The Capable Man: Anthropological Keys on P. Ricoeur’s Ethical and Political Thinking

Abstract

The article’s goal is to draw some of the fundamentals of Paul Ricoeur’s anthropology of the capable man (homme capable) work since 1990. It is divided on three distinctive parts. On the first part, we recognized the importance on providing the context of Ricoeur’s reflextions in the midst of the great technological changes that, without precedents, have promoted an exponential increase on man’s intervention capabilities. Secondly, through the emblematic figures of Aristotle and Kant, we attempted to bring back some of the anthropological moral tradition traces linked to Ricoeur’s notion of puissance d’agir (agency). Finally, we briefly developed the central elements of Ricoeur’s anthropology through the notions of: character, promise and identity. 

Key words: Ricoeur, agency, capable man, identity, character, promise.