A Commonplace Book

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The lecture was about the nature of mercy. As she often does, she argued that certain moral truths are best expressed in the form of a story. We become merciful, she wrote, when we behave as the "concerned reader of a novel," understanding each person's life as a "complex narrative of human effort in a world full of obstacles."
-- Rachel Aviv, "The Philosopher Of Feelings" a Profile of Martha Nussbaum. New Yorker (July 25, 2016 Issue).
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