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Morality in the 21st Century

Is Society a Myth?

Duration: 45 minutes

First broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FMLatest broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FM

Available for over a year

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks speaks to some of the world's leading thinkers about morality, together with voices from the next generation: groups of British 6th form students.

For most of history, societies have been held together by a shared moral code. But half a century ago, the West embarked on a great experiment: a move from "We" to "I," from "We're all in this together" to "I'm free to be myself." Recently, there's been a reaction against individualism in favour of the group. But what's returned isn't a sense of society as a whole, but rather, subgroups, defined by faith, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation. What's lost, Rabbi Sacks argues, is our sense of collective belonging and the common good.

Contributors:
Jonathan Haidt, Professor of Ethical Leadership at New York University;
Robert Putnam, Political scientist and Professor of Public Policy at Harvard University;
Students from Loreto College in Manchester.

Producer: Dan Tierney
Series Editor: Christine Morgan. Show less

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