Research areas
My current research centres around two questions. Is there a God? What do we owe to future people?
1. Moral and Metaphysical Arguments for Ananthropocentric Purposivism.
This project explores the relationships between moral philosophy and an underdeveloped alternative to both atheism and traditional theism, namely: Ananthropocentric Purposivism (AP). This the view that the universe has a non-human-centred purpose ? one to which human beings are irrelevant. AP is agnostic whether a purpose requires a personal creator. AP is worth exploring in part because it is a comparatively unexplored option ? a middle-ground between atheism and classical theism. I argue that the metaphysical case supporting AP is at least as strong as that supporting either theism or atheism ? by borrowing the best anti-theist arguments from atheists and the best anti-atheist arguments from theists. I also argue that we cannot settle the metaphysical dispute without bringing in moral judgments, and that those judgments favour AP. In short, either metaphysics supports AP, or metaphysics leaves the choice open ? and then morality supports AP. Finally, AP has implications for moral philosophy ? supporting a liberal impartial morality built on genuinely objective values. AP offers more robust values than atheism; and a more robust response to evil than theism.
2. Ethics for a broken world. This project explores the morality of life within a broken world ? a place where resources are insufficient to meet the basic needs of the population. As a result of climate change, this may well be the world our descendants will inherit. I argue that utilitarianism copes with the bleak realities of a broken world, while various barriers we erect against the demands of utilitarianism (notably individual rights and national boundaries) become untenable in such a world. This project also extends my earlier work on our own obligations to future people, asking how the future prospect of a broken world affects those obligations.
Selected publications
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Answering to future people: responsibility for climate change in a breaking world
Mulgan, T., Aug 2018, In : Journal of Applied Philosophy. 35, 3, p. 532-548Research output: Contribution to journal ? Article
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Corporate agency and possible futures
Mulgan, T., 3 May 2018, In : Journal of Business Ethics. First Online, 16 p.Research output: Contribution to journal ? Article
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Beyond theism and atheism: axiarchism and ananthropocentric purposivism
Mulgan, T., Jun 2017, In : Philosophy Compass. 12, 6, e12420.Research output: Contribution to journal ? Article
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Climate Change and Moral Philosophy
Mulgan, T. P., 2017, Climate Change and the Humanities. Elliott, A., Cullis, J. & Damodaran, V. (eds.). Palgrave Macmillan, p. 247-265Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding ? Chapter
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How should utilitarians think about the future?
Mulgan, T., 2017, In : Canadian Journal of Philosophy. 47, 2-3, p. 290-312 23 p.Research output: Contribution to journal ? Article
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Can the best possible world contain death?
Mulgan, T. P., 2016, Death and Anti-Death. Tandy, C. (ed.). ria university press, p. 113-168Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding ? Chapter
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Theorising about justice for a broken world
Mulgan, T. P., 2016, Theorizing Justice: Critical Insights and Future Directions. Watene, K. & Drydyk, J. (eds.). Rowman and Littlefield International, p. 15-32Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding ? Chapter
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Purpose in the universe: the moral and metaphysical case for ananthropocentic purposivism
Mulgan, T., 2015, Oxford: Oxford University Press. 435 p.Research output: Book/Report ? Book
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Utilitarianism for a Broken World
Mulgan, T. P., 2015, In : Utilitas. 27, p. 92-114Research output: Contribution to journal ? Article
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Ethics for Possible Futures
Mulgan, T. P., 2014, In : Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society. 114, p. 57-73Research output: Contribution to journal ? Article