25 Years with The Moral of the Story

The Moral of the Story is a college textbook focusing on moral philosophy, discussing classical and contemporary ethical theories, and illustrating them through summaries and excerpts of stories selected from the world of fiction. This article is the author’s reflection on conceiving and writing the textbook, as well as providing updated, revised editions over a quarter of a century. Through eight editions, The Moral of the Story has reflected the changing times from the early 1990s through the first two decades of the twenty-first century, primarily in the United States, with shifting moral debates, new modes of storytelling, and new generations of students. Each edition has become a commentary on some of those changes, with new narratives illustrating classical moral problems. The author, seeking common ground in moral philosophy through the theory of soft universalism, raises the question whether or not there is still common ground in fictional narratives among students of today to facilitate the comprehension of ethical theories. The author suggests that while mores may change, and forms of storytelling expand beyond the written word, storytelling is part of our human nature, and stories will still provide a valuable access to discussing problems and solutions within our complex world of ethics and ethical theories, in particular in a college environment.