Simon Blackburn

Infobox Philosopher



region = Western Philosophy
era = Contemporary philosophy
color = #B0C4DE

name = Simon Blackburn
birth = 1944 in UK
death =
school_tradition = Analytic
main_interests = Ethics· Truth
influences = David Hume
influenced =
notable_ideas = Quasi-realism

Simon Blackburn (born 1944) is a British academic philosopher known for his efforts to popularise philosophy. He attended Clifton College and went on to receive his bachelor's degree in Moral Sciences (i.e. philosophy) in 1965 from Trinity College, Cambridge. He is currently Professor of Philosophy at the University of Cambridge's Faculty of Philosophy and Research Professor of Philosophy at the University of North Carolina. He is also a fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge, and has previously held teaching posts at Pembroke College, Oxford and the University of North Carolina as an Edna J. Koury Professor.

In philosophy, he is best-known as the proponent of quasi-realism in meta-ethics and as a defender of neo-Humean views on a variety of topics. He is a Vice-President of the British Humanist Association and a former editor of the journal "Mind".

He makes occasional appearances in the British media, such as on BBC Radio 4's "The Moral Maze".

Books

*"Reason and Prediction" (1973). ISBN 0-521-08742-2.
*"Spreading the Word" (1984) - a text. ISBN 0-19-824650-1.
*"Essays in Quasi-Realism" (1993). ISBN 0-19-508041-6 and ISBN 0-19-508224-9.
*"The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy" (1994) - compiled whole-handedly. ISBN 0-19-211694-0.
*"Ruling Passions" (1998) - a defense of quasi-realism as applied to ethics. ISBN 0-19-824785-0.
*"Truth" (1999) (edited w/ Keith Simmons) - from Oxford Readings in Philosophy series. ISBN 0-19-875250-4.
*. (1999) ISBN 0-19-210024-6 and ISBN 0-19-969087-1.
*"Being Good" (2001) - an introduction to ethics. ISBN 0-19-210052-1.
** Reprinted as "Ethics: A Very Short Introduction" in Oxford University Press' Very Short Introductions series [http://www.oup.co.uk/general/vsi/] . ISBN 0-19-280442-1.
*"Lust" (2004) - one of an Oxford University Press series covering the Seven Deadly Sins. ISBN 0-19-516200-5.
*"Truth: A Guide" (2005). ISBN 0-19-516824-0.
*"Plato's Republic: A Biography" (2006) - from Atlantic Books' Books That Shook the World series. ISBN 1-84-354350-8.

External links

* [http://www.phil.cam.ac.uk/~swb24/ Personal website]
* [http://thoughtcast.org/casts/simon-blackburn-philosopher Simon Blackburn discusses "Truth: A Guide" with Jenny Attiyeh on] Thoughtcast
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3387169.stm BBC News story]
* [http://www.newstatesman.co.uk/aldaily/2003121502.htm Blackburn Essay 'In defence of lust' in The New Statesman]
* [http://philosophytalk.org/pastShows/ValueTruth.html Blackburn Discusses the Value of Truth] on Philosophy Talk Radio Program
* [http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2007/06/25/plato_neocons/ Blackburn discusses Plato's Republic]