Thomas V. Morris

Thomas V. Morris (born 1952), is an American philosopher. He is a former professor of philosophy at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana. He is a founder of the Morris Institute for Human Values, and author of several books. He is also a business and motivational speaker, applying philosophical themes and concepts to business and professional life.

Morris's work explores the 20th century's focus on technical efforts in analytic philosophy as having given philosophy the image of an arcane or irrelevant endeavor. His work often has the aim of making philosophy widely accessible, rediscovering the practical side of philosophy, and introducing people to the themes and philosophers.

Early life
Morris was born and grew up in North Carolina. He graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a Morehead Scholar, and holds a Ph.D. in Philosophy and Religious Studies from Yale University. UNC has honored him with the "Distinguished Young Alumnus Award".

Academia
Morris has made many academic contributions to the philosophy of religion and theology. For fifteen years Morris served as a professor of philosophy at the University of Notre Dame. One of his earliest publications in philosophical theology was The Logic of God Incarnate (1986). Other academic publications include Anselmian Explorations: Essays in Philosophical Theology (1987), Divine and Human Action: Essays in the Metaphysics of Theism (1988), Philosophy and the Christian Faith (1988), Our Idea of God (1991), and God and the Philosophers: The Reconciliation of Faith and Reason.

Popular philosophy and motivational speaking
Morris' books include Francis Schaeffer's Apologetics: A Critique, Understanding Identity Statements, The Logic of God Incarnate, Anselmian Explorations, The Concept of God, Our Idea of God, The Bluffer's Guide to Philosophy, Philosophy and the Christian Faith, Divine and Human Action, Our Idea of God, Making Sense of It All, God and the Philosophers, Philosophy for Dummies, True Success, The Art of Achievement, If Aristotle Ran General Motors, The Stoic Art of Living, Superheroes and Philosophy, and his latest text, If Harry Potter Ran General Electric.

Morris seeks to make philosophy interesting, intelligible, and practical to the ordinary person. Early in his academic career, he authored a privately circulated project, The Bluffer's Guide to Philosophy and the popular Making Sense of It All: Pascal and the Meaning of Life.

In Making Sense of It All (1992), Morris examines Christian philosopher Blaise Pascal. In this book, Morris highlights Pascal's observation that diversion is one of the greatest spiritual dangers of our age. Morris argues that diversion can only keep the "big questions" about the meaning of life at bay for so long. He points out that people are hungry to engage in intelligent dialogue about the purpose and meaning of life. He draws from Pascal's view in the Pensées that people need to understand the larger context of their lives in order to determine how to live. As people confront ethical dilemmas in everyday life, they begin to ask more probing questions that eventually lead to ultimate questions about life, death, morality, value, meaning, and purpose.

Morris continued to popularize philosophy and foster reflections on life and its meaning in his works: Philosophy for Dummies, True Success, If Aristotle Ran General Motors (1998), The Art of Achievement, and The Stoic Art of Living, in which he applies the ideas of Epictetus, Seneca and Marcus Aurelius to contemporary life.

Castellano et al. describe If Aristotle Ran General Motors as "compelling" and "persuasive" in arguing that in addition to codes of conduct and ethical guidelines, the creation of an ethical workplace climate requires "socially harmonious relationships" to be embedded in practice.

In 2006, Morris published If Harry Potter Ran General Electric. In this work, he explores the philosophical implications and themes from the popular children's classics by J.K. Rowling and applied them to lessons in leadership and ethics. Morris also edited a volume of new essays from world philosophers and some of the top pop culture superhero comic book writers, entitled Superheroes and Philosophy, with his son Matt Morris.

In addition to his writing and lectures, Morris has appeared on television in a segment on ethics for The Learning Channel, and as the philosophic face of Winnie the Pooh for Disney Home Video. He has also made guest appearances on such network shows as NBC's Today Show and Regis Philbin's morning show.

Morris is the founder and chairman of the Morris Institute for Human Values, based in Wilmington, North Carolina.