Richard Bett

Richard Bett is a Professor of Philosophy in the William H. Miller III Department of Philosophy at Johns Hopkins University, part of the Krieger School of Arts & Sciences. He holds a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley. His research focuses on ancient Greek philosophy, particularly ethics and epistemology, with additional interests in modern ethics, epistemology, and Nietzsche. He has authored books such as Pyrrho, his Antecedents and his Legacy (2000) and translated key texts by Sextus Empiricus, including Against the Ethicists and Against the Physicists. His current project involves a translation of Sextus Empiricus' Outlines of Pyrrhonism with commentary.

Dr. Bett has served as acting executive director of the American Philosophical Association and held roles in its Eastern Division. He is also Vice Chair of its Board of Officers. His work bridges ancient skepticism with modern philosophical inquiries, emphasizing practical skepticism and its contemporary relevance. He contributes to academic journals like Phronesis and Ancient Philosophy, and serves on editorial boards.

His research spans ancient Greek skepticism, Stoics, Socrates, Plato, the Sophists, and Nietzsche, with a focus on dialectic methods, ethical frameworks, and philosophical language. His publications reflect a deep engagement with both primary texts and interdisciplinary connections.