EthicsThe question of ethics in literature far exceeds a
simple concern with sex, violence, or language. The way authors relate to their world and
the way that readers relate to authors and each other are also matters of concern. Kevin
J. Vanhoozer has written that the church is uniquely suited to be a place where
individuals learn the ethics of understanding. He notes:
[T]he church is that community in which the interpretive virtues intellectual,
ethical, and spiritual are cultivated. For it is not only a communitys
interests but also its virtues that make it an appropriate environment for
obtaining literary knowledge. In short, literary knowledge is not simply a matter of
having the right descriptions but also of having the right dispositions (320).
Is it possible to love a work of art as we would love our neighbor? And what kind of
love (eros, philia, agape) motivates us? Can books be compared to friendships? If
so, what does it mean to disagree with a friend? Are there still values to be had despite
your disagreement with each other? In Vanhoozer's vision, the local church can be a place
where we acquire certain habits essential for the proper interpretation of others' ideas.
We learn how to deal faithfully, honestly, and rigorously with sermons, discipleship
studies, creeds and confessions, biblical commentaries, systematic theologies, and of
course, most importantly, the Bible itself. As a result, this kind of regular practice in
reading carries over into the way we deal with all human texts. We seek to avoid
distorting the message; we work to nuance the particulars of wording; we learn to balance
context, background, and genre. This teaches us to treat others works as one might
ones neighbor or as ones fellow citizen.
We have to consider both the noetic impact of sin on the author and the reader. Wayne
Booth points out the ethics of literature extend far beyond questions surrounding content.
While there isnt space to explore these in detail, it is worth considering some of
the questions he raises:
- What are the authors responsibilities to the flesh-and-blood reader?
- What are the authors responsibilities to the work of art?
- What are the authors responsibilities to the implied reader?
- What are the authors responsibilities to himself or herself, as a person who must
live in a world in which art plays only one of many roles?
- What are the authors responsibilities to himself or herself as a "career
author"?
- What are the authors responsibilities to those whose lives are used as
"material"?
- What are the authors responsibilities to others whose labor is exploited to make
the work of art possible?
- What are the authors responsibilities to society in general, to "the
world," to "the future"?
- What are the authors responsibilities to "truth"?
- What are the readers responsibilities to the writerthe flesh-and-blood
author or career author?
- What are the readers responsibilities to the work of artwhich is to say, to
the implied author?
- What are the readers responsibilities to his or her own self or soulas
flesh-and-blood reader?
- What are the readers responsibilities to other individual readers?
- What are the readers responsibilities to society, beyond the honest expression of
critical judgement? (chapter 5)
All of these matters should be of concern to Christians because they address the
complex nature of being a person in the creation.