Erico Joseph T. Canete
Bohol Tribune
Peripatetic’s Discourse
May 28, 2023
“LITERATURE AND PHILOSOPHY: ON THE QUESTION OF ETHICS”
(Erico Joseph T. Canete)
THE PhD LITERATURE STUDENTS OF HOLY NAME UNIVERSITY (HNU) invited me last
May 13, 2023 at Bates Lecture Room, HNU, to speak about this topic. I find it apt to share a synopsis
of my research and reflection on the subject matter.
The question of Ethics transcends the boundary of our intelligibility of what is right or wrong. The
question of Ethics is a question of man’s quest for happiness. This is well expressed in the dictum,
“Every man acts for an end which along the way underlies the good. The reality under the shadow
good is happiness.” Hence, man’s ultimate end of his action is happiness.
This may beget a long discussion. Yet the medieval thought of St. Thomas Aquinas explains that
happiness can only be achieved if both act and end are real good in themselves. Hence, the classic
moral dictum remains that first, to do evil so that good may come is never permitted, secondly, it is
not morally justified to do a good act with an evil end. Pleasure, convenience, expediency may be
experienced here. Yet, these are not happiness. Happiness is a stable and a perpetual possession of
the good that is totally perfect. Here, there’s no perfection having either an evil means or an evil end.
Now, what have these two – literature and philosophy – got to do with the moral question of
happiness?
On Literature:
It seems that these two disciplines are either privative, contrary or contradictory because of the
following reasons;
First, Stephen Mulhall in his article “Ethics and Literature” wrote that philosophy had a long-
standing hostility towards literature when Plato expelled the poets from his Republic.
Second, the same author claimed that moral philosophers typically assume that literary texts have no
significance for ethical reflection.
Third, during the Period of Hellenism (Greek character and culture manifesting Greek ideals), the
Greeks abandoned poetry and shifted to philosophy.
Truth is, scrutinizing it deeply, literature plays an important role in moral development.
Nargis Khan wrote, “Throughout history of teaching moral values, literatures has been very effective
in moral education.” Besides, modern educators are utilizing literature in promoting moral literacy
obviously implied in the Shakespearean characters. The characters represent or symbolize moral
vices ought to be despised, like Othello – Jealousy, King Lear – Unfairness, Hamlet – Bitterness,
Cynicism, and Macbeth – Hypocritical and Manipulative, among others.
On Philosophy:
Philosophy likewise plays a very important role in moral development.
First, Philosophy is a Discipline of Questioning. No wonder why Friedrich Nietzsche said, “He who
has a WHY to live for can bear almost anyhow.” Question could be about God, society and above all
about the self in one’s quest for real happiness. Nowadays, people are becoming more and more
ignorant about one’s nature hence failing to address what is really good for man.
Indeed, knowing our nature enables us to know what is good or best for our nature.
Second, Philosophy is a Discipline of Liberation or Freedom. Freedom is man’s capacity to direct his
acts to the goals of his choice to achieve his end. Doing anything we like is not freedom but abuse of
freedom. Law in general and Natural Moral Law in particular serve as fuel to liberate us from moral
decadence.
Both Man’s Nature and the Natural Moral Law serve as bases of what is morally good or morally
evil.
Finally, Philosophy is a Discipline of Doing, Acting and Behaving. The Chinese equivalent for
philosophy is ‘Chih Shueh’. Shueh means learning and consequently presupposes thinking and
reasoning. The Chih is symbolized by three characters; mouth, hand and ruler. No wonder why
Confucius said, “A true philosopher is he who acts before he speaks and speaks according to his
acts.” The doing, acting and behaving refer to the virtues which we need to internalize and the vices
which we need to despise.
With this, both Literature and Philosophy play an important role in Moral Development in man’s
response on the question of ethics, the question of happiness.