Mark D. White Ph.D.

Mark D. White is chair of the Department of Philosophy at the College of Staten Island/CUNY, where he teaches courses in philosophy, law, and economics. He has authored over 60 journal articles and book chapters in the intersections between these fields, as well as seven books: Batman and Ethics (Wiley Blackwell, 2019), The Decline of the Individual: Reconciling Autonomy with Community (Palgrave, 2017), A Philosopher Reads Marvel Comics’ Civil War (Ockham Publishing, 2016), The Illusion of Well-Being: Economic Policymaking Based on Respect and Responsiveness (Palgrave, 2014), The Virtues of Captain America: Modern-Day Lessons on Character from a World War II Superhero (Wiley Blackwell, 2014), The Manipulation of Choice: Ethics and Libertarian Paternalism (Palgrave, 2013) and Kantian Ethics and Economics: Autonomy, Dignity, and Character (Stanford, 2011). He has also edited a number of books, including The Thief of Time: Philosophical Essays on Procrastination (with Chrisoula Andreou, Oxford, 2010), Retributivism: Essays on Theory and Policy (Oxford, 2011), and Economics and the Virtues: Building a New Moral Foundation (with Jennifer A. Baker, Oxford, 2016). He is the series editor of Perspectives from Social Economics (Palgrave Macmillan) and On Ethics and Economics (Rowman and Littlefield International) and was the principal founder of the blog Economics and Ethics.

Aside from his sole-authored books on Captain America and Marvel Comics’ Civil War, Professor White is also a frequent contributor and editor in the Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series, which introduces readers to basic philosophical concepts using the movies, TV shows, comic books, and music that they love. He has edited Superman and Philosophy, Batman and Philosophy (with Robert Arp), Watchmen and Philosophy, Iron Man and Philosophy, Green Lantern and Philosophy (with Jane Dryden), The Avengers and Philosophy, Downton Abbey and Philosophy, and Doctor Strange and Philosophy. He has also contributed chapters to volumes in the series on Wonder Woman, Black Sabbath, Metallica, South Park, Family Guy, The Office, the X-Men, Spider-Man, The Big Bang Theory, and Alice in Wonderland. He occasionally blogs on comics and philosophy at The Comics Professor.

AUTHOR OF Maybe It’s Just Me, But…

In this blog, I discuss a wide variety of classic and contemporary issues, most often focusing on issues of ethics (especially in relationships), the strength of character, and the law.