Tom Sorell

Tom Sorell (born 24 October 1951) is a Canadian philosopher based in the UK. His work mainly concerns the theory of knowledge, the philosophy of science, early modern philosophy, ethics and political philosophy. He is noted for his writings on Hobbes, scientism and applied ethics. Since 2008, he has worked in ethics and technology both as a researcher and as a consultant. He is the author of Hobbes; Descartes (1987); Moral Theory and Capital Punishment (1987); Scientism (1992); Business Ethics (with John Hendry) (1994); Moral Theory and Anomaly (1999); Descartes Reinvented (2005); and Emergencies and Politics (2013).

Early life and education Sorell was born in Mexico City in 1951 to European migrants. The family moved to Vancouver, Canada in 1956 and to Montreal in 1961. He attended the High School of Montreal, entered McGill University in 1968, and graduated in 1972, when he won the Prince of Wales Gold Medal in philosophy. In 1973, he began his BPhil in Philosophy at Balliol College, Oxford, England. He was taught by John McDowell, Gareth Evans, John Mackie, and Simon Blackburn. Supervised by B.F. McGuinness, he wrote a thesis on the deep continuity between Wittgenstein's Tractatus and his very late work, On Certainty. After completing his BPhil, Sorell wrote a thesis under the supervision of David Pears, defending a version of the causal theory of knowledge. He was awarded the Oxford DPhil in 1978.

Work Sorell has published extensively in early modern philosophy, especially on Hobbes and Descartes, and has co-edited article collections on history of philosophy and analytic philosophy, on the relationship of canonical to non-canonical figures in early modern philosophy, and on the relationship between ancient and modern philosophers. He claims that history of philosophy and problem-solving analytic philosophy can be highly complementary. His Descartes Reinvented (2005) and Emergencies and Politics: A Sober Hobbesian Approach (2013) are applications of his views on how to harmonise the disciplines of problem-solving analytic philosophy and history of philosophy. His book Scientism: Philosophy and the Infatuation with Science (1991) articulates a pro-science position while criticising what Sorell sees as a tendency, especially in American philosophy, to overvalue science and overdo naturalism. In ethics, Sorell defends theory against the claims of anti-theorists, including Bernard Williams. His work in applied ethics concerns capital punishment, technology, including robotics and AI, surveillance, privacy, counter-terrorism, organised crime, emergency ethics including pandemic ethics, microfinance, and responsibility in the 2008 financial crisis. His latest work considers the various harms involved in several kinds of online crime and retaliation against online crime. His work in applied ethics is regularly pursued with practitioners in various fields, including law enforcement, intelligence services, technology, business, healthcare and politics .

Major publications with Dempsey, J and Cowton, C. eds. Business Ethics After the Financial Crisis (Routledge, 2019) with K. Kadjimatheou, J. Guelke eds. Security Ethics (Routledge, 2016) with L Cabera, eds. Microfinance, Rights and Global Justice (Cambridge University Press, 2015) Emergencies and Politics (Cambridge University Press, 2013) with Jill Kraye and John Rogers, eds. Scientia in Early Modern Philosophy (Springer, 2009). with Jill Kraye and John Rogers, eds. Insiders and Outsiders in Early Modern Philosophy (Routledge, 2009). Descartes Reinvented (Cambridge University Press, 2005). with John Rogers, eds. Analytic Philosophy and History of Philosophy (Oxford University Press, 2005). with L. Foisneau and J-C Merle, eds. Leviathan Between the Wars: Hobbes’s Impact on Early Twentieth Century Political Philosophy (Peter Lang, 2005). with L. Foisneau, eds. Leviathan After 350 Years (Oxford University Press, 2004). With John Rogers, eds. Hobbes and History (Routledge, 2000). ed. Descartes. Dartmouth Readings in the History of Philosophy (Ashgate, 1999). Moral Theory and Anomaly. Aristotelian Society Monograph Series (Blackwell, 1999). ed. Health Care, Ethics, and Insurance (Routledge, 1998). with R. Ariew, J. Cottingham, eds. and trans. Descartes: Background Source Materials (Cambridge University Press, 1998). ed. The Cambridge Companion to Hobbes, 3rd edn (Cambridge University Press, 1996). ed. The Rise of Modern Philosophy (Oxford University Press, 1993). Descartes (Oxford University Press, 1987) [repr. in the Oxford Past Masters and Very Short Introductions series, and widely translated].