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4On Being Me: A Personal Invitation to Philosophy (review)The Philosophers' Magazine 90 129-130. 2020.
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9The Wisdom of Frugality: Why Less is More - More or LessPrinceton University Press. 2016.From Socrates to Thoreau, most philosophers, moralists, and religious leaders have seen frugality as a virtue and have associated simple living with wisdom, integrity, and happiness. But why? And are they right? Is a taste for luxury fundamentally misguided? If one has the means to be a spendthrift, is it foolish or reprehensible to be extravagant? In this book, Emrys Westacott examines why, for more than two millennia, so many philosophers and people with a reputation for wisdom have been advoc…Read more
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Relativism and the Critique of ReasonDissertation, The University of Texas at Austin. 1995.In this work I examine the nature of, the motivations for, and some important objections to a relativistic conception of truth and rationality. I define relativism, in its most general form, as consisting of two claims: the truth value of all judgements is relative to some particular standpoint; no standpoint is supremely privileged over all others. These theses constitute the doctrinal kernel of most forms of contemporary relativism, and understood properly, I argue, they represent a coherent p…Read more
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18Relativism, Truth, and Implicit CommitmentsInternational Studies in Philosophy 32 (2): 95-126. 2000.
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143. On Snobbery: Is It Sinful to Feel Superior?In The Virtues of Our Vices: A Modest Defense of Gossip, Rudeness, and Other Bad Habits, Princeton University Press. pp. 100-161
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31Doing Philosophy (review)Teaching Philosophy 33 (3): 340-343. 2010.Review of 'Doing Philosophy: A practical guide for students' by Claire Saunders et al.
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87Teaching Mill's On LibertyTeaching Philosophy 20 (3): 301-310. 1997.Mill’s On Liberty is a seminal text in modern social/political philosophy, but there are several dimensions to this text that frequently confuse undergraduates. First, Mill’s uses of “utility” are not obviously consistent. Second, Mill offers varied formulations of his harm principle which are potentially conflicting. Third, lacking a greater context for the work, students sometimes mistake Mill’s goal for an attempt to draw a line between actions that should and should not be legal. This paper …Read more
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102The Ethics of GossipingInternational Journal of Applied Philosophy 14 (1): 65-90. 2000.When is gossiping morally acceptable? In order to explore and develop a principled answer to this question, I pose the problem in a simplified, abstract form: What considerations govern what it is permissible for A to say to B about C? My approach involves first constructing a decision tree out of questions that apply general moral principles to any particular case. These principles filter out talk which, under normal circumstances, would be widely regarded as impermissible, such as breaches of …Read more
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62Review essay : Hilary Putnam, words and life, ed. James Conant (cambridge, ma: Harvard university press, 1994Philosophy and Social Criticism 24 (1): 103-108. 1998.
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69How not to accuse someone of prejudiceThink 14 (41): 21-29. 2015.In discussions of racism, sexism, and other forms of prejudice, two kinds of fallacious reasoning sometimes appear: the and the. The first fallacy treats someone's subjective response to a comment as sufficient evidence of prejudice or insensitivity. This fails to acknowledge that the reasonableness of the response is always an open question. The second fallacy involves dismissing what people accused of prejudice say in their defence on the grounds that the privileged always speak that way. This…Read more
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36Thinking Through Philosophy: An IntroductionCambridge University Press. 2000.Chris Horner and Emrys Westacott present a clear and accessible introduction to some of the central problems of philosophy through challenging and stimulating the reader to think beyond the conventional answers to fundamental questions. No previous knowledge is assumed, and in lively and provocative chapters the authors invite the reader to explore questions about the nature of science, religion, ethics, politics, art, the mind, the self, knowledge and truth. Each chapter includes inset boxes pr…Read more
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55The Rights and Wrongs of RudenessInternational Journal of Applied Philosophy 20 (1): 1-22. 2006.Rudeness is normally viewed as a moral failing, but there are times when it is excusable or even justified. In this article I propose a definition of the concept that helps us ascertain whether, why, and to what extent a rude action is blameworthy or excusable. I consider the most common sorts of circumstance in which rudeness is morally acceptable, and I argue that the perceived increase in rudeness is, in large part, a consequence of our living in a dynamic society where egalitarian attitudes …Read more
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65Depths of the mundaneThe Philosophers' Magazine 49 (49): 89-92. 2010.Why eschew luxury? The traditional arguments for frugality typically focus on what is good for the individual. Some see frugality as morally valuable because it tends to be associated with other virtues such as wisdom, honesty, or sincerity. Some find the natural, uncluttered, focused character of a simple lifestyle aesthetically appealing. The most common argument, though, is that simple living is the surest route – some even say the only route – to happiness.
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28Some Objections to an Objectivist Conception of Intrinsic ValueSouthwest Philosophy Review 10 (1): 177-186. 1994.
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36On the Motivations for RelativismCogito 12 (3): 217-222. 1998.This article considers four reasons why a cognitive relativist might have for embracing relativism even while denying that as a theoretical position it is true in a non-relative sense.
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104. “That’s not funny—that’s sick!”In The Virtues of Our Vices: A Modest Defense of Gossip, Rudeness, and Other Bad Habits, Princeton University Press. pp. 162-214
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18Right on the money (review)The Philosophers' Magazine 65 125-126. 2014.Review of 'How much is enough?' by Robert and Edward Skidelsky
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37Interactive MeditationsTeaching Philosophy 25 (1): 41-52. 2002.This essay provides a number of interactive group activities that promote discussion of Descartes’ “Meditations” and “Discourse on Method”. The activities are suitable for small discussion groups (four of five students in each group) and supply students with well defined tasks rather than general questions. The activities consider a numerous topics in Descartes work, including (for example) how to defend the idea that reason should be the supreme epistemic authority, how Descartes distinguishes …Read more
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38The Virtues of Our Vices: A Modest Defense of Gossip, Rudeness, and Other Bad HabitsPrinceton University PressThe book contains chapters on rudeness, gossiping, snobbery, humour, and respect for beliefs.
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90The little thingsThe Philosophers' Magazine 26 20-21. 2004.This article argues that the supposedly small moral issues in everyday life are worthy of philosophical attention since they reveal much about character, values, and the complexity of moral judgements.
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43The Contemporary Relevance of Socrates' question to EuthyphroThink 2 (5): 69-72. 2003.Emrys Westacott explains one of the most famous and ubiquitous of all philosophical dilemmas
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48RelativismPhilosophy Now. 2001.An allegorical elucidation of cognitive relativism which compares our criteria for judging a belief rational or true to recipes for making bread.
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92Does Surveillance Make Us Morally Better?Philosophy Now 79 6-9. 2010.The article examines how surveillance may on the one hand discourage us from doing wrong while at the same time making us less moral in another sense, since it encourages us to avoid wrongdoing purely out of self-interest.
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16The Placebo EffectPhilosophy Now 55 50-54. 2006.A humorous short story about a company that tries marketing a placebo as a more expensive drug on the grounds that doing this will both maximize their profits and benefit the greatest number, since research shows the placebo to be highly effective if marketed as something else
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53The joy of living StoicallyThe Philosophers' Magazine 58 119-120. 2012.Review of William Irvine's 'A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy'
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Areas of Specialization
Metaphysics |
Normative Ethics |
Areas of Interest
Applied Ethics |
19th Century Philosophy |
Philosophy, General Works |