William O. Stephens is an American

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

and scholar of

Stoicism Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy that flourished in ancient Greece and Rome. The Stoics believed that the universe operated according to reason, ''i.e.'' by a God which is immersed in nature itself. Of all the schools of ancient ...

. He is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at

Creighton University Creighton University () is a private research university in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1878, the university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. In 2015 the university enrolled 8,393 graduate ...

after retiring from teaching at their Omaha Campus in 2020.

Biography

Stephens was born in

Lafayette, Indiana Lafayette ( ) is a city in and is the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, located northwest of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of Lafayette ...

and grew up in

West Lafayette West Lafayette ( ) is a city in Wabash Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, Wabash and Tippecanoe Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, Tippecanoe Townships, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, approximately northwest of the state capit ...

where he attended West Lafayette Senior High School and began his study of ancient civilizations and Latin."Biography"
William O. Stephens. He studied Philosophy at the

College of Wooster {{Infobox university , image = College of Wooster seal.png , image_upright = .6 , name = The College of Wooster , former_names = University of Wooster (1866–1915) , motto ...

for two years before transferring to

Earlham College Earlham College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Richmond, Indiana. The college was established in 1847 by the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) and has a strong focus on Quake ...

, where he earned his undergraduate degree. Stephens completed his graduate work at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

, studying under Charles H. Kahn, Alexander Nehamas, and Martin Ostwald. He received his doctorate in Philosophy in 1990. In August 1990, he joined the faculty at Creighton University where he received the

Omicron Delta Kappa Omicron Delta Kappa (), also known as The Circle and ODK, is an American collegiate honor society that recognizes leadership and scholarship. It was founded in 1914, at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia and has chartered more t ...

Teaching for Tomorrow award in 2005. During his tenure at Creighton, Stephens published four books and numerous articles on topics including Stoic ethics,

Epicureanism Epicureanism is a system of philosophy founded 307 BCE based upon the teachings of Epicurus, an ancient Greek philosopher. Epicurus was an atomist and materialist, following in the steps of Democritus. His materialism led him to religious s ...

, philosophical

vegetarianism Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...

, personhood, and sex and love. He has also written on being a Stoic and a

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

fan, and on the similarities the Jedi philosophy in

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...

shares with

. He presented on phobias, terrorism, and Stoic fearlessness at Stoicon in Toronto, Canada, October 14, 2017, and on a Stoic approach to travel and tourism at Stoicon in London, England, September 29, 2018. He is frequently interviewed about topics in Stoicism.

Vegetarianism

Stephens authored an influential paper examining five arguments for vegetarianism. These were the arguments from distributive justice, environmental harm, sexual politics, moral consideration for animals, and the prudential argument from health. He concluded that compassion, humility, and integrity make working toward a meatless diet virtuous.Stephens, William O. "Five Arguments for Vegetarianism". In Susan Jean Armstrong, Richard George Botzler. (2003). ''The Animal Ethics Reader''. Routledge. pp. 201–208.

Selected publications

Books *
Epictetus's Encheiridion: A New Translation and Guide to Stoic Ethics
' (with Scott Aikin). London: Bloomsbury, 2023. . *
Marcus Aurelius: A Guide for the Perplexed
'. London: Continuum, 2012. . *
Stoic Ethics: Epictetus and Happiness as Freedom
'. London: Continuum, 2007. . *
The Person: Readings in Human Nature
'. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson, 2006. . *
The Ethics of the Stoic Epictetus, An English Translation, Revised Edition
', William O. Stephens, New York: Peter Lang, 2021. . Papers
''Five Arguments for Vegetarianism''
(''Philosophy in the Contemporary World'', 1994)
''Stoic Naturalism, Rationalism, and Ecology''
(''Environmental Ethics'', Fall 1994)
''Epictetus on Fearing Death: Bugbear and Open Door Policy''
(''Ancient Philosophy'', Fall 2014)
''Fake Meat''
(''Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Ethics'', 2018)
''Public Health, Ethical Vegetarianism, and the Harms of the Animal Food Industry''
(''Archives in Biomedical Engineering & Biotechnology'', 2019)
''Stoicism and Food Ethics''
(''Symposion'', May 2022)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephens, William O. Living people American animal rights scholars 21st-century American philosophers 20th-century American philosophers American vegetarianism activists College of Wooster alumni Creighton University faculty Earlham College alumni People from Lafayette, Indiana University of Pennsylvania alumni Date of birth missing (living people)

Biography

Vegetarianism

Selected publications

See also

References