| One of the features that becomes apparent when analyzing a treatise in moral philosophy is the pervasive use of examples---such as stories, or cases---in order to better explain a theoretical claim. It is also observable that the more one tries to explain a theory, the more one needs to weave examples in connection to it. Such an intersection has frequently been deemed as accessory to moral philosophy; yet the clear dependence on narratives requires further explanation.;The intent of this study is to present an argument that considers narratives the cornerstone in moral philosophy which, in turn, challenges the way in which moral philosophy is usually discussed. According to thinkers such as Hayden White, Paul Ricoeur, and Frank Kermode, narratival accounts provide the necessary framework for human beings to express and give meaning to their experiences. It is as a result of these narratives that such experiences can be understood by the individual and shared with the community. According to Hilde Lindemann Nelson, it is through a narrative that one is able to understand one's own identity and that of others. In addition, the limited and always mediated knowledge one has about another person's experiences only finds a way to be communicated through the work of either analogies or metaphors, as St. Augustine and John Lakoff and Mark Johnson have argued.;Considering these and other analyses, it becomes clear that the pervasive role of narratives is not only accessory, but that it is in these narratives that human beings are able to engage the world and create meaning. But such meaning is not unidirectional, as those who participate in a specific situation always seem to pick up and arrange what happened in their own manner. Thus the occurrence of an event can be understood through different perspectives, and will give birth to a new perspective, as described by Alexander Nehamas who is following in the teachings of Friedrich Nietzsche.;If narratives are the tools human beings possess in order to appropriate and understand their experiences, it is time that moral philosophy reflects on them as constitutive of the human experience. This will also prompt moral philosophers to critically analyze the adequacy of the scientific approach that has permeated the discipline for so long, and give way to a more dynamic and creative assessment of how one should live, as outlined by Plato. |
