Brian Talbot (WUSTL): The Best Argument for “Ought Implies Can” Is a Better Argument Against “Ought Implies Can”. Andrew Vogt (Trinity Saint David): On Limits in Moral Consequentialism. Barbara H. Fried (Stanford): Can Contractualism Be Saved? Thomas Kiefer (Fordham): Moral Virtue in the Twenty-First Century. The second sage: Confucian philosopher Mengzi provides an intriguing (and oddly modern) alternative to Aristotelian accounts of human virtue. Marianne LeNabat interviews the New School’s Alice Crary, author of Inside Ethics: On the Demands of Moral Thought, on the role of ethics in philosophy, and what philosophy is for (and more).
Lisa Rivera (Mass): Possible Dilemmas Raised by Impossible Moral Requirements. David Owens (King's College): Promises and Conflicting Obligations. This philosopher has reimagined identity and morality for a secular age: Charles Taylor, winner of the first $1 million Berggruen Prize for philosophy, has helped reshape debates on what it is to be human. Jocelyn Maclure on Charles Taylor: A strong evaluator. Is it ethical to punch a neo-Nazi? Bob Fischer, author of College Ethics: A Reader on Moral Issues That Affect You, on a surprisingly overlooked gap in philosophy. Empathy is a choice: People are empathy misers because they are cognitive misers.
From 3:AM, Richard Marshall interviews Catherine Wilson on Epicureanism, early mods and the moral animal; and interviews Samuel Scheffler on death, afterlife, justice and value. Dan Arnold reviews Engaging Buddhism: Why It Matters to Philosophy by Jay L. Garfield. The desire to fit in is the root of almost all wrongdoing. Peter Singer, the most influential ethicist alive, says the world is actually becoming a better place. Ryan Holiday sells Stoicism as a life hack, without apology.
