Tara A. Smith (born 1961) is an American

philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...

. She is a professor of philosophy, the

BB&T BB&T Corporation (previously known as the Branch Banking and Trust Company) was one of the largest banking and financial services firms in the United States, based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. In 2019, BB&T announced its intentions to merge ...

Chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. They may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...

for the Study of

Objectivism Objectivism is a philosophical system developed by Russian Americans, Russian-American writer and philosopher Ayn Rand. She described it as "the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with prod ...

, and the Anthem Foundation Fellow for the Study of Objectivism at the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

Career

Smith specializes in moral and political theory. She did her undergraduate work at the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

and received her doctorate from

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

. Her published works include the books ''Viable Values: A Study of Life as the Root and Reward of Morality'' (2000), ''Moral Rights and Political Freedom'' (1995), and ''Ayn Rand's Normative Ethics: The Virtuous Egoist'' (2006). She is also a contributing author to several essay collections about

Ayn Rand Alice O'Connor (born Alisa Zinovyevna Rosenbaum;, . Most sources transliterate her given name as either ''Alisa'' or ''Alissa''. , 1905 – March 6, 1982), better known by her pen name Ayn Rand (), was a Russian-born American writer and p ...

's novels. Smith has written in journals such as ''

The Journal of Philosophy ''The Journal of Philosophy'' is a monthly peer-reviewed academic journal on philosophy, founded in 1904 at Columbia University. Its stated purpose is "To publish philosophical articles of current interest and encourage the interchange of ideas, es ...

'', ''

American Philosophical Quarterly The ''American Philosophical Quarterly'' (APQ) is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering philosophy. It was established in 1964 by Nicholas Rescher and is published quarterly by University of Illinois Press under license with North American Phil ...

'', ''Social Philosophy and Policy'', and ''Law and Philosophy''. Smith has lectured all across the United States including

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

Wheeling Jesuit University Wheeling University (WU, formerly Wheeling Jesuit University) is a private Roman Catholic university in Wheeling, West Virginia. It was founded as Wheeling College in 1954 by the Society of Jesus (also known as the Jesuits) and was a Jesuit inst ...

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...

, and

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

, and to groups of businessmen. She has also organized conferences, often ones emphasizing objective law. She is on the board of ''

The Philosopher's Index The Philosopher's Information Center is a nonprofit, educational organization. It was founded in 1967 by Richard H. Lineback, who continues to serve as president. The center is publisher of ''The Philosopher's Index'', a comprehensive bibliograph ...

'' and is on the Academic Advisory Council of The Clemson Institute for the Study of Capitalism at

Clemson University Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university in Clemson, South Carolina. Founded in 1889, Clemson is the second-largest university in the student population in South Carolina. For the fall 2019 semester, the university enro ...

. Smith is a member of the Ayn Rand Society, which exists within the

American Philosophical Association The American Philosophical Association (APA) is the main professional organization for philosophers in the United States. Founded in 1900, its mission is to promote the exchange of ideas among philosophers, to encourage creative and scholarly ...

. She is also on the board of directors of the

Ayn Rand Institute The Ayn Rand Institute: The Center for the Advancement of Objectivism, commonly known as the Ayn Rand Institute (ARI), is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit think tank in Santa Ana, California, that promotes Objectivism, the philosophy developed by Ayn Rand ...

Selected publications

Books

* * * *

Articles

* * * * * * * * * * "'Social' Objectivity and the Objectivity of Value" in * * "Forbidding Life to Those Still Living" in * "Independence in ''The Fountainhead''" in * * * "'Humanity's Darkest Evil': The Lethal Destructiveness of Non-Objective Law" in

References

External links

Faculty page
at University of Texas at Austin Department of Philosophy
Academic review of ''Ayn Rand's Normative Ethics: The Virtuous Egoist''

The Objective Standard's review of ''Ayn Rand's Normative Ethics: The Virtuous Egoist''

Carrie-Ann Biondi, Review of "Ayn Rand's Normative Ethics: The Virtuous Egoist" Reason Papers 30 (2008)

Page
at the

which lists her books and some articles
Archive
of Tara Smith's articles at the Capitalism Magazine website {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Tara 1961 births Living people 20th-century American philosophers 21st-century American philosophers Moral philosophers American political philosophers Objectivism scholars Objectivists University of Virginia alumni Johns Hopkins University alumni University of Texas at Austin faculty American atheists Atheist philosophers American women philosophers Ayn Rand Institute 21st-century American women