从早期小说创作开始，伊恩?麦克尤恩就通过作品表达了他对后现代伦理的思考，探究个人与自我、他者和环境之间的伦理关系。他认为自我中心主义是发展道德自我的主要障碍，主张构建为他者的自我。自我与他者并非主体与客体的二元对立，而是差异的主体之间的关系。自我应该从承认差异出发，尊敬他者，对其呼吁做出回应，即承担对他者的绝对责任，而且不求回报，这就是正义，进而建构最低限度的后现代伦理共同体。面对环境危机，他谴责人性的贪婪，指出在人类中心主义的主导思想下，自然生态环境遭到人类的破坏。麦克尤恩对后现代伦理和道德问题的关注，反映了他强烈的社会责任感。

除去绪论和结语，论文的主体部分一共包括三章。

第一章主要探讨麦克尤恩小说中人和自我的伦理关系。对自我的认识是对经典的哲学问题“我是谁”的思考，对自我的认识允许我们界定什么对我们是重要的，引导我们成长的方向。因此，个人对自我的认识决定自我的身份、立场和价值观，决定自我的行为。对自我的认识在很大程度上影响个人的道德倾向。本章以《只爱陌生人》、《追日》和《爱无可忍》为分析文本，利用弗洛姆的心理学理论和鲍曼的后现代伦理理论，主要围绕主体对于自我身份的认知、对于自我需求的认知以及自我的成长三个方面展开论述，指出走出自我中心主义是构建道德自我的关键。麦克尤恩主张建构走出自我中心主义的自我以及为他者的自我。

第二章主要讨论人际伦理，本章以《阿姆斯特丹》、《星期六》和《赎罪》为分析文本，主要利用列维纳斯的面容理论探讨自我与他者的关系。列维纳斯主张自我以面相示人，对他者的呼吁做出回应，即承担对他者的绝对责任。当自我看到他者的面容，看到他者需要帮助，面容的相遇便滋生了责任感。在道德呼吁中，面容是至关重要的。自我与他者的关系建立在我们对面容的理解上。当自我无视他者的面容时，可能会丧失共情的能力，过度关注自我利益，从而漠视自我对他者的责任。看到他者的面容，将自己纳入道德的最初场景，展现对他者的关爱、承担对他者的责任是人性最美好的呈现。面容可以唤醒良知，突破唯我主义的桎梏，发展和谐的人际关系。麦克尤恩主张建构自我与他者之间的伦理关系——承认差异，尊敬他者，承担对他者的绝对责任。

第三章主要讨论人与环境的伦理关系，本章以《水泥花园》、《追日》和《坚果壳》为分析文本，探讨人之于环境的态度和责任。麦克尤恩主张建构人与环境之间的伦理关系——人应该尊敬并爱护环境。他揭示了人类文明的发展以破坏自然为代价这一重大问题。在两者的关系中，自然是被改造、被破坏的沉默的他者。他通过聚焦自然的萎缩和恶化、生态危机以及人类不健康的生活方式，引发读者思考人对环境应承担怎样的责任。

麦克尤恩对于伦理困境和道德危机具有深刻的认识。他在小说中通过对人性的拷问，以期唤起人的良知以及对他者的关爱和责任感，他提倡为了他者的后现代伦理。通过聚焦人与自我、他者和环境的伦理关系，他主张解构以追求普遍性、一致性、中心性的现代性为思想基础的现代伦理学，消除主体中心主义、自我中心主义、男性中心主义和人类中心主义，重构人与人、人与自然之间的伦理关系。

Ian McEwan has shown his concerns about postmodern ethical issues from the creation of early novels by exploring the relationship between man and the self, the Other and the environment. He argues egocentrism is the main obstacle to the development of moral self, and proposes to construct the self for the Other. He maintains that the self and the Other are not the binary opposition of subject and object, but the relationship between different subjects. The self should start from the recognition of differences, respect others, and respond to their appeal. In other words, the self should assume absolute responsibility for others, without expecting anything in return, which is justice, and then construct the minimum post-modern ethical community. In the face of environmental crisis, he condemns the greed of human nature and points out that under the dominant thought of anthropocentrism, the natural ecological environment has been destroyed by human beings. McEwan’s concerns about postmodern ethical and moral problems have demonstrated he has a strong sense of responsibility.

Apart from introduction and conclusion, the dissertation contains three chapters.

Chapter one concentrates on the study of the relationship between man and the self. Self-knowledge is a reflection on the classic philosophical question “who am I?” It allows us to define what is important to us and guides our growth. Therefore, an individual’s self-knowledge determines his identity, position and values, as well as his behavior. Self-knowledge greatly influences one’s moral orientation. Taking The Comfort of Strangers, Solar and Enduring Love as examples, this chapter expounds the relationship between man and his self from three aspects: his identity, the subject’s cognition of his desire and development of the self, using Erich Fromm’s psychology theory and Edmund Bauman’s postmodern ethics. It concludes that getting out of egocentrism is the key to the construction of moral self. McEwan advocates the construction of the self out of egocentrism, and the self for the other.  

Chapter two discusses interpersonal ethics. Using Amsterdam, Saturday and Atonement as examples, this chapter mainly employs Levinas’ face theory to explore the relationship between the self and the Other. Levinas advocated that the self should show its face to the Other and respond to its appeal, that is, to assume absolute responsibility for the Other. When the self sees the Other’s face, realizing he is in need of help, the face-to-face scene triggers a sense of responsibility. In moral appeals, face is crucial. The relationship between the self and the Other is based on the understanding of the face. If one ignores the Other’s face, he may lose the ability to sympathize. Excessive focus on self-interest results in disregard of self-responsibility to others. Seeing the Other’s face means including oneself in the initial scene of morality. Showing care for others and assuming responsibility for them is the best demonstration of human nature. Face can awaken conscience, break the shackles of solipsism, and develop harmonious interpersonal relationships. McEwan advocates the construction of a moral relationship between the self and the Other, that is, acknowledging differences, respecting others, and assuming absolute responsibility for the Other.

Chapter three discusses environmental ethics. Using The Cement Garden, Solar and Nutshell as examples, the chapter expounds man’s responsibility and attitudes to the environment. McEwan advocates establishing an ethical relationship between man and environment―man should respect, love and protect it. He reveals that human culture develops at the cost of nature. In the relationship of the two, nature is the silent Other who has been transformed and destroyed. McEwan, by focusing on the shrinking and deterioration of nature, ecological crisis and men’s unhealthy living style, provokes readers into thinking what responsibility men should take for the environment.

McEwan has a deep understanding of ethical plight and moral crises. He hopes to arouse man’s conscience, love and sense of responsibility for the Other via the torture of humanity. He advocates the postmodern ethics for the Other. By concentrating on the ethical relationships between man and the self, the self and the Other as well as the self and nature, Ian McEwan advocates deconstructing modern ethics based on the modernity of universality, uniformity and centrality, eliminating the centrism of subjectivity, egocentrism, androcentrism and anthropocentrism, and reestablishing the ethical relationship between the self and the Other, and the self and nature.