Reassessing the Role of Narrative Within Legal Approaches to Contemporary Jewish Ethics

The author revisits his work on the methods employed by contemporary Jewish ethicists, revising his earlier claim about both a sharp distinction between legal and narrative approaches and his critique of those who adopt a legal approach, but fail to employ rigorous legal reasoning to support their normative claims. An analysis of essays on euthanasia by three such ethicists—Byron Sherwin, David Novak, and Elliot Dorff—illustrates that their work is influenced by narrative in ways that have not been sufficiently appreciated. Aggadah influences even halakhically-oriented contemporary Jewish ethicists by providing a theoretical foundation to their work, offering a sense of coherence that guides the selection and interpretation of texts, and envisioning a world that ethicists hope to create through the moral judgments they offer.