Onora O'Neill Quotes
Onora O'Neill is a British philosopher and Crossbench member of the House of Lords, formerly principal of Newnham College, Cambridge, whose work has shaped contemporary Kantian ethics, bioethics, and political philosophy. Constructions of Reason and Towards Justice and Virtue developed a constructivist reading of Kant's practical philosophy in which obligations are derived from principles of action that all rational agents can share, while A Question of Trust applied her ethical framework to the institutions of public communication and journalism. The quotes below are attributed to Onora O'Neill, organized by topic.
Onora O'Neill on Freedom
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Attributed to Onora O'Neill:
“Autonomy is not a feature of separate agents; it is the practice of giving and asking for reasons.”
Onora O'Neill on Justice
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Attributed to Onora O'Neill:
“Universal principles are tested by what they require of all of us, not by what they grant to each.”
Onora O'Neill on Politics
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Attributed to Onora O'Neill:
“What we owe each other in public life are the conditions of intelligent trust.”
Onora O'Neill on Truth
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Attributed to Onora O'Neill:
“Trust is not a substitute for evidence; it is what makes evidence possible.”
Onora O'Neill on Virtue
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Attributed to Onora O'Neill:
“Bioethics is moral philosophy in the practical mood.”