Emotions of Self-Assessment in Al-Ghazali and Aquinas

This book offers a comparative study of two central yet often neglected moral emotions-shame and pride-in the ethical writings of Abu -amid al-Ghazali and Thomas Aquinas. Moving beyond conventional accounts of medieval philosophy focused on metaphysics or law, it reveals how each thinker reinterprets Aristotelian virtue ethics through the lens of religious commitment. While Aristotle regarded pride as the crowning virtue and shame merely as a praiseworthy emotion, al-Ghazali and Aquinas recast this evaluation: they elevate shame as a virtue and denounce pride as a fundamental vice. Through close textual analysis and careful contextualization, the book traces how each thinker integrates these emotions into their broader theological and philosophical visions. By examining the metaphysical, psychological, and ritual dimensions of shame and pride, it illuminates the deep interrelation between self-assessment and moral formation in religious ethics. Richly interdisciplinary and grounded in rigorous historical scholarship, this study contributes to comparative philosophy, Islamic and Christian ethics, moral psychology, and the philosophy of emotion. It offers not only a fresh reading of key figures but also a new framework for understanding how religious beliefs and practices can shape the valence of emotions.

Marina F. Garner is a professor in the School of Religion at Loma Linda University, USA.

Introduction 1. Aristotle On Shame And Pride 2. Al-Ghazali On Shame And Pride 3. Thomas Aquinas On Shame And Pride 4. Shame and Pride: A Comparison Conclusion: The Virtue Of Shame And The Vice Of Pride. Index