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14 - Postmodern/Poststructuralist Ethics and Education

from Part I - Traditions in Ethics and Education

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 March 2024

By
Marianna Papastephanou
Edited by
Sheron Fraser-Burgess ,
Jessica Heybach  and
Dini Metro-Roland
Sheron Fraser-Burgess
Affiliation:
Ball State University, Indiana
Jessica Heybach
Affiliation:
Florida International University
Dini Metro-Roland
Affiliation:
Western Michigan University
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Summary

This chapter tackles postmodern and poststructuralist outlooks on ethics and how these have impacted educational theory. To fulfill this task, the chapter indicates how such outlooks differ from other perspectives on the relationship of philosophy, education, and ethics. After some basic definitions, clarifications, disclaimers, and caveats that familiarize the reader with the related discourses and their challenges, the chapter shows how postmodern/poststructuralist basic assumptions beneath the corresponding ethics differ from other perspectives on (educational) normativity. Then the chapter discusses the distinction between the ethical and the moral that makes the impact of postmodern/poststructuralist ethics on educational theory most visible. It concludes with critical remarks on the current status of this impact and on the challenge of rethinking educational ethics “after post-isms”.

Keywords

deconstructionmoralitymeta-narrativesidentitypowervirtue
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Handbook of Ethics and Education , pp. 274 - 300
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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