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The whiteboard in John Harris’s office declares: “John is cool.” Many hold a different opinion of one of the most controversial philosophers in Britain. Here are some of his views: abortion and euthanasia are both fine, desirable even; parents should be allowed to create designer or cloned babies; there’s nothing wrong with a drug-fuelled Olympics; scientists and medics should strive to make us immortal, even on a crowded planet; our bodies should be routinely plundered after death for organs, even if the dead and bereaved do not wish it; it is morally justified to compel people to participate in scientific trials, just as we compel them to do jury service.
Harris believes in plain speaking. Every argument, he suggests, should be reduced to its least palatable form to see if it is ethically digestible: “I believe there is a moral imperative to describe things in their most uncongenial way, to see if we really could become comfortable with them. For example, when I defend abortion, I don’t insist on calling it termination of pregnancy. I’m prepared to say that I...
Harris believes in plain speaking. Every argument, he suggests, should be reduced to its least palatable form to see if it is ethically digestible: “I believe there is a moral imperative to describe things in their most uncongenial way, to see if we really could become comfortable with them. For example, when I defend abortion, I don’t insist on calling it termination of pregnancy. I’m prepared to say that I...