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Reinhold Niebuhr, Moral Man and Immoral Society (1932)

Thesis to be elaborated is that a shar! distinction must be dra"n bet"een the

moral and social beha#ior o$ indi#iduals and social %rou!s and that this distinction

&usti$ies and necessitates !olitical !olicies "hich a !urely indi#idualist ethic must

al"ays $ind embarrasin%' (i)

Niebuhr*s criti+ue o$ e"ey*s meliorist assum!tions that social conser#ati#ism "ere

due to i%norance rather than to the o"nin% classes !ro!er %ras! o$ their sel$-

interest . mi%ht be seen as an analo%ue o$ the $i%ht in /bama*s soul, $or /bama*s

soul'

0ottom line on$lict is ine#itable, and in this con$lict !o"er must be challen%ed by

!o"er' (#)

riticies na4#e social scienti$ic belie$ that con$licts can be o#ercome by 5social

reconditionin%, better listenin% s6ills, mutual accomodation and com!romise'*

0ut "ill a disinherited %rou!, such as the Ne%roes, $or instance, e#er "in $ull &ustice

in society in this $ashion7 8ill not e#en its most minimal demands seem eorbitant

to the dominant "hites7 /r ho" are the industrial "or6ers to recei#e their due #ia

com!romise: "hen the o"ners* !ossess so much !o"er7 (#ii)

;s $or the attainment o$ disinterestedness on the !art o$ the !arties to a con$lict,

"hich social scientists belie#e !ossible, RN su%%ests that the entire history o$

man6ind !ro#es them inca!able o$ ac+uirin%'

riticies rationalist social scientists and reli%ious idealists 8hat is lac6in% amon%

all these moralists, "hether reli%ious or rational, is an understandin% o$ the brutalcharacter o$ the beha#ior o$ all human collecti#es, and the !o"er o$ sel$-interest

and collecti#e e%oism in all inter-%rou! relations' ()

The romantic o#erestimate o$ human #irtue and moral ca!acity, current in our

modern middle class culture, does not al"ays result in an unrealistic a!!raisal o$

the !resent social $acts, but mani$ests itsel$ in the belie$ that a ne" !eda%o%y or a

re#i#al o$ reli%ion "ill ma6e con$lict unnecessary in the $uture' (i)

riticies those "ho cannot di$$erentiate bet"een the !art o$ moral #irtue in the li$e

o$ indi#iduals as a%ainst collecti#ities, but also seems to be callin% attention to

di$$erences bet"een the !roblem o$ charity "ithin a %rou! "hich shares a commonli$e and the !roblem o$ &ustice bet"een %rou!s "ho do not share a common li$e

Teachers o$ morals "ho do not see the di$$erence bet"een the !roblems o$ charity

"ithin the limits o$ an acce!ted social system and the !roblem o$ &ustice bet"een

economic %rou!s, holdin% une#en !o"er "ithin modern industrial society, ha#e

sim!ly not $aced the most ob#ious di$$erences bet"een the morals o$ %rou!s and

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those o$ indi#iduals' (ii) 8hile "ithin a %rou! some le#el o$ moral and rational

suasion mi%ht be e$$ecti#e, this is im!ossible bet"een %rou!s