Moral Philosopher O’Neill To Deliver Hourani Lectures At UB

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Timely and undying issues about ethics and politics will be analyzed by Onora O'Neill, one of the world's most respected moral philosophers, during the six-part George Hourani Lectures in Moral Philosophy, to be held next month at UB.

"Action, Reason and Judgment" is the title of the series, which will be held at 4 p.m. April 4, 6, 7, 11 and 14 in 280 Park Hall on the UB North Campus. The April 12 lecture will be held in 141 Park Hall. The lectures will be free and open to the public, but pre-registration is requested. Call 645-2444, ext. 132, for more information and reservations.

In each lecture, O'Neill will propose ways of thinking about various components of the general topic of ethics and politics that meet demands that often are thought to be incompatible. They are "Thinking About Action, "April 4; "Thinking About Practical Reason," April 6; "Thinking About Reason and Normalcy," April 7; "Thinking About Judgment and Institutions," April 11; "Thinking About Human Diversity," April 12 and "Thinking About Boundaries," April 14.

Principal of Newnham College at Cambridge, England, O'Neill insists that philosophy has practical implications. She was made a life peer as Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve for her leadership on such issues as hunger, justice and bioethics.

She has written widely on ethics and political philosophy, particularly on questions of international justice and the philosophy of Immanuel Kant.

Her books include "Faces of Hunger: An Essay on Poverty, Development and Justice," "Constructions of Reason: Exploration of Kant's Practical Philosophy" and "Towards Justice and Virtue."

The biennial George Hourani Lectures in Moral Philosophy honors the former chair of the UB Department of Philosophy, part of the College of Arts and Sciences. One of the world's foremost scholars in Islamic philosophy and Near East studies, Hourani died in 1984.