Overview

This book explores what it means to live an emotionally engaged and morally responsive life in a world increasingly governed by productivity, fragmentation, and emotional detachment. Drawing from a rich interdisciplinary background—including sociology, philosophy, moral psychology, feminist theory, and lived experience—the book offers a lyrical yet analytically rigorous meditation on empathy, recognition, and the fragile practice of democracy. Structured as a blend of essay, accessible theory, and poetic reflection, the book argues that empathy is not mere sentimentality, but a vital cornerstone of ethical action and collective life. It seeks to revive the moral imagination—our shared capacity to see, feel, and respond to the vulnerability of others—by grounding political and social thought in emotional and relational awareness. The book engages both classical and contemporary thinkers such as Arendt, Habermas, Weil, Honneth, Bauman, and Irigaray, while developing a distinct voice that bridges academic clarity with literary sensitivity. It proposes that love, care, and empathy must be reclaimed as active, public virtues—not confined to the private sphere, but central to justice, democratic participation, and meaningful life. At a time of polarisation, performance culture, and relational fatigue, Moral Imagination, and the Search for Meaning challenges us to reimagine what it means to be human—not through control or achievement, but through attention, recognition, and vulnerability. This volume speaks to academics and students in sociology, psychology, philosophy, and gender studies, while remaining accessible to therapists, educators, and general readers interested in emotional intelligence and ethics. It will particularly appeal to readers of bell hooks, Rebecca Solnit, and Martha Nussbaum who seek a lyrical voice that bridges academic theory with lived experience.

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9781041257677

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Author Information

Emma Engdahl is Professor of Sociology at Gothenburg University, Sweden.

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