REVIEW #26: ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH’S PHILOSOPHIZING FOR THE FAMILY

The Quiet Side of Passion
By Alexander McCall Smith
Little, Brown, 2018

Being an enormous fan of Alexander McCall Smith’s series, centring on Mma Precious Ramotswe and her No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency, I was excited to discover a new series from Mccall Smith. It was not surprising that his new leading lady was a vehicle for philosophical reflection, as that interest in moral questions and dilemmas that we face in our daily lives is evident in the stories of Precious Ramotswe as well. Here, it is taken to a whole new level, using Isabel Dalhousie, editor of the philosophy magazine, Review of Applied Ethics, to explore the many ethical choices we must face in our interactions within our households, extended families and communities. From the outset, McCall Smithplunges us straight into the thought life of his protagonist ‘lost in her musings’ on the way a single drop of water joins with others and gradually becomes a body of water to be reckoned with, something of quite a different nature. That turns out to be a metaphor for the writer’s view of the way something seemingly insignificant in our lives becomes a bigger philosophical contemplation as we work out how to respond to it ethically.

THIS IS A BOOK TO SHARPEN OUR PHILOSOPHICAL FACULTIES!

Meandering through the musings of Isabel is the rambling path the reader takes through this novel and it is a challenging one. As McCall Smith foreshadows, in his contrasting thumbnail sketches of Isabel and her niece, Cat, we will discover that ‘Isabel’s … was a life lived under a moral microscope.’ The reader will find themselves at one point mulling over the treatment of robots and, at another, considering whether Kant was right to say that it is never right to lie. The reader is confronted with the question of whether it is our place to interfere in other people’s lives and choices, when we think it is in their best interests. The author even tackles the topic of taking advantage of someone just because you are related, a topic that is frequently aired in letters to the editor these days. There are countless philosophical issues that are raised throughout the novel and they are questions that most people need to grapple with in their lives, even if their circumstances are somewhat different. Complications of family life and work relationships are explored realistically by McCall Smith through the daily dilemmas of his protagonist.

One of the aspects of the novel I most appreciated was the solid marriage being depicted and the respectful relationship between Isabel and her husband, Jamie. That was refreshing. Despite their busy family life and different personalities, they demonstrated a healthy regard for each other’s opinion and a model for making decisions together and supporting one another, whilst feeling free to express their thoughts frankly and to disagree without fearing sarcasm or ridicule. That is not to say that McCall sees the world through rose-coloured glasses. Isabel was divorced before she met Jamie and we also see some other dysfunctional relationships depicted and the kinds of philosophical questions that are raised by them. Relationships between employer and employee were explored in a fascinating way using three main settings: the domestic employment of their housekeeper, au pair and office worker; the running of Cat’s café and the abuse of power by a university professor.

For those with a philosophical bent, you will enjoy this book. It is easy to read, at times quite humorous, and always challenging, as it presents those curly questions we’re often too busy to think through to their logical conclusions. I recommend any of McCall Smith’s books, as he is clearly a man who is a great observer of people and our many foibles. He recognizes our weaknesses and failures, but he is also a lover of human beings and their capacity to work together for the good of all.