At this meeting, we will start our new book, The Sovereignty of Good (1970), by Iris Murdoch. Both the paperback and the ebook of this publication list for $27; however, they can be found for much less, especially the latter. The book consists of three chapters, each one originally delivered as a lecture and then later published separately. As such, there is some independence between the chapters. We will take advantage of this arrangement by also reading and discussing each chapter separately over a period of three meetings. We'll do the first chapter, “The Idea of Perfection,” on the 13th.
Iris Murdoch was significantly influenced by the subject of our most recent discussions, Simone Weil, but she put her own twist on Weil's ethical position. Murdoch's ethics have also been influential on modern philosophers. There's some question on how much Murdoch may influence members of the MISF Philosophy Study Group, though. Some members are a little too hard-headed, stubborn, or too old to change much. Believe me, I've been trying for years to get through to them, but they really don't seem to understand the logic of my arguments.
