Steve Viner
Office
Twilight Hall 303B
Tel
(802) 443-5708
Email
sviner@middlebury.edu
Office Hours
S24: Tuesdays & Thursdays 12:30-2:00 or by appointment.

Steve Viner earned his PhD in philosophy from Washington University in St. Louis. He also has a JD from William Mitchell College of Law, an MA from Marquette University and a BA from St. John’s University. Before going to graduate school to get his PhD, he practiced law in both the private and public sectors.

Professor Viner’s primary area of research concerns moral issues pertaining to the law, including international laws and conflicts. He is the editor of a book titled The Morality of War: Classical and Contemporary Readings (Pearson Prentice Hall 2006). Currently, he is working on projects concerning the moral legitimacy of a State, the moral rights and norms applicable to armed humanitarian intervention, and the punishment of combatants who fight on the unjust side of a war.

He teaches classes in ethics, social and political philosophy and legal philosophy.

Courses Taught

Course Description

The Philosophy of Human Rights
What are human rights? What duties, if any, flow from them, and who is morally obligated to bear those duties? In this course, we will investigate the philosophical origins and development of the concept of human rights. We will critically analyze both historical and contemporary moral perspectives on the existence and nature of human rights. What does it mean to say that one possesses a human right? In addition to examining the existence and nature of human rights, we will take a closer look at the issue of human rights related to world poverty and humanitarian intervention. 3 hrs. sem.

Terms Taught

Fall 2022

Requirements

CW, PHL

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Course Description

Conflict Transformation: Approaches and Skills
This course will introduce to students to a variety of approaches to conflict transformation (CT), including intercultural competence, mediation, restorative practices, and structured dialogue. CT skills enrich classroom learning and prepare students to be effective citizens in a polarized public square. To transform conflict, we must first understand the nature of conflict and then develop tools to build healthy relationships and communities – locally, nationally, and globally. Students will learn about the drivers of conflict and then practice CT skills in the course. This course is part of a Middlebury-wide CT initiative, and this course foundational for students who wish to pursue practicum or research opportunities in other CT programs.

Terms Taught

Winter 2023

Requirements

SOC, WTR

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Course Description

Contemporary Moral Issues
We will examine a selection of pressing moral problems of our day, seeking to understand the substance of the issues and learning how moral arguments work. We will focus on developing our analytical skills, which we can then use to present and criticize arguments on difficult moral issues. Selected topics may include world poverty, animal rights, abortion, euthanasia, human rights, just and unjust wars, capital punishment, and racial and gender issues. You will be encouraged to question your own beliefs on these issues, and in the process to explore the limit and extent to which ethical theory can play a role in everyday ethical decision making. 2 hrs.lect./1 hr. disc.

Terms Taught

Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023

Requirements

PHL

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Course Description

Privilege and Poverty: the Ethics of Economic Inequality
In this course we will study the ethical implications of domestic and global economic inequality. Drawing from history, economics, sociology, philosophy, theology, and other disciplines, we will examine the causes and consequences of inequality, critically evaluate our usage of the terms “privilege” and “poverty,” and consider the range of moral responses individuals and society might have to inequality. We will ask whether it is unfair, unfortunate, or necessary that some citizens live with significantly less material wealth than others, and whether those who experience “privilege” have any moral responsibility to those who exist in “poverty.” (not open to students who have taken RELI/INTD 0298) 3 hrs. lect./1 hr. disc.

Terms Taught

Spring 2020

Requirements

PHL, SOC

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Course Description

The Philosophy of Human Rights
What is a human right? If there are human rights, what moral obligations, if any, follow from them, and who bears those obligations? In this course, we will investigate the philosophical origins and development of the concept of human rights. We will critically analyze both historical and contemporary moral perspectives concerning the existence and nature of human rights. What does it mean to say one possesses a human right? We will also take a close look at the issue of human rights as they relate to world poverty and humanitarian intervention. Authors will include Hobbes, Bentham, Rorty, Nickel, and Pogge. (Not open to students who have taken FYSE 1317).

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Spring 2024

Requirements

PHL

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Course Description

Morality & War
Are there any Just Wars? What would make a war a Just War? In the first part of this course we will investigate the historical origins of Just War Theory. In the second part, we will analyze contemporary moral perspectives on whether war can be morally justified and if so, what actions in war are morally justified or prohibited. In the final part, we will read articles concerning war and humanitarian intervention and on what actions, e.g. punishment, are morally permissible or demanded after war. Authors will include Augustine, Grotius, Nagel, Walzer, Luban. 3 hrs. lect.

Terms Taught

Fall 2021, Fall 2023

Requirements

PHL

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Course Description

Philosophy of Law
In this course we shall consider a number of questions concerning law and its institution in human society. What is the origin and authority of law? What is legal obligation? What is the connection between law and coercion, between law and morality, and law and rights? Are laws merely conventions or is there a law of nature? What is the role of law in judicial decisions and the effect of these on the law? We shall also consider and evaluate various theories of law: natural law theories, utilitarian theories, analytical philosophy of law, critical legal studies, feminist theories. (formerly PHIL 0209) 3 hrs. lect.

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Fall 2022, Spring 2024

Requirements

PHL

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Course Description

Liberalism and Its Critics
Liberal political thought is widely touted and accepted in Western societies. In this course, we will take a close look at what liberalism is by investigating the origins of liberalism in the writings of John Locke and John Stuart Mill and by evaluating the thought of contemporary liberal political philosophers, e.g. John Rawls and Will Kymlicka. We will also analyze the arguments of those like Michael Sandel and Yael Tamir who have criticized liberalism as misguided or incomplete. We seek to gain an understanding of the political and moral principles that give priority to liberty and related values or concepts like toleration, autonomy, and fairness. (One course in philosophy or waiver) 3hrs.

Terms Taught

Spring 2020, Spring 2022

Requirements

CW, PHL

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Course Description

Global Justice
In this course, we will investigate questions of justice that arise in global affairs. We will inquire into whether there are moral principles that
constrain the actions of states and how these principles support a conception of global justice. Also, we will seek to understand what global
responsibilities are entailed by global justice. Specific topics that will be considered include global distributive justice, world poverty, human
rights, humanitarian intervention, and the relationship between global justice and nationalistic moral concerns. Authors will include Beitz,
Nussbaum, O'Neill, Pogge, Rawls, Singer, Miller, and Walzer. 3 hrs. sem.

Terms Taught

Spring 2023

Requirements

PHL

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Course Description

Research in Philosophy
Supervised independent research in philosophy. (Approval required).

Terms Taught

Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Winter 2021, Fall 2021, Winter 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Winter 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Winter 2024, Spring 2024, Fall 2024, Winter 2025, Spring 2025

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Publications

Publications

The Morality of War: Classical and Contemporary Readings, co-editor, with Larry May and Eric Rovie, Pearson Prentice-Hall, 2006.

“State Self-Defense and Guantánamo Bay” in International Criminal Law and Philosophy, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, October 2009, pp. 153-180.

“Fuller’s Concept of Law and Its Cosmopolitan Aims,” Law and Philosophy, Vol. 26, No.1 (Jan. 2007), pp. 1-30.

Presentations

“Self-Defense, Punishing Combatants and Justice in War,” XXIV World Congress of Philosophy of Law and Social Philosophy, Beijing, China, September 2009.

“Was Hobbes a Realist?” Pacific Division Conference – American Philosophical Association, International Hobbes Association, San Francisco, CA, Spring 2007.

“Recognizing State Rights: A Reply to Buchanan and Naticchia,” St. Louis University, Philosophy Department, and Central States Philosophical Association, Memphis, TN, Spring 2006 & 2007.

“On State Self-Defense and Guantánamo Bay,” Central Division Conference – American Philosophical Association, Chicago, IL, Spring 2006.