After Virtue is a philosophical novel written by Alasdair Macintyre and was first published in 1981 by the University of Notre Dame Press. The third edition of the novel was published in 2007 and contains a new prologue.
The novel focuses on the state of modern society ad the ethics that establish our current society and social structure. Macintyre goes into a lot of depth about the influence of the Enlightenment period on moral structures and criticizes key philosophers such as Marx and Humes, stating that they "fail because of certain shared characteristics deriving from their highly specific historical background."
There have been mixed views towards the release of the novel, with George Scialabba, a freelance book critic commending McIntyre for his strong critique but noting that he "falters" in his description of how to lead the ideal virtuous lifestyle. Christos Evangeliou of Review of Metaphysics stated that there "may be a little disappointed in [the readers] expectations".
In spite of the mixed reviews, After Virtue has been widely praised as one of the most important books of late 20th-century moral philosophy, and is considered to be one of the most influential works in the field. The novel has been used in universities around the world as part of their curriculum and has been cited in numerous publications. It has also sparked debate among philosophers, with some agreeing with Macintyre's views, and others dismissing them as too idealistic. Despite this, After Virtue remains an integral part of moral philosophy and is a must-read for those interested in the field.
