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Shelly Ian Kagan (; born 1956) is the Clark Professor of Philosophy at
Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
, where he has taught since 1995. He is best known for his writings about
moral philosophy Ethics is the philosophical study of moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches include normative ethics, applied et ...
and
normative ethics Normative ethics is the study of ethics, ethical behaviour and is the branch of Philosophy, philosophical ethics that investigates questions regarding how one ought to act, in a Morality, moral sense. Normative ethics is distinct from metaethics i ...
. In 2007, Kagan's course about death was offered for free online, and was very popular. This led him to publish a book on the subject in 2012. Kagan was elected to the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...
in 2016.


Education and career

Born in Skokie,
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
, Kagan received his BA from
Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the Methodi ...
in 1976 and his PhD from
Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...
in 1982. He taught at the
University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...
from 1981 until 1986, and at the
University of Illinois at Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a public research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus established under the Universi ...
from 1986 until 1995, before taking a position at Yale."Shelly Kagan named Clark Professor of Philosophy"
, ''Yale Bulletin and Calendar'', July 23, 2004, Volume 32, Number 33 retrieved November 19, 2008.
Kagan has served as a member of the editorial board of the journal ''
Ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...
''. In 2016, he was made a fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...
.


Philosophical work

In his 1984 book ''
Reasons and Persons ''Reasons and Persons'' is a 1984 book by the philosopher Derek Parfit, in which the author discusses ethics, rationality and personal identity. It is divided into four parts, dedicated to self-defeating theories, rationality and time, personal ...
'',
Derek Parfit Derek Antony Parfit (; 11 December 1942 – 2 January 2017) was a British philosopher who specialised in personal identity, rationality, and ethics. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential moral philosophers of the lat ...
credited Kagan as the "person from whom I have learnt the most", noting that Kagan's comments on his draft were half the length of the draft itself. In 1989, Kagan's first book, ''The Limits of Morality'', was published. It is an extended critique of two key assumptions underlying what Kagan calls "ordinary morality": the "common‐sense moral view that most of us accept". Specifically, the book questions the assumption that morality rules out certain actions (such as harming innocent people) even in situations where doing so might create greater good, and the assumption that we are "not required to make our greatest possible contribution to the overall good". According to Kagan, these two assumptions are indefensible, despite their widespread appeal. In 1997, Kagan published a textbook, ''Normative Ethics,'' designed to provide a thorough introduction to the subject for upper-level undergraduate or graduate students. In 2007, his Yale course "Death" was recorded for
Open Yale Courses Open Yale Courses is a project of Yale University to share full video and course materials from its undergraduate courses. Open Yale Courses provides free access to a selection of introductory courses, and uses a Creative Commons Attribution-Nonc ...
, and his book ''Death'' is based on these lectures. In 2010, Yale University reported that Kagan's "Death" course had made him one of the most popular foreign teachers in China. Kagan also explored
desert A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the la ...
, the concept of what people deserve, in his 2012 book ''The Geometry of Desert.'' According to Kagan, people differ in terms of how morally deserving they are and it is good for people to get what they deserve. The book attempts to reveal the hidden complexity of moral desert.


Debate with William Lane Craig

Kagan debated the topic "''Is God necessary for Morality''" with analytic philosopher,
theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...
and
Christian apologist Christian apologetics (, "verbal defense, speech in defense") is a branch of Christian theology that defends Christianity. Christian apologetics have taken many forms over the centuries, starting with Paul the Apostle in the early church and Pa ...
William Lane Craig William Lane Craig (; born August 23, 1949) is an American Analytic philosophy, analytic philosopher, Christian apologetics, Christian apologist, author, and theologian. He is a professor of philosophy at Houston Christian University and at the T ...
at
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
.
Randal Rauser Randal D. Rauser is a Canadian theologian who serves as an associate professor of historical theology at Taylor Seminary. Biography Education Randal Rauser graduated with distinction from Trinity Western University in 1996 with a double m ...
, a Canadian Baptist theologian and professor of historical theology, rated this debate Craig's worst performance, saying, "it wasn't simply because Kagan was himself a surprisingly good debater with an undeniably charming folksy incredulity. It was that Craig's arguments were shown to be mere emotive talking points based on highly dubious premises".
Richard Carrier Richard Cevantis Carrier (born December 1, 1969) is an American ancient historian. He is a long-time contributor to skeptical websites, including The Secular Web and Freethought Blogs. Carrier has published a number of books and articles on ph ...
, an author and activist whose works focus on the
historicity of Jesus The historicity of Jesus is the scholarly question in Biblical criticism and early Christian history of whether Jesus historically existed or was a purely mythological figure. Scholarly discussions questioning the historical existence of Jesus ...
, atheism and empiricism, cited this debate as one of Craig's two biggest losses, along with one with physicist Sean M. Carroll. After the debate, Craig wrote, "the view Kagan defended in the debate was not his agan'sview at all". Instead, Craig wrote, Kagan is a radical consequentialist. Craig also wrote:#116 Contemporary Moral Arguments
- Reasonablefaith.org
I did respond briefly to Prof. Kagan's view, Alexander, but I didn't press the point because our hosts with the Veritas Forum had made it very clear to me that they were not interested in having a knock-down debate but a friendly dialogue that would foster a warm and inviting atmosphere for non-believing students at Columbia. The goal was simply to get the issues out on the table in a congenial, welcoming environment, which I think we did.


Bibliography

* ''The Limits of Morality'',
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, 1989. . * ''Normative Ethics'', Westview Press, 1997. . * ''Death'',
Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day and Clarence Day, grandsons of Benjamin Day, and became a department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and ope ...
, 2012. . * ''The Geometry of Desert'',
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, August 2012. . * ''How to Count Animals, more or less'',
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, April 2019. . * ''Answering Moral Skepticism'',
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, October 2023. .


See also

*
American philosophy American philosophy is the activity, corpus, and tradition of philosophers affiliated with the United States. The ''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' notes that while it lacks a "core of defining features, American Philosophy can neverthe ...
*
List of American philosophers American philosophy is the activity, corpus, and tradition of philosophers affiliated with the United States. The ''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' notes that while it lacks a "core of defining features, American Philosophy can neverthe ...


References


External links

*Kagan'
personal website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kagan, Shelly 21st-century American philosophers Consequentialists Utilitarians Wesleyan University alumni Princeton University alumni Yale University faculty 20th-century American Jews Jewish philosophers Living people Place of birth missing (living people) 1963 births 21st-century American Jews People from Skokie, Illinois