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My overarching interest is how we create and uphold a reasonable sense of what morality involves – for you and me and us, here and now. Abstract principles are important. But they always leave problems of practical judgment, and they don't decide people's roles and responsibilities. Deciding these involves freedom, creativity, and power. This is about taking responsibility for how we live together – and for morality itself.
These are the themes of a current book project, with the tentative, over-ambitious title of Morality and Responsibility. It explores how we are able to create and uphold defensible moralities across different spheres of human interaction. I also stress the factors that threaten these efforts - above all, when some people or organisations are free from accountability to those affected by their thinking and conduct. |
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Two philosophers are especially important to me: Immanuel Kant and Hannah Arendt. As much as their specific ideas, I admire their determination never simply to accept the terms of any debate. As Kant put it, what right do we have to the concepts we rely on? Taken-for-granted framings often lead us astray, both in theory and in practice. I hope to write more about this in the future.
My research projects page describes some collaborations I've been involved in, which have sparked my writings in applied ethics. They have also led to my more recent interest in corporations – for example, how businesses affect diets and health, which I am also writing a shorter book on. |
Writings grouped by topic: Responsibility Hannah Arendt Kantian ethics & politics Medical & research ethics Obesity & public health |
