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The Good Life: The Truths That Last in Times of Need

By (author) Peter Gomes

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In this text, Peter Gomes calls for the rejection of the prevailing notions of success and happiness and proposes that we anchor our lives instead in the deeper truths of Western moral traditions. Gomes begins with the contemporary crisis of moral education in higher learning and subverts the prevalent assertion that the youth of our colleges and universities are spoiled and lacking in the capacity and desire to become good people and good citizens. Impressed by the sharp moral curiosity of young people, as well as their strong desire to know, to be and to do good, Gomes sets out to reclaim the tradition of virtue he believes can make this a great generation. In this search for a new nobility, he distinguishes between the plausible lies that our culture tells us about the good life and the truths that alone can bring happiness, working through each of the unquestioned values of modern life. Along the way he redefines the central elements of the pursuit of the good life (failure, success, discipline and freedom), then offers a presentation of the four cardinal virtues (prudence, justice, temperance and fortitude) and finally concludes with an argument for the three theological virtu