-
53Kantian Autonomy and Divine CommandsFaith and Philosophy 4 (3): 276-281. 1987.James Rachels has argued that a morally autonomous person (in Kant’s sense) could not consistently accept the authority of divine commands. Against Rachels, this essay argues (a) that the Kantian concept of moral autonomy is to be analyzed in terms of an agent’sresponsiveness to the best available moral reasons and (b) that it is simply question-begging against divine command theory to assume that such commands could not count as the best moral reasons available to an agent.
-
52Before Forgiving: Cautionary Views of Forgiveness in Psychotherapy (edited book)Oup Usa. 2002.Psychologist Sharon Lamb and philosopher Jeffrie Murphy argue that forgiveness has been accepted as a therapeutic strategy without serious, critical examination. Chapters by both psychologists and philosophers ask: Why is forgiveness so popular now? What exactly does it entail? When might it be appropriate for a therapist not to advise forgiveness? When is forgiveness in fact harmful?
-
45“In the Penal Colony” and Why I Am Now Reluctant to Teach Criminal LawCriminal Justice Ethics 33 (2): 72-82. 2014.This article discusses the way in which substantive criminal law is generally taught in United States law schools and argues that more room should be given in these courses to familiarize students with the horrendous nature of much of our criminal law system—in particular the terrible conditions faced by most prison inmates after conviction.
-
44Another look at legal moralismEthics 77 (1): 50-56. 1966.The idea that immoral conduct ought to be criminalized is already often rejected, But not for precisely the right reasons. Victim-Less crimes ought to be decriminalized not (as h l a hart and j s mill argue) because it is immoral to make crimes of them, But because it is contrary to the nature of the criminal law itself. Acts of private immorality do not violate the rights of the participants; thus they cannot be crimes because there is no crime where there is no deprivation of rights. (staff)
-
40
-
38Kalin on the categorical imperativeEthics 79 (2): 163-164. 1969.The article is a critical reply to jesse kalin's "a note on singer and kant" ("ethics", 1968). Kalin had argued that kant's categorical imperative entails absurdly counterintuitive consequences--E.G. That it is wrong to punish people. Against kalin, It is argued that such consequences are not entailed by the categorical imperative if it is properly interpreted. A proper interpretation involves, For example, Distinguishing the categorical imperative's function as a criterion for imperfect duties …Read more
-
35A Failed Refutation and an Insufficiently Developed Insight in Hart’s Law, Liberty, and MoralityCriminal Law and Philosophy 7 (3): 419-434. 2013.H. L. A. Hart, in his classic book Law, Liberty, and Morality, is unsuccessful in arguing that James Fitzjames Stephen’s observations about the role of vice in criminal sentencing have no relevance to a more general defense of legal moralism. He does, however, have a very important insight about the special significance of sexual liberty
-
29Meaningfulness and the Doctrine of Eternal ReturnInternational Studies in Philosophy 18 (2): 61-66. 1986.
-
25Review of William Ian Miller, Eye for an Eye (review)Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews 2006 (7). 2006.
-
21Marxism and RetributionIn A. John Simmons, Marshall Cohen, Joshua Cohen & Charles R. Beitz (eds.), Punishment: A Philosophy and Public Affairs Reader, Princeton University Press. pp. 3-30. 1994.
-
18People We Hire as Executioners: Who Are They? Who Are We?Criminal Justice Ethics 35 (2): 87-99. 2016.Christopher Bennett has introduced a new inquiry into the capital punishment debate by looking at whether the role of executioner is one in which it is possible and proper to take pride. He argues...
-
18Hume's Analogies in Treatise I and the CommentatorsJournal of the History of Philosophy 4 (2): 155-160. 1966.
-
16Religious Conviction and Political Advocacy (A Commentary on Quinn)Modern Schoolman 78 (2-3): 125-134. 2001.
-
15BlackmailThe Monist 63 (2): 156-171. 1980.Most of us are inclined to believe that blackmail is clearly immoral and are thus quite content that it be criminalized. Justifying this belief, however, turns out to be more of a problem than it might at first seem. In particular, it is difficult if not impossible to distinguish cases of blackmail from other hard economic transactions.
-
13Before Forgiving: Cautionary Views of Forgiveness in Psychotherapy (edited book)Oxford University Press USA. 2002.For psychologists and psychotherapists, the notion of forgiveness has been enjoying a substantial vogue. For their patients, it holds the promise of "moving on" and healing emotional wounds. The forgiveness of others - and of one's self - would seem to offer the kind of peace that psychotherapy alone has never been able to provide. In this volume, psychologist Sharon Lamb and philosopher Jeffrie Murphy argue that forgiveness has been accepted as a therapeutic strategy without serious, critical e…Read more
-
12Reply to BennettCriminal Justice Ethics 36 (1): 117-119. 2017.Christopher Bennett closes his commentary on my article with the hope that he has “furthered the conversation” on capital punishment. I believe that he did that in his original article and has done...
-
12Retribution, Justice, And Therapy: Essays in the Philosophy of LawSpringer Verlag. 1979.One might legitimately ask what reasons other than vanity could prompt an author to issue a collection of his previously published essays. The best reason, I think, is the belief that the essays hang together in such a way that, as a book, they produce a whole which is in a sense greater than the sum of its parts. When this happens, as I hope it does in the present case, it is because the essays pursue related themes in such a way that, together, they at least form a start toward the development…Read more
-
10Happiness and immoralityIn Exploring Ethics: An Introductory Anthology, Oxford University Press. 2009.
-
Arizona State UniversityRegular Faculty
Tempe, Arizona, United States of America
Areas of Specialization
Normative Ethics |
Philosophy of Law |