Mathew A. Foust

Loyalty is central to the philosophies of Confucius and Josiah Royce. In the case of Confucius, we see this significance in the emphasis placed in the Analects on zhong (“loyalty,” “other-regard,” or “dutifulness”) and xiao (“filial piety” or “filiality”). In the case of Royce, we see this significance in the emphasis placed on loyalty in The Philosophy of Loyalty. Moreover, in Confucius's and Royce's interactions with disciples and students, we witness appreciable loyalty, to their students and to their respective philosophies. This article compares the teachings—in thought and action—of Confucius and Royce, highlighting the significance of loyalty therein

This article explores the connection of class dynamics to the moral agency of sex workers and their clients. It revisits the analyses of several contemporary feminist theorists, placing these analyses in dialogue with a recent ethnographic study of the sex work industry in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. In light of this comparative analysis, it is argued that accurate understanding and assessment of the moral agency of sex workers and their clients requires attunement to the complex and evolving class dynamics within which each is situated. Thus, while traditional frameworks for approaching this subject are useful, they are ultimately inadequate.

By focusing on the thought of Classical American philosophers, this article addresses the existential problem of the fear of death. Drawing on the experiences and philosophies of Ralph Waldo Emerson, William James, and Jane Addams as a theoretical framework, a prescriptive claim regarding how to confront human mortality is advanced. It is suggested that embracing the notion of experience as a prelude to the disaster of death can be – despite appearances to the contrary – a useful approach to navigating exigencies connected with mortality and, in particular, fear of death. The essay contributes to a small but growing body of literature on the topic of death in American philosophy scholarship, while addressing a perennial problem receiving treatment in contemporary popular discourse.

In this article, I address the matter of what James's Pragmatism has to offer someone today, a full century after its publication. Toward this end, I underscore the theme of meliorism present in the text, focusing on notions of "promise" employed by James at several points therein. James's emphasis on "promise" is predicated upon a deeply intimate relationship between humans and the world, such that our relationship to the universe is much like that which exists between promising parties. I argue that this aspect of James's discussion undergirds his conception of pragmatism as a method of inquiry and theory of truth capable of improving the human condition. I conclude that the "promise" of Pragmatism is the basis for at least one worthy response to the question of what James's century-old text has to offer someone today.

In recent years, scholars have increasingly paid attention to the philosophy of Josiah Royce. Long lost in the shadow of fellow classical American figures, Royce’s philosophy has enjoyed a renascence, with a spate of publications in a variety of venues studying and applying his thought.1 Like his philosophical brethren, Royce wrote on a wide variety of subjects, his discussions underpinned by a smattering of influences. Much has been remarked of the various Western sources that made an impression on Royce’s thought, but comparatively little has been said of his indebtedness to Eastern sources. Kurt Leidecker’s Josiah Royce and Indian Thought2 and Frank M...

In The Problem of Christianity, Josiah Royce describes the case of the traitor as embodying "the exemplary type of moral tragedy" which he will use toward the adumbration of a theory of atonement. Royce describes the redemptive process of the traitor as a "tragic reconciliation, " for his sinful deed can never be undone. Still, the traitor can, with regard to his treason, "bring out of the realm of death a new life that only this very death rendered possible." In this article, it is argued that Royce's use of "death" here is no mere metaphorical flourish. Drawing from The World and the Individual and The Problem of Christianity, it is proposed that for Royce, sin and death are different instances of the same evil. Moreover, it is suggested that Royce's novel and perceptive understanding of the limits of human nature leads him to valuable ways of coping with our finitude, both as individuals and communities.