Richard V. Greene, Ph.D.
Professor of Philosophy, Weber State University
Director, Richard Richards Institute for Ethics
Commissioning Editor, The Philosophers' Magazine
Past Director, Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl
Past Director, Society for Skeptical Studies
Education
Ph.D., University of California, Santa Barbara 1998
C.Phil., University of California, Santa Barbara 1995
M.A., University of California, Santa Barbara 1995
M.A., San Francisco State University 1992
B.S., California State University, Stanislaus 1989
Primary Research Areas
Epistemology
Metaphysics
Aesthetics
Intersection of Philosophy and Pop Culture
Courses I Teach Somewhat Regularly
Introduction to Philosophy
Contemporary Moral Problems
Deductive Logic
Epistemology
Philosophy of Language
Philosophy of Mind
Existentialism
Metaphysics of Death
Persistence
Publications
63. Post-Punk and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene and J. Heter (Eds.), Carus Books (forthcoming Fall 2023).
62. The Godfather and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene and J. Heter (Eds.), Carus Books (forthcoming Spring 2023).
61. “Ethics Bowl for an Uncivil World” in Blog of the APA. https://blog.apaonline.org/2022/10/13/ethics-bowl-for-an-uncivil-world/
60. Greene, R. “Russian Doll as Philosophy: Life Is Like a Box of Timelines.” In: The Palgrave Handbook of Popular Culture as Philosophy. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. (Fall 2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-97134-6_54-1
59. Punk and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene and J. Heter (Eds.), Carus Books (Fall 2022).
58. “Use of Ethical Theory and Research in Ethics Bowl Preparation” in The Ethics Bowl Way, R. Israeloff and L. Mizell (Eds.) Rowman and Littlefield (Spring 2022).
57. Conspiracy Theories in the Time of Coronavirus (co-authored with R. Robison-Greene), Carus Books (Spring 2022).
56. The Ultimate Supernatural and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene (Ed.), Carus Books, (Spring 2022).
55. “Lyra, A Spyglass, and Bears!” in His Dark Materials and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison-Greene (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press (Fall 2020).
54. His Dark Materials and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison-Greene (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press (Fall 2020). This is an updated and expanded edition of our The Golden Compass and Philosophy. It contains a number of new articles and additional front-matter.
53. “Science Fiction and the Multiple Engagement Paradox of Spoilers” in Proceedings of the 2019 Science Fictions, Popular Culture Academic Conference, Slater, T. F., & Cole, C. J. (Eds), Hilo: Pono Publishing (Spring 2020).
52. Conspiracy Theories: Philosophers Connect the Dots, R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press (Spring 2020).
51. Spoiler Alert! It’s a Book about the Philosophy of Spoilers, Open Court Publishers Press (Spring 2019).
50. “The United States of Gilead?” in The Handmaid’s Tale and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Robison-Greene (Ed.), Open Court Publishers Press, (Fall 2018).
49. Westworld and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & J. Heter (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (Fall 2018).
48. “Persuade Me Once, Shame on Me…” in Scott Adams and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), D. Yim, G. Foresman & R. Arp (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (Fall 2018).
47. Twin Peaks and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (Spring 2018).
46. “My Sister, My Self” in American Horror Story and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2017).
45. American Horror Story and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2017).
44. “What Elliot Doesn’t Know Won’t Kill Us (Or Will It?) in Mr. Robot and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2017).
43. Mr. Robot and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2017).
42. “For Hume the Ball Tolls” in Peanuts and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2016).
41. Peanuts and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2016).
40. Orphan Black and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2016).
39. “Who Should Have Won the Battle of Wits” in The Princess Bride and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2015).
38. The Princess Bride and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2015).
37. “My Zombie, Myself” in The Ultimate Walking Dead and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), W. Yuen (Ed.), Open Court Publishers Press, forthcoming 2016.
36. “A Review of A Critical Introduction to Skepticism” by Allan Hazlett. Teaching Philosophy (2015).
35. “The Litchfield Prisoner’s Dilemma” in Orange Is the New Black and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2015).
34. Orange Is the New Black and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2015).
33. “A Review of Virtues In Action: New Essays In Applied Virtue Ethics” edited by Michael W. Austin.” Teaching Philosophy (2015).
32. Girls and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2014).
31. “Why Girls Can’t Be Spoiled” in Girls and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2014).
30. “There and Bat Again (A Vampire’s Journey)” in Dracula and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), N. Michaud (Ed.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2014).
29. Boardwalk Empire and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2013).
28. “Nucky Thompson Superman” in Boardwalk Empire and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2013).
27. “A Review of What to Believe Now: Applying Epistemology to Contemporary Issues, by David Coady.” Teaching Philosophy, Volume 36, Issue 1, (2013).
26. “Everything You Always Wanted To Know About What Your Zombie Knows But Were Afraid To Ask!” in The Walking Dead and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), W. Yuen (Ed.), Open Court Publishers Press, 2012.
25. Dexter and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison, and George Reisch (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2011).
24. “Is Dexter Morgan Practically Perfect in Every Way? In Dexter and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison, and George Reisch (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2011).
23. “Twelve-Bar Zombies: Wittgensteinian Reflections on The Blues” The Blues and Philosophy (Philosophy for Everyone Series), A. Fairweather (Ed.), Blackwell-Wiley, (2010).
22. Zombies, Vampires and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & K. Silem Mohammad (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2010). This is an updated and expanded edition of our The Undead and Philosophy. It contains a number of new articles and additional front-matter.
21. “Why the Dead Choose Death” in The Golden Compass and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2009). Reprinted in His Dark Materials and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison-Greene (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2020).
20. The Golden Compass and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & R. Robison (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2009).
19. “’I’m Not That Girl’: Actions, Nature, and Reputation in Wicked” in The Wizard of Oz and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Auxier and P. Seng (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2008).
18. “Quentin Tarantino and the Ex-Convict’s Dilemma” in Quentin Tarantino and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & K. Mohammad (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2007).
17. Quentin Tarantino and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & K. Mohammad (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2007).
16. “A Review of Duncan Pritchard, Epistemic Luck” Polish Journal of Philosophy, volume 2, number 1 (Spring 2008) with Rachel Robison.
15. “A Worry About Safety” Southwest Philosophy Review volume 23, number 1 (January 2007).
14. “The Pupkin Gambit: Rationality and Irrationality in The King of Comedy” in The Philosophy of Martin Scorsese, Mark T. Conard (Ed.), University Press of Kentucky, (2007).
13. “The Badness of Undeath” in The Undead and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & K. Mohammad (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2006).
12. The Undead and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & K. Mohammad (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2006).
11. “A Puzzle About Epistemic Standards,” Southwest Philosophy Review vol. 21, number 1 (January 2005).
10. “Does the Non-Identity Problem Block a Class of Arguments Against Cloning?,” International Journal of Applied Philosophy, volume 18, number 1 (Spring 2004).
9. “Warranted Regretability Maneuvers and the Deprivation View of Death’s Badness,” in Death and Anti-Death: One Hundred Years After N. F. Fedorov (1829-1903), Charles Tandy (Ed.), Ria University Press/Universal Publishers (2003).
8. “Is Tony Soprano Self-Blind?” in The Sopranos and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & P. Vernezze (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2004).
7. The Sopranos and Philosophy (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), R. Greene & P. Vernezze (Eds.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2004).
6. “Constitutive Theories of Self- Knowledge and the Regress Problem,” Philosophical Papers, volume 32, number 2 (July 2003).
5. “Contextualism and the Fixed Standards Objection,” The Journal of the Utah Academy, (2003).
4. "Immortality, Death, and our Obligations to Future Generations," in The Philosophy of Robert Ettinger, Charles Tandy & Scott R. Stroud (Eds.), Ria University Press/Universal Publishers (2003).
3. “Morality on Television: The Case of Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Philosophy: Fear and Trembling in Sunnydale (Popular Culture & Philosophy Series), J. B. South (Ed.), Open Court Publishers Press, (2003) with Wayne Yuen.
An earlier version of this paper (“Why We Can’t Spike Spike: Moral Thems in Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) appeared in Slayage: The Online Journal of Buffy Studies, vol. 2 (http://slayage.tv). The earlier version has subsequently been translated into German an appears in Buffyverse (http://www.buffyverse.info/article.php?sid=1482&mode=thread&order=0).
2. “A Rejection of the Epistemic Closure Principle,” Southwest Philosophy Review vol.17, number 2 (July 2001).
1. “Two Notions of Warrant and Plantinga’s Solution to the Gettier Problem,” Analysis 57 (April 1997) with N. A. Balmert.
Useful Links
Richard Richards Institute for Ethics
I Think, Therefore I Fan (my pop culture and philosophy podcast)
Contact Information
Dr. Richard Greene
Email: rgreene@weber.edu
Office: Lindquist Hall 144
Office Phone: 801-626-6694
Weber State University
Department of Political Science and Philosophy
1299 Edvalson Street; Dept 1204
Ogden, UT 84408-1204