Jonathan Wolff FBA (born 25 June 1959) is a British philosopher and academic. He is a Senior Research Fellow in Philosophy and Public Policy and Governing Body Fellow at Wolfson College, Oxford. He was formerly the Alfred Landecker Professor of Values and Public Policy at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford and Governing Body Fellow at Wolfson College. Prior to his joining the Blavatnik School in 2016, Woolf's academic career had been spent at University College London (UCL), where he was, latterly, Professor of Philosophy and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities.
Jonathan Wolff | |
|---|---|
 Wolff in 2012 | |
| Born | 25 June 1959 England |
| Alma mater | University College London |
| Era | Contemporary philosophy |
| Region | Western philosophy |
| School | Analytic philosophy |
| Institutions | University College London (1986 – 2016), Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford (2016 – 2024) |
| Academic advisors | G. A. Cohen |
Main interests | Political philosophy |
Life and career
editWolff was born on 25 June 1959 to Herbert Wolff and Doris Wolff (née Polakoff).[1] He earned his Master of Philosophy from UCL under the direction of G.A. Cohen in 1985.[2][3] Following a year spent as a Harkness Fellow at Harvard University, he taught at UCL thereafter until 2016, ending his career there as Professor of Philosophy and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities.[4] From 2016 until 2020, he held the Blavatnik Chair in Public Policy in the Blavatnik School of Government at Oxford University.[5][6] He was then Alfred Landecker Professor of Values and Public Policy at the same school. He is, as of autumn 2024, Senior Research Fellow in Philosophy and Public Policy and Governing Body Fellow at Wolfson College, Oxford.[7]
He was formerly the secretary of the British Philosophical Association and has been Editor and then honorary secretary of the Aristotelian Society, which publishes Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society. Recently, Wolff's work has specialised in disadvantage and equality and public policy decision making.
As a scholar on the topic of Marxism, Wolff published "Marx and Exploitation", an article about Marxist thinking, in The Journal of Ethics.[8] He also co-edited (with Michael Rosen) Political Thought, an introductory reader on political philosophy.[9][10]
He has also published a critique of Robert Nozick's Anarchy, State, and Utopia called Robert Nozick: Property, Justice and the Minimal State,[11] a short book on Karl Marx, Why Read Marx Today?, and An Introduction to Political Philosophy. He has also written columns for The Guardian and occasional posts at Brian Leiter's "Leiter Reports" blog.[12][13]
Jonathan Wolff presented a four-part series about the UK's National Health Service (NHS) for the BBC's Radio 3 programme 'The Essay' during the week of 27 July 2009.[14] The series, entitled "Doctoring Philosophy", marked the 60th anniversary of the NHS and commenced by studying the philosophical background which led to the foundation of the service and the changing definitions of sickness and health. It went on to explore entitlement, issues of equality of service, and issues of priorities in a world of universal access.
He was a member of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics (2008–2014) and served on two of the council's working parties; on the ethics of animal research,[15] and the ethics of personalised healthcare.[16]
Wolff was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 2023.[17]
Works
edit- Books
- Robert Nozick: Property, Justice and the Minimal State. Oxford: Polity in association with Basil Blackwell. 1991. ISBN 978-0-7456-0603-3.[18]
- An Introduction to Political Philosophy (3rd ed.). Oxford Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press. 2015. ISBN 9780199658015.
- with Rosen, Michael (1999). Political Thought. Oxford Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-289278-2.
- Why Read Marx Today?. Oxford Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press. 2002. ISBN 978-0-19-280335-1.
- with de Shalit', Avner (2007). Disadvantage. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-927826-8.
- Ethics and Public Policy: A Philosophical Inquiry. Abingdon: Routledge. 2011. ISBN 9780415668538.[19]
- The Human Right to Health. New York: W. W. Norton & Company. 2012. ISBN 978-0-393-07900-5.
- Journal articles
- Wolff, Jonathan (December 2003). "Scanlon on well-being". Ratio. 16 (4): 332–345. doi:10.1046/j.1467-9329.2003.00227.x.
- See also: Scanlon, T.M. (December 2003). "Replies". Ratio. 16 (4): 424–439. doi:10.1046/j.1467-9329.2003.00231.x.
References
edit- ^ "Wolff, Prof. Jonathan". Who's Who 2014. A & C Black. December 2013. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
- ^ Wolff, Jonathan. "Personal Homepage". University College London. Archived from the original on 11 November 2014. Retrieved 11 December 2007.
- ^ O'Grady, Jane (10 August 2009). "GA Cohen". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
- ^ "Jonathan Wolff". Wolfson College. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
- ^ "Wolff from UCL to Oxford". 27 April 2016.
- ^ "Jo Wolff BSG". Jo Wolff BSG. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
- ^ "Jonathan Wolff | Blavatnik School of Government". www.bsg.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
- ^ Wolff, Jonathan (1999). "Marx and Exploitation". The Journal of Ethics. 3 (2): 105–120. ISSN 1382-4554.
- ^ "Back Matter". Proceedings and Addresses of the American Philosophical Association. 73 (3): 165. 2000. ISSN 0065-972X.
- ^ Rosen, Michael; Wolff, Jonathan; McKinnon, Catriona, eds. (1999). Political thought. Oxford readers. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-289278-2.
- ^ Ryan, Cheyney (1993). "Review of Robert Nozick--Property, Justice, and the Minimal State". Mind. 102 (406): 403–405. ISSN 0026-4423.
- ^ "Jonathan Wolff | The Guardian". www.theguardian.com. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
- ^ "Leiter Reports: A Philosophy Blog". Leiter Reports: A Philosophy Blog. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
- ^ "BBC Radio 3 – The Essay, Doctoring Philosophy". BBC. 31 July 2009. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
- ^ "Nuffield Council on Bioethics official website-animal research". Archived from the original on 6 August 2014. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
- ^ "Nuffield Council on Bioethics official website-personalised healthcare". Archived from the original on 1 August 2014. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
- ^ "Professor Jonathan Wolff FBA". The British Academy. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
- ^ Ryan, Alan (1992). "Review of Robert Nozick: Property, Justice, and the Minimal State". Ethics. 103 (1): 154–157. ISSN 0014-1704 – via JSTOR.
- ^ Halliday, Daniel (11 December 2011). "Review of Ethics and Public Policy: A Philosophical Inquiry". Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews. ISSN 1538-1617.
External links
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