Agnes Callard | Oxford University Press | 2019

Reviewed by Rabbi Dr. Stu Halpern

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In Aspiration: The Agency of Becoming, University of Chicago philosopher Agnes Callard offers a learned investigation into the nature of value acquisition. Defining “aspiring” as the wish to acquire new value, Callard offers her own perspective on the scholarly theories relating to the moral psychology, decision-making and philosophical aspects of self-creation. As she writes, “Aspirants aim to direct their own ethical attention in such a way as to more fully appreciate one value or set of values and to become immune or insensitive” to those oppositional values. There is always, after all, something else we could decide to value. Though not explicitly Jewish beyond mentioning the early Zionists as a group whose decision-making has been the subject of academic research, the volume offers an interesting parallel to rabbinic thought on self-improvement and obedience to the commandments. “Mitokh she-lo lishma bah lishma” (performance without the proper intention leads to performance with the proper intention) bears a striking resemblance to Callard’s noting of the phenomenon, building off of the research of J. David Velleman, that those seeking value-laden change perform “versions of the actions they will be in a position to perform once they have fully acquired the value.” On the road to full realization of the values one seeks, one, essentially, fakes it until one makes it. “We cannot hold off from making use of our values until such time as they are securely in our possession,” she writes. “For what happens in the meanwhile is also life.” When she writes that “Aspirants have a more ambitious goal than self-maintenance. They work to build themselves into something genuinely new,” one cannot help but think of a ba’al teshuva. Her discussion of the Greek concept of akrasia, exhibiting weak will or acting against one’s better judgment, would be well-served compared to the concept of the yetzer hara (evil inclination). Aspiration, the author argues, is cultivated in community. Teachers, parents, mentors, therapists, coaches, friends, and fellow aspirants all help the agent develop the value she or he seeks. The road is hardly smooth or easy and often involves navigating between competing value perceptions. “Aspirants step forward—little by little—into a state of lessened conflict.” They struggle through vagueness and grasp what they hope to achieve. Callard acknowledges that other factors beyond her study play a role in decision-making. Financial, emotional, and temporal resources also contribute. But undoubtedly, further research will build off of Callard’s valuable contribution to understanding how and why people aspire. To read more Straus Center book reviews, click here. You can learn more about the Straus Center and sign up for our newsletter here. Be sure to also like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and Instagram and connect with us on LinkedIn.