A different perspective into the concept of harm will be offered by SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor Neil Feit in a talk, “Is it Wrong to Harm Others?” on Wednesday, March 21, 6 p.m., at the Science Center’s Kelly Family Auditorium.
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| Dr. Neil Feit |
It is often claimed that there are strong moral reasons against harming others. In his talk – using several examples and an account of the nature of harm – Dr. Feit will discuss some reasons for not accepting this claim. He will argue that if there are strong moral reasons not to perform an action that will harm others, then those strong reasons do not flow merely from the fact that the action is harmful.
The talk is free and open to the public. It is being sponsored by the Fredonia Philosophical Society, a student group.
Feit, a member of the faculty in the Department of Philosophy since 1999, has published articles and books in several areas of philosophy, including philosophy of mind, epistemology and ethics. He has published two books on his main area of focus in the philosophy of mind: the nature of first-personal thought. One of these is an edited collection of new essays by linguists and philosophers working on this topic. The other is the monograph “Belief about the Self,” published by Oxford University Press in 2008.
Feit has published over 20 articles, including a recent series of articles on the concept of harm and its moral significance. These have appeared in leading international journals of philosophy such as Noûs, Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, the Australasian Journal of Philosophy and Philosophical Studies. Feit is the 2011 Robert W. Kasling Memorial Lecturer and the recipient of the 2009 William T. and Charlotte N. Hagan Young Scholar/Artist Award.
