Simon Blackburn (born 12 July 1944) is an English academic philosopher known for his work in

metaethics In metaphilosophy and ethics, meta-ethics is the study of the nature, scope, and meaning of moral judgment. It is one of the three branches of ethics generally studied by philosophers, the others being normative ethics (questions of how one ought ...

, where he defends

quasi-realism Quasi-realism is the meta-ethical view which claims that: # Ethical sentences do not express propositions. # Instead, ethical sentences project emotional attitudes as though they were real properties. This makes quasi-realism a form of non-cogn ...

, and in the philosophy of language; more recently, he has gained a large general audience from his efforts to popularise philosophy. He has appeared in multiple episodes of the documentary series ''

Closer to Truth ''Closer to Truth'' is a television series on public television originally created, produced and hosted by Robert Lawrence Kuhn. The original series aired in 2000 for two seasons, followed by a second series aired in 2003 for a single season. Th ...

''. During his long career, he has taught at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, and

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

Life and career

Blackburn was born on 12 July 1944 in Chipping Sodbury, England. He attended

Clifton College ''The spirit nourishes within'' , established = 160 years ago , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent boarding and day school , religion = Christian , president = , head_label = Head of College , hea ...

and went on to receive his bachelor's degree in philosophy in 1965 from

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

. He obtained his doctorate in 1969 from Churchill College, Cambridge. He retired as the professor of philosophy at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

in 2011, but remains a distinguished research professor of philosophy at the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

, teaching every fall semester. He is also a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

, and a member of the professoriate of

New College of the Humanities New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

. He was previously a Fellow of Pembroke College, Oxford and has also taught full-time at the University of North Carolina as an Edna J. Koury Professor. He is a former president of the Aristotelian Society, having served the 2009–2010 term. He was elected a Fellow of the

British Academy The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars span ...

in 2002 and a Foreign Honorary Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts & Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) 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 ...

in 2008. He is a former editor of the journal '' Mind''.

Philosophical work

In philosophy, he is best known as the proponent of

meta-ethics In metaphilosophy and ethics, meta-ethics is the study of the nature, scope, and meaning of moral judgment. It is one of the three branches of ethics generally studied by philosophers, the others being normative ethics (questions of how one ought ...

and as a defender of neo-

Humean Humeanism refers to the philosophy of David Hume and to the tradition of thought inspired by him. Hume was an influential Scottish philosopher well known for his empirical approach, which he applied to various fields in philosophy. In the philosop ...

views on a variety of topics. "The quasi-realist is someone who endorses an anti-realist metaphysical stance but who seeks, through philosophical maneuvering, to earn the right for moral discourse to enjoy all the trappings of realist talk." In 2008 ''

The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy ''The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy'' (1994; second edition 2008; third edition 2016) is a dictionary of philosophy by the philosopher Simon Blackburn, published by Oxford University Press. References * Blackburn, Simon ( 0052008), 2nd re ...

'', which was authored by Blackburn, was published. In 2014 Blackburn published ''Mirror, Mirror: The Uses and Abuses of Self-Love'', focusing on different philosophical aspects of self-love, discussing modern forms and manifestations of pride, amour-propre, integrity or self-esteem through various philosophical frameworks and ideas.

Public philosophy

He makes occasional appearances in the British media, such as on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

's ''

The Moral Maze ''Moral Maze'' is a live discussion programme on BBC Radio 4, broadcast since 1990. Since November 2011, it has also been available as a podcast. Structure Four regular panellists discuss moral and ethical issues raised by a recent news story. ...

''. He is a patron of Humanists UK (formerly the British Humanist Association), and when asked to define his atheism, he said he prefers the label ''infidel'' over ''atheist'': He was one of 55 public figures to sign an open letter published in ''The Guardian'' in September 2010, stating their opposition to

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

's state visit to the UK, and has argued that "religionists" should have less influence in political affairs. At the same time, he has also argued, in a televised debate, against the position of the

antitheist Antitheism, also spelled anti-theism, is the philosophical position that theism should be opposed. The term has had a range of applications. In secular contexts, it typically refers to direct opposition to the belief in any deity. Etymology The ...

author and philosopher

Sam Harris Samuel Benjamin Harris (born April 9, 1967) is an American philosopher, neuroscientist, author, and podcast host. His work touches on a range of topics, including rationality, religion, ethics, free will, neuroscience, meditation, psychedelics ...

that morality can be derived from science. He was one of 240 academics to sign a letter to the Equality and Human Rights Commission opposing 'radical gender orthodoxy', published in The Sunday Times.

Books

*''Reason and Prediction'' (1973). . *''Spreading the Word'' (1984) – a text. . *''Essays in

Quasi-realism Quasi-realism is the meta-ethical view which claims that: # Ethical sentences do not express propositions. # Instead, ethical sentences project emotional attitudes as though they were real properties. This makes quasi-realism a form of non-cogn ...

'' (1993). – a defence of quasi-realism as applied to ethicsISBN 0-19-508041-6 and . *''

'' (

994 Year 994 ( CMXCIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * September 15 – Battle of the Orontes: Fatimid forces, under Turkish gener ...

2015), 3rd ed. – compiled whole-handedly. . *''Ruling Passions'' (1998) A defence of a NeoHumean theory of reasons and moral motivation. . *''Truth'' (1999) (edited with Keith Simmons) – from Oxford Readings in Philosophy series. . *'' Think: A Compelling Introduction to Philosophy''. (1999) and . *''Being Good'' (2001) – an introduction to ethics. . ** Reprinted as ''Ethics: A Very Short Introduction'' in

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

' Very Short Introductions series. . *''Lust'' (2004) – one of an

series covering the

Seven Deadly Sins The seven deadly sins, also known as the capital vices or cardinal sins, is a grouping and classification of vices within Christian teachings. Although they are not directly mentioned in the Bible, there are parallels with the seven things ...

. . *''Truth: A Guide'' (2005). . *''Plato's Republic: A Biography'' (2006) – from Atlantic Books' Books That Shook the World series. . *''How to read Hume'' (2008) – Granta Publications. . *"What do we really know? -The Big Questions of Philosophy" – (2009) from Quercus. . * *''Mirror, Mirror: The Uses and Abuses of Self-Love'' (Princeton, NJ:

Princeton University Press Princeton University Press is an independent publisher with close connections to Princeton University. Its mission is to disseminate scholarship within academia and society at large. The press was founded by Whitney Darrow, with the financial su ...

, 2014) *''On Truth'' (2018)

References

External links

Personal website

Simon Blackburn talks with Jenny Attiyeh on
Thoughtcast
BBC News story

Blackburn discusses Plato's Republic

An interview with Simon Blackburn on ''The Marketplace of Ideas''

Interviewed by Alan Macfarlane 21 April 2009 (video)
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Blackburn, Simon 1944 births 20th-century British philosophers 21st-century British philosophers Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Analytic philosophers Cambridge University Moral Sciences Club English humanists English philosophers Fellows of Pembroke College, Oxford Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Fellows of the British Academy Fellows of Churchill College, Cambridge Alumni of Churchill College, Cambridge Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge Living people Moral philosophers People educated at Clifton College Bertrand Russell Professors of Philosophy Presidents of the Aristotelian Society University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty Mind (journal) editors