The moral lives of children: The thought of Robert Coles

Robert Coles combines the insights of literature with the resources of medicine and psychiatry in order to understand and bring healing to people. Using the distinction between character and personality, Coles explores the active moral lives of children. To Coles, the moral purpose of the family is to develop character. Coles's contribution is not a new theoretical approach; rather, it is a literary documentary perspective that seeks to awaken and sensitize our moral imaginations.He is an instructor in moral philosophy at Notre Dame College in Baltimore, Maryland.