Abstract
Accustomed as many of us have become in the era of clinical bioethics to the idea of a “hospital philosopher”, on reflection the historical novelty of the role is astonishing, as are its ambiguities. As a result of considering my own experience I found myself writing this miniature intellectual autobiography. In the course of this essay I raise two specific questions: what can the Western philosophical tradition contribute to the clinical setting; and (a question that is rarely asked), what are the implications of this experience for that tradition?
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Russell Jacoby,The Last Intellectuals: American Culture in the Age of Academe (New York: Basic Books, 1987).
William James, in John J. McDermott, ed.,The Writings of William James (New York: Modern Library, 1968), p. 6.
William James,op. cit., p. 8.
John Dewey,Experience and Nature, New York: Dover, 1958, p. 41.
Stephen Toulmin, “How Medicine Saved the Life of Philosophy”. In: J. DeMarco and R. Fox, eds.,New Directions in Ethics (Boston: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1986).
Baruch Brody,Life and Death Decision Making, New York: Oxford, 1988.
Martin Benjamin,Splitting the Difference: Compromise and Integrity in Ethics and Politics, Lawrence, KA: University of Kansas, 1990.
Richard Rorty,Philosophy and the Mirror of Nature, Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1979.
Alasdair MacIntyre,After Virtue, Notre Dame, IN.: Notre University Press, 1981.
Jonathan D. Moreno, “Clinical Ethics as Moral Engagement”,Bioethics 5:1(44–56), January 1991.
William James, “On A Certain Blindness in Human Beings”, in McDermott,op. cit., in p. 645.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Moreno, J.D. Call me doctor? Confessions of a hospital philosopher. J Med Hum 12, 183–196 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01138953
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01138953