"Are Americans less civil than they used to be? If so, is that a bad thing? Perhaps we are just learning to be more honest. And what does civility mean? Is it just good manners? Or is civility a question of morality?".

"In this lively conversation on an increasingly significant theme, major philosophers and religious scholars argue the issue on three levels. The first is manners: Henry Rosemont argues the Confucian case that manners are the substance of social relations, while Edwin Delattre and Adam Seligman believe that the issue is deeper than that; and the sociologist Alan Wolfe is persuaded that we are not less civil or ill-mannered than our predecessors.

Secondly, as a social issue, James Schmidt, Lawrence Cahoone, and Adam Seligman turn to questions of structure and meaning in a civil society; Ninian Smart, David Wong, and Virginia Straus put the issue in a cross-cultural context; Stephen Toulmin describes the corruption of civility by dogmatism; and Carrier Doehring warns that civility may be a barrier to honest communication in family life.

Finally, the metaphysical and religious dimensions of civility are explored by Robert Pippin, Adam McClellan, and Daniel Dahlstrom."--BOOK JACKET.