the strategies they have developed to address the problems, and the more their work has developed in the course of their careers.

Texte remanié de: Thesis Ph. D.--University of Leeds. / Bibliogr. p. 249-257.

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Thesis (Ph.D.) -- Flinders University of South Australia, 2001. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (p. 307-379). Also available online.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Murdoch University, 2005. / Thesis submitted to the Division of Arts. Bibliography: leaves 324-354.

Thesis (PhD) -- Australian Catholic University, 2005. / Submitted in total fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Bibliography: p. 241-250. Also available in an electronic format via the internet.