Simon Keller, “Partiality” (Princeton UP, 2013)
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What is the central moral conflict between equality and partiality that frames the episode?
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Welcome to the New Books and Philosophy channel of the New Books Network. My name is Robert Talice. I'm professor of philosophy at Vanderbilt University. I co host the channel with Carrie Figger. Carrie is associate professor of philosophy at the University of Iowa. Today, my guest is Professor Simon Keller. We'll be talking about his new book. Partiality. Which is newly published with Princeton University Press. Simon is associate professor of philosophy. at Victoria University in Wellington. Our moral lives are shaped. By a deep commitment to the moral equality of all persons. This thought drives us to think, for example That each person's life is of equal moral importance. That each person is deserving of equal moral regard.
And that no one's life is intrinsically more morally important than any other's. However Our lives are also organized around what might be called special relationships. These are friendships, marriages, familiar relations, and such These relationships carry with them duties and to show certain others a special kind of regard. Indeed, we would find fault with a father who did not show. A certain degree of partiality for his own children. There seems to be a conflict here. And in order to manage it. We need a clear account of the moral nature of duties and reasons of partiality. In his new book, Partiality Simon Keller considers many of the leading accounts of partiality and finds them lacking. So he develops an original view according to which our reasons and duties of partiality arise from the relationships that we share with others which permit us to respond properly to the value of those individuals.
Yeah. Partiality is an intriguing and rich book. So let's turn to the interview. Hello Simon Keller.
Hi Bob.
How are you doing today?
I'm not too bad. It's uh it's morning here in Wellington and um Excellent. Listening to the sound of jackhammers outside my window, but otherwise doing well.
Well, we can't we can't hear the jackhammers here, which is good. Um thank you so much for joining us on New Books and Philosophy today.
Thanks, and thank you very much for having me.
Sure, no problem today on New Books in Philosophy. My guest is Simon Keller. His new book is titled Partiality. And it's just been published with Princeton University Press. Now this is a concise um but don't let the the the shortness of the book fool you. It is a very deep and rigorously argued book that's devoted to a longstanding and I think very deep problem in moral philosophy and I should say in in moral life. That problem uh is this, very roughly. Um, it seems that we're committed to the idea that every person is of equal moral value or is a moral equal in some sense.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the central moral conflict between equality and partiality that frames the episode?
0:00–8:01
2
How does Simon Keller define the “partiality puzzle” and why does it matter for moral theory?
8:01–20:13
3
What is Bernard Williams’s drowning‑wife scenario and what philosophical problem does it illustrate?
20:13–30:17
4
How does Keller critique the “project view” and the “relationships view” of partiality?
30:17–50:57
5
What role does the phenomenology of love and special regard play in Keller’s account?
50:57–1:01:37
6
Why does Keller argue that the value of individuals, not relationships, grounds partiality?
1:01:37–1:05:02
7
What are the broader ethical implications of Keller’s view for marriage, parenting, and social policy?
1:05:02–1:05:48
8
What are the key take‑aways and virtues of Keller’s partiality theory as the discussion wraps up?
1:05:48–1:05:49
Speakers
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Rivka Weinberg, "The Meaning of It All: Ultimate Meaning, Everyday Meaning, Cosmic Meaning, Death, and Time" (Oxford UP, 2026)
PJ DiPietro, "Sideways Selves Travesti and Jotería, "Struggles Across the Américas" (U Texas Press, 2025)