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This article examines the role of generosity in public administration from a peculiar literary perspective, that of Wallace Shawn's play, The Designated Mourner. In the recent past, deontologists in the discipline, such as Emette Redford, articulated rich theories of democratic responsiveness, but today these theories no longer command a scholarly consensus. This collapse, or "death," of deontology has led to a scramble for a new philosophical foundation to animate the study and practice of administration, with various candidates self-proclaiming themselves to be deontology's designated mourner. This article examines three candidates: neo-Lockean natural law, neo-Habermassean communicative competence, and neo-Nietzschean receptive generosity. Only the third contains a strong enough commitment to democratic generosity to resist the temptations of self-effacement represented by Shawn's designated mourner.

A reevaluation of human freedom in the information age is considered through a deconstruction of David Osborne's & Ted Gaebler's Reinventing Government (1992). Current intergovernmental relations are characterized by the metaphor of the immunological orchestra: antigens trigger immune responses similar to how citizens & policymakers alternate roles. Information offers change, but the status quo is maintained. Contrary to Osborne & Gaebler, who see a return to a previous era in government, it is argued here that change can occur. Using the works of Barbara Cruikshank (1993) & Donna Haraway (1991) to illustrate the concepts of economic development & consumer-driven government, politics can be seen to contest current constructions & offer alternative visions & identities. 49 References. Adapted from the source document.