Books by Steven Cahn

Investigates moral issues generated by academic life.

An accessible and engaging introduction to philosophical inquiry, this book concentrates on topics of greatest interest to beginning students: the nature and tools of philosophy, free will, philosophy of religion, ethics, and social philosophy. The work throughout is clearly written and carefully argued.

It is...a refreshing and promising event when an accomplished young philosopher and dedicated teacher like Prof. Cahn turns his mind to the present crisis in higher education and concentrates on some home truths. Prof. Cahn has his eye on the future, not the past. He is as full of divine discontent as contemporaries of his who have acquired a certain flash fame, and he has much more humility. But most important of all, he is concentrating, in this wise and unpretentious little book, on the staple realities of teaching and liberal learning rather than on labels, packaging, cant slogans and messianic expectations. Here is a book which it is a pleasure to commend as a restorative of common sense and, hopefully, of a sense of common educational purposes. Charles Frankel in the Foreword.

"In recent years faculties and administrators alike have become more concerned about ways to improve the quality of classroom teaching. 'Scholars Who Teach' is one of the best books on the subject published this decade. The seven contributors were selected on the basis of their excellence as teachers, and the purpose of the volume is to give them a chance to wirte about their craft and to encourage the reader to think through his or her own approach to the art of teaching. The book deserves to be widely read both by those who want to improve their art and by those who want others to teach well." Charles C. Cole, Jr. Executive Director, The Ohio Program in the Humanities "We may all take some comfort and considerable instruction from 'Scholars Who Teach'. Robert Gurland writes the most brilliant and comprehensive essay on education I have read in several years. His treatise, and this book, are not to be missed." Frank R. Cunningham, 'Change' magazine

In the views of most believers and critics, religion is essentially connected to the existence of a supernatural deity. If supernaturalism is not reasonable, the argument goes, religion cannot be reasonable-or if supernaturalism is reasonable, religion must be as well. Are faith and reason, religion and science, doomed to a constant struggle for the heart of humanity? Steven M. Cahn believes that they are not, that even if God exists, religion may not be justified and that even if religion is justified, belief in God may not be.In Religion Within Reason, Cahn argues that the common understanding of the relationship between religion and supernaturalism is flawed and that while supernaturalism is not reasonable, religious commitment may well be. Writing not as a theist but as one who finds much to admire in a religious life, he examines faith and reason, miracles, heaven and hell, religious diversity, and the problem of evil, using a variety of examples taken from religious thought, literature, and popular culture. Lucidly written in a nonpolemical spirit, Religion Within Reason offers an exciting new approach to the reconciliation of science and religion.

This singular book illustrates how to edit a piece of prose and enhance its clarity of thought and felicity of style. The authors first present ten principles of effective composition, and then scrutinize three extended paragraphs, suggesting with remarkable specificity how to improve them. The volume also offers challenging practice questions, as well as two finished essays, one serious and one humorous, that demonstrate how attention to sound mechanics need not result in mechanical writing. Steven M. Cahn and Victor L. Cahn help readers deploy a host of corrective strategies, such as avoiding jargon, bombast, and redundancy; varying sentence structure; paring the use of adjectives and adverbs; properly deploying phrases and clauses; and refining an argument. Here is a book for all who seek to increase their facility in written communication.

Steven M. Cahn's advice on the professorial life covers an extensive range of critical issues: how to plan, complete, and defend a dissertation; how to navigate a job interview; how to improve teaching performance; how to prepare and publish research; how to develop a professional network; and how to garner support for tenure. He deals with such hurdles as a difficult dissertation advisor, problematic colleagues, and the pressures of the tenure clock. Whether you are beginning graduate study, hoping to secure an academic position, or striving to build a professorial career, Cahn's insights are invaluable to traversing the thickets of academia.

While equal opportunity for all candidates is widely recognized as a goal within academia, the implementation of specific procedures to achieve equality has resulted in vehement disputes regarding both the means and ends. This title aims to encourage a reexamination of this issue.