The Good And The Practical Wisdom

In the face of the crisis of modernity and the negation of "capital man" by post-modernity,two voices have emerged in the field of philosophy: one is a completely negative attitude towards the metaphysics of modernity,such as the theories of Derrida and Rorty;the other is a revival of metaphysics under modernity,such as those of Rawls and Habermas.Compared with the more radical moral propositions of philosophers in the same period,Ricoeur appeared to be more moderate in these two philosophical voices.He always used phenomenology-hermeneutics as his methodology to construct an ethical system based on human metaphysics.The system is closely related to the philosophy of subject.Ethics itself is an interpretation of human beings,and the self-concept that has been interpreted by ethics has also been expanded and sublimated.Thus,Ricoeur established hermeneutics with language and reflection as methodology.The understanding and interpretation of self is the cycle of hermeneutics from internal reflection to external practice.In practical activities,the subject constantly reflects on the dialectical relationship between ipséité and mêmeté,subjectivity and mêmeté,self and the other,and recognizes and affirms its own ability,thereby establishing a self-image that unites self-esteem and self-goodness.Ricoeur believes that the self recognizes itself and constructs itself from others,while renews and develops it in encounters with others.So the human problem is ultimately the fundamental problem of ethics.We must abandon the intuitive self under Descartes to answer the philosophical question "Who am I" and abandon the delusion of the ultimate ethical claim,instead,we should discover a more specific ethical lifestyle in the philosophical perspective of reflective hermeneutics.In the contemporary moral context,living with others means that the subject must act in conformity with social moral standards.For Ricoeur,all human abilities are unified in the primitive affirmation of mankind.He interprets human fragmentation and creativity from four dimensions-language,action,narrative and responsibility so as to approach human’s inner life and construct himself in the concept of phenomenological life world.Therefore,in Ricoeur’s ethics system,the subject of behavior is the ultimate responsible person for ethical activities,moral motivation and moral responsibility.The ethical propositions of Ricoeur’s ethics emphasize not only the pursuit of the ethical goal of a good life,but also the moral norm,because ethics itself comes from the existence of the subject and its interpretation.The subject philosophy itself belongs to the category of ethics,and ethics should also be regarded as the subject’s own hermeneutics.The subject is the subject of interpretation,and ethics is the interpretation of the subject.Ricoeur associates goodness and obligation with self,and thus proposes two self-planning structures representing teleology and deontology,self-goodness and self-esteem.In Ricoeur’s view,no moral proposition can be developed in a single form of self-planning.Teleology must be tested by deontology,and deontology must be premised on teleological ethical intentions.But when there is a conflict of interpretation that cannot be resolved by self-goodness and self-esteem,Ricoeur believes that only practical wisdom can properly handle the conflict between good and good.Therefore,Ricoeur’s metaphysical ethics is based on teleology and tested by deontology so as to use practical wisdom to supplement the ethics system in practical activities.In summary,Ricoeur’s ethics is an ethics system oriented by human behavior norms,a process from individual ethical intention for goodness to conviction among subjects in practical life.Practical wisdom comes from the interpretation of oneself,it originates from philosophical anthropology,and it eventually leads to people’s knowledge of themselves.Ricoeur’s ethics system has experienced a roundabout of reflection and practice,which is different from Aristotle’s practical philosophy.Ricoeur put forward more specific requirements for practical wisdom,believing that the latter can regulate moral standards in the conflict of good and good in modern society,and serve pertinently as the last guarantee for ethical judgments.