John Lachs

Centennial Professor of Philosophy, Emeritus

Research Area

His philosophical interests center on human natures. This takes him into metaphysics, philosophy of mind, political philosophy, and ethics. He has continuing research interests in American philosophy and in German Idealism, along with research and teaching interests in medical and business ethics.

John Lachs was general editor of Encyclopedia of American Philosophy (Taylor & Francis). A 2001 issue of The Journal of Speculative Philosophy was devoted to his essay "Both Better Off and Better: Moral Progress Amid Continuing Carnage," with responses from a half dozen philosophers.

He was also chair of the American Philosophical Association's Centennial Committee, charged with celebrating the personal value and social usefulness of philosophy. Radio programs, book signings, and coffee house conversations were designed to bring philosophy closer to the concerns of ordinary people.

John Lachs has completed the second part of his book Intermediate Man, which is entitled The Cost of Comfort. The Practical Philosophy of John Lachs, 19 essays critical of his work and 19 responses by him, will appear in 2018.

Click here for an interview with John Lachs.

Click here for a video interview of John Lachs by Chris Skowronski of the Berlin Philosophy Forum.

Specializations

American, Metaphysics, Ethics, German Idealism, Human Natures, Bioethics

Representative publications

Books

Meddling: On the Virtue of Leaving Others Alone. 2014, Indiana University Press.
Freedom and Limits. 2014, Fordham University Press.
Stoic Pragmatism. 2012, Indiana University Press.
Thinking in the Ruins: Wittgenstein and Santayana on Contingency, co-authored with Michael P. Hodges. 2011, Vanderbilt University Press.
A Community of Individuals. 2003, Routledge.
In Love with Life: Reflections on the Joy of Living and Why We Hate to Die. 1998, Vanderbilt University Press.
The Relevance of Philosophy to Life. 1995, Vanderbilt University Press.
Mind and Philosophers. 1987, Vanderbilt University Press.
Intermediate Man. 1981, Hackett Publishing Co.

Articles

"Subjective Worlds." 2013. The Review of Metaphysics, vol. 64:4, iss. 264, pp. 809-21.
"Good Enough." 2009. Journal of Speculative Philosophy, vol. 23, no. 1, pp. 1-7.
"Animal Faith and Ontology." 2009. Transactions of the Charles S. Peirce Society, vol. 45, no. 4, pp. 484-90.
"The Lessons of History." 2007. Transactions of the Charles S. Peirce Society, vol. 43, no. 2, pp. 390-4.
"Stoic Pragmatism." 2005. The Journal of Speculative Philosophy, vol. 19, no. 2, pp. 95-106.
"The Difference God Makes." 2004, Midwest Studies in Philosophy, vol. 28, iss. 1, pp. 183-94.
"Leaving Others Alone." 2004. The Journal of Speculative Philosophy, vol. 18, no. 4, pp. 261-72.
"Is Aging a Disease?" 2004. HEC Forum, vol. 16, iss. 3, pp. 173-81.
"The Past, the Future, and the Immediate." 2003. Transactions of the Charles S. Peirce Society, vol. 39, no. 2, pp. 151-62.
"The Insignificance of Individuals." 2002. Transactions of the Charles S. Peirce Society, vol. 38, no. 1/2, pp. 79-93.
"Both Better Off and Better: Moral Progress amid Continuing Carnage." 2001. The Journal of Speculative Philosophy, vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 173-83. This issue is dedicated to this essay. It has responses by Cynthia Willett, Dennis J. Schmidt, Andrew Light, and Nikita Pokrovsky.
"Transcendence in Philosophy and Everyday Life." 1997. The Journal of Speculative Philosophy, vol. 11, no. 4, pp. 247-55.
"When Abstract Moralizing Runs Amok." 1994, Journal of Clinical Ethics, vol. 5, iss. 1, pp. 10-13. Reprinted in: Bioethics: An Anthology, ed. Helga Kuhse, Udo Schueklenk, and Peter Singer.
"Moral Truth or Empirical Truth about Morality?" 1994. Bulletin of the Santayana Society, vol. 12, pp. 13-6.
"The Philosophical Significance of Psychological Differences Among Humans." 1991. The Southern Journal of Philosophy, vol. 29, iss. 3, pp. 329-39.
"Human Natures." 1990, Proceedings and Addresses of the American Philosophical Association, vol. 63, no. 7, pp. 29-39.
"How Relative are Values? Or Are the Nazis Irrational and Why the Answer Matters." 1990. The Southern Journal of Philosophy, vol. 28, iss. 3, pp. 319-28.
"Persons and Technology." 1985. The Personalist Forum, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 5-21.
"Belief, Confidence, and Faith." 1972. Southern Journal of Philosophy, vol. 10, iss. 2, pp. 227-85.
"The Proofs of Realism." 1967. The Monist, vol. 51, no. 2, pp. 284-304.
"Angel, Animal, Machine: Models for Man." 1967. Southern Journal of Philosophy, vol. 5, iss. 4.
"Self-Identity without a Self." 1965. The Review of Metaphysics, vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 548-65.
"Experience." 1965. Southern Journal of Philosophy, vol. 3, iss. 1., pp. 10-17.
"Santayana's Philosophy of Mind." 1964. The Monist, vol. 48, no. 3, pp. 419-40.
"Santayana's Moral Philosophy." 1964. The Journal of Philosophy, vol. 61, no. 1, pp. 44-61.
"The Impotent Mind." 1963. The Review of Metaphysics, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 187-99.