In this paper I try to defend the notion that the dead can be harmed, in opposition to Callahan and in accord with some ideas of Feinberg. In agreement with Parlit, I argue that the existence of a person has degrees. I suggest that properlies of a subject, such as “reputations” and claims, can persist after death, aIthough the subject as such does not and that these can be harmed. A promise, e.g., can be frustrated merely by being ignored; in (...) that sense a dead person can be wronged, and if wronged, s/he can be harmed. (shrink)

I first met Norman Malcolm in the fall of 1963 when, as a terrified sophomore, I took his course in Free Will and Determinism at Cornell. I believe I had already heard that Malcolm was a figure of almost legendary proportions.

This work is a brief, cogent introduction to the enterprise of Western philosophy. It is designed for the student who has had only a brief introduction or no introduction at all to the development of philosophy, beginning with the Pre-Socratic Period and covering all the major periods in Philosophy up to the present day. This work allows the philosopher to speak in his own voice, through quotation, and is very strong in developing the principal arguments of the thinkers included. It (...) is particularly marked by objectivity and by a lack of technical jargon, and therefore, speaks directly to the student. (shrink)

In this paper I try to defend the notion that the dead can be harmed, in opposition to Callahan and in accord with some ideas of Feinberg. In agreement with Parlit, I argue that the existence of a person has degrees. I suggest that properlies of a subject, such as “reputations” and claims, can persist after death, aIthough the subject as such does not and that these can be harmed. A promise, e.g., can be frustrated merely by being ignored; in (...) that sense a dead person can be wronged, and if wronged, s/he can be harmed. (shrink)

I first met Norman Malcolm in the fall of 1963 when, as a terrified sophomore, I took his course in Free Will and Determinism at Cornell. I believe I had already heard that Malcolm was a figure of almost legendary proportions.

I first met Norman Malcolm in the fall of 1963 when, as a terrified sophomore, I took his course in Free Will and Determinism at Cornell. I believe I had already heard that Malcolm was a figure of almost legendary proportions.