Love and Good Reasons

“Oehlschlaeger marshals an impressive range of scholarship in articulating his position. . . .” - Alan Blackstock , Rocky Mountain Review

"Love and Good Reasons should be required reading for Christian literary scholars, as it emphasizes the importance of ethical discussions. . . . Oehlschlaeger's book is an outstanding contribution to the field of Christianity and literature." - Gregor Thuswaldner, Christian Scholar's Review

"[O]ne of the most personally engaging and intellectually substantive books to emerge in recent years is Fritz Oehlschlaeger's Love and Good Reasons. . . . [A] welcome addition to the burgeoning area that is looking at the critical conversations between ethics and literature." - Jennifer Scott , Literature and Theology

"For the philosopher (or literary critic with a philosophical bent of mind) the book presents a fresh approach to the study of ethics by forging a reflexive relationship between moral philosophy and literary analysis. . . . Literary critics may find in the book not only insightful, well developed interpretations of some nineteenth-century texts but also innovative gestures toward the platform that Ryken felt it was propitious for Christian critics to establish back in 1987. . . . [T]he book fulfills its mission of melding literary analysis and moral reflection while remaining deeply embedded within the conceptual framework of the Christian interpretive community. Love and Good Reasons thus conveys a sense of solidarity for those within that community, helping its adherents-literary critic, philosopher, and those in between-to get their descriptions right from a Christian point of view."

- Samuel T. Joeckel , Christianity and Literature

"Oehschlaeger is at his best as he capably draws out the Christian dimension of works by H. James, Crane, and Austen." - Julie Meadows , Religious Studies Review

"The strengths of Love and Good Reasons are many: It is well-written (and thanks to Duke, well-edited). Its analyses of literary texts are careful, prudent (in Aquinas' sense) and illuminating. . . . Anyone interested in the fields of literature and ethics, literature and theology, theology of culture, or modern literary criticism would do well to spend time with this well-written, insightful, and provocative volume." - Scott Huelin , Cresset

"Fritz Oehlschlaeger shows that there really is something called a Christian knowledge that can make a difference for how one reads texts. Hopefully Love and Good Reasons will be read widely. I know of few accounts of reading that more enrich the discussion." - Stanley Hauerwas, author of The Hauerwas Reader

"Fritz Oehlschlaeger’s postliberal approach offers a potential way beyond the impasse of the bifurcation of conservative and liberal in the cultural wars of contemporary literary criticism without asking participants to relinquish their deeply held ethical convictions." - Brian D. Ingraffia, author of Postmodern Theory and Biblical Theology: Vanquishing God’s Shadow