•  4
    Alien and Philosophy: I Infest, Therefore I Am (edited book)
    with Jeffrey Ewing
    Wiley. 2017.
    Alien and Philosophy: I Infest, Therefore I Am presents a philosophical exploration of the world of Alien, the simultaneously horrifying and thought-provoking sci-fi horror masterpiece, and the film franchise it spawned. The first book dedicated to exploring the philosophy raised by one of the most successful and influential sci-fi franchises of modern times Features contributions from an acclaimed team of scholars of philosophy and pop culture, led by highly experienced volume editors Explores …Read more
  •  9
    This third brand-new 'Star Wars & Philosophy' title once again takes a fresh look at the franchise with all-new chapters. The focus of this volume is the more recent entries into the franchise, including hit TV shows such as THe Mandalorian. Modern applied philosophy is also used to analyse the Star Wars universe: In addition to thorny metaphysical questions about the nature of time and free will, this volume highlights the staggering cultural impact of George Lucas's universe. The newest Star W…Read more
  • The Ultimate Star Trek and Philosophy (edited book)
    Wiley. 2016-03-14.
  • Star Wars and Philosophy Strikes Back (edited book)
    Wiley. 2023-01-09.
  •  2
    This chapter reviews Star Trek's course in wrestling with issues of political and social secularization. Any debate about secularization is a set of arguments about the best relationship between religious beliefs and institutions on the one hand, and political, social, and economic structures on the other. The chapter provides several moral arguments as to why liberal democracies like the United States should pursue greater secularism in the future. A popular but particularly unhelpful way of fr…Read more
  •  2
    Han Solo
    In Jason T. Eberl & Kevin S. Decker (eds.), Star Wars and Philosophy Strikes Back, Wiley. 2023.
    Han Solo‐orphan, laconically cool Corellian smuggler, Rebel general, and martyr for the Resistance, is one of the most‐loved characters in the Star Wars universe. His emotional and moral development throughout the original trilogy into a trusted friend, Leia's lover, and a warrior for Rebel values is inspiring. In the sequel trilogy, he's returned to smuggling and reluctantly re‐assumes the mantle of father to Ben Solo, an alienated and ultimately patricidal son, but even death fails to stop him…Read more
  •  1
    Something Terribly Flawed
    In Fritz Allhoff & Robert Arp (eds.), Tattoos – Philosophy for Everyone, Wiley‐blackwell. 2012.
    This chapter contains sections titled: A Bad Sign? Pictures of the Future on Your Skin Never a Tattooed Man Like This Tattoos and Human Nature Covered with Rare and Significant Beauties Creativity, Creativity, Creativity Can't You Recognize the Human in the Inhuman?
  • The Ultimate South Park and Philosophy (edited book)
    with Robert Arp
    Wiley. 2013-08-26.
  • The Ultimate Star Wars and Philosophy (edited book)
    Wiley. 2015-09-18.
  • Ender's Game and Philosophy (edited book)
    Wiley. 2013-08-26.
  • Dune and Philosophy (edited book)
    Wiley. 2022-10-17.
  • Alien and Philosophy (edited book)
    with Jeffrey Ewing
    Wiley. 2017-06-23.
  •  1
    The Identity of Avatars and Na'vi Wisdom
    In George A. Dunn (ed.), Avatar and Philosophy, Wiley. 2014.
    In avatar, Jake Sully struggles with his sense of self at a variety of levels, including the metaphysical. In Plato's and Aristotle's book Philosophy in the Flesh, George Lakoff and Mark Johnson call this shared conjecture the “folk theory of essences.” In Avatar, the presuppositions about personal identity that ground the linkage process between human beings and avatar bodies seems to follow Locke's insights quite faithfully. This way of talking about the essential self challenges the bodyswapp…Read more
  • Both Georg W.F. Hegel and Martin Heidegger would find the lack of art in Frank Herbert's distant future more disturbing than merely the loss of technique and beauty. The experience of truth through art is to see the elements of the artwork of Thatched Cottages at Cordeville not with the same eyes as if we were walking by this scene in person. The point of Cottages at Cordeville the Duniverse version of this painting owned by Taraza, Mother Superior Odrade, and then Sheeana – as revealing a truth…Read more
  •  1
    Contagion
    In Jeffrey Ewing & Kevin S. Decker (eds.), Alien and Philosophy, Wiley. 2017.
    The dystopian elements of the Alien films display the dark side of social mechanisms. Modern philosophy is not exempt from the temptations of this “authoritarian synthesis”. It also responds to the themes of impurity, whether through religious heresy, mental illness, or bodily invasion or corruption. In the shooting script for Alien, it is clear that Ripley has been “infected” by the Xenomorph Facehugger in the pod; on screen, that fact is held from us until much later in the film for dramatic e…Read more
  •  3
    The currents of philosophy have always been influenced by the culture in which thinkers live and work. In ancient China, the profound turmoil that eventually tore apart the Zhou dynasty led to social and intellectual unrest, out of which was born a new class of writers and thinkers who created the foundations for Chinese philosophy. There are historical and philosophical parallels with this Chinese time of uprooting in the “Dark Times” of the Star Wars universe. Few Jedi survive through the Dark…Read more
  •  1
    Sitting Downtown at Kentucky Fried Chicken
    In Robert Arp & Kevin S. Decker (eds.), The Ultimate South Park and Philosophy, Wiley. 2013.
    Like many episodes of South Park, “Medicinal Fried Chicken” drags real political scenarios into the cold, hard light of the Rocky Mountains. In this chapter, the author aims at challenging the received interpretation of the moral message behind “Medicinal Fried Chicken” and many other South Park episodes, the message that legislating lifestyles is immoral at worst and ridiculous at best. This message is encapsulated by the moral perspective known of libertarianism, which takes individual rights …Read more
  •  1
    This chapter provides an introduction to The Ultimate South Park and Philosophy. South Park is one of the most important series on TV, because the show isn't afraid to lampoon the extremist fanatics that are associated with any social, ethical, economical, or religious position. This is extremely important and necessary in our diverse society of free and autonomous persons who hold a plurality of beliefs and values. Fanatics usually stop thinking issues through and, ultimately, they're primed to…Read more
  •  2
    This chapter examines the sense of irony along with the parallels between the persona of “Stephen Colbert of The Colbert Report” and the character of the “ironist” discussed both by philosophical Romantics in the nineteenth century as well as the American philosopher Richard Rorty (1931–2007). For both Colbert and Rorty, irony can be funny and refreshing, and yet at the same time represents a challenge to our beliefs. The chapter looks at the differences between verbal irony and its more robust …Read more
  •  105
    A timely book that uses science fiction to provoke reflection and discussion on philosophical issues From the nature of mind to the ethics of AI and neural enhancement, science fiction thought experiments fire the philosophical imagination, encouraging us to think outside of the box about classic philosophical problems and even to envision new ones. Science Fiction and Philosophy explores puzzles about virtual reality, transhumanism, whether time travel is possible, the nature of artificial inte…Read more
  •  38
    John Dewey’s Liberalism (review)
    Newsletter of the Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy 30 (92): 31-35. 2002.
  •  7
    John Dewey, Unmodern Philosophy and Modern Philosophy
    European Journal of Pragmatism and American Philosophy 4 (2). 2012.
    If it is true, as Raymond Boisvert wrote almost a decade ago in the Transactions of the Charles S. Peirce Society, that there are two schools of Dewey scholarship – the ‘method-centered’ set and the ‘lived experience’ group – then the publication of this manuscript, once thought lost, should be a force for reunification of the two. Indeed, providing a common vocabulary between science and generic values such as freedom and consummatory experience, a vocabulary generated through a critical the...
  •  24
    Habermas on Human Rights and Cloning
    Essays in Philosophy 3 (2): 227-251. 2002.
  •  88
    The Evolution of the Psychical Element, by George Herbert Mead
    with H. Bawden
    Transactions of the Charles S. Peirce Society 44 (3): 480-507. 2008.
    George Herbert Mead's lectures at the University of Chicago are more important to understanding Mead's views on social psychology than some commentators, such as Hans Joas, have emphasized. Mead's 1898-99 lecture series, preserved through the notes of his student H. Heath Bawden, demonstrate his devotion to Hegelianism as a method of thinking and how this influenced his non-reductive approach to functionalist psychology. In addition, Mead's breadth of historical knowledge and his commitments in …Read more
  • Alien and Philosophy (edited book)
    with James Ewing
    Wiley-Blackwell. 2017.
  •  14
    Dewey and the Democratic Way of Life
    Philosophy Now 43 16-19. 2003.
  •  1
    South Park and Philosophy (edited book)
    with Robert Arp
    Blackwell Publishers. 2007.
  •  8
    Does it take faith to be a Jedi? Are droids capable of thought? Should Jar Jar Binks be held responsible for the rise of the Empire? Presenting entirely new essays, no aspect of the myth and magic of George Lucas’s creation is left philosophically unexamined in The Ultimate Star Wars and Philosophy. The editors of the original Star Wars and Philosophy strike back in this Ultimate volume that encompasses the complete Star Wars universe Presents the most far-reaching examination of the philosophy …Read more
  •  6
    Reunites the editors of Star Trek and Philosophy with Starfleet’s finest experts for 31 new, highly logical essays Features a complete examination of the Star Trek universe, from the original series to the most recent films directed by J.J. Abrams, Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness Introduces important concepts in philosophy through the vast array of provocative issues raised by the series, such as the ethics of the Prime Directive, Star Trek’s philosophy of peace, Data and Voyager’s Doctor …Read more