Virtues

Paradoxically, the prosperity and well-being of the past have not contributed towards reinforcing human life in common but, rather, have undermined the foundations of society, exacerbating the disrepute of politics, the tendency towards individualism and disdain for any project of attempting to find a sustainable balance between present and future. In these circumstances, it would seem more necessary than ever to reflect again on the classical democratic virtues and, accordingly, on shared happiness and common wealth. Now, when it appears that all that is solid melts into air, there remains the question of what kind of world we should like to inhabit and what virtues should be the organising principles of life in common. Might we even think that the economic crisis is, in good measure, the result of a major failure in ethics? Is it possible to reach agreement over a “minima moralia” that would be the heritage of everyone? How might we actively exercise our citizenship? What values and what qualities should define civic virtues?