New Books
Braham: The Life of David Hume
This book (first published in 1931) is not one of the most important or original on Hume, but it renders a sympathetic account of his character and a fair exposition of some of his main doctrines.
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J. A. Farrer: Adam Smith
A lucid exposition of Smith's ethical theory as set out in The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759) and - surprisingly - was the first full length English book to be published on his philosophy.
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M. Forbes: Beattie and his Friends
Though James Beattie (1735-1803) was not a philosopher of the first rank, he was a prominent figure in the Scottish Enlightenment. He held the chair of moral philosophy at Marischal College Aberdeen from 1760 until 1797 and also enjoyed some reputation as a poet. This standard biography was written by his great-grand-niece, who inherited his papers.
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J. Martin Stafford: Essays on Sexuality and Ethics
Ten essays, nine of which were originally published in scholarly journals.
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J. Martin Stafford (ed.): Private Vices, Publick Benefits?
The Contemporary Reception of Bernard Mandeville, a Collection of 16 books, articles, pamphlets, etc. written mainly during the 1720's in response to The Fable of the Bees.
Edited and introduced by J. Martin Stafford.
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J. Martin Stafford: The Prosecutor Unmask'd
Four Dialogues...Occasioned by the Prosecution of Michael Le Vell
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J. Martin Stafford: Ched Evans Vindicated
In April 2012, Sheffield United and Welsh International footballer Ched Evans was wrongly convicted of rape on the most tenuous and controversial evidence. He served 2½ years of a five-year sentence. He consistently maintained his innocence. After four long years, his conviction was overturned, and at a retrial in October 2016 he was speedily and unanimously acquitted.
The author discusses the many issues raised by this case. He criticises the Crown Prosecution Service, the first jury, and the Court of Appeal for their roles in this long-running miscarriage of justice; castigates the media for promoting a hostile climate of near-hysteria; and reproves politicians for their unprincipled attitude.
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J. Martin Stafford: Herbert Spencer - a Bicentenary Tribute
Herbert Spencer was born in Derby on 27 April 1820. He grew up to be one of Victorian England’s most original thinkers and, as the author of twenty-one volumes, one of our most prolific philosophical and scientific writers. Though highly respected both at home and abroad in his lifetime, after his death Spencer became somewhat neglected and even disparaged. Martin Stafford highlights some of his achievements in epistemology and ethics and insists that his ideas are still worthy of serious study.
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