Don Marquis is an American philosopher whose main academic interests are in ethics

Ethics

Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...

 and medical ethics

Medical ethics

Medical ethics is a system of moral principles that apply values and judgments to the practice of medicine. As a scholarly discipline, medical ethics encompasses its practical application in clinical settings as well as work on its history, philosophy, theology, and sociology.-History:Historically,...

. Marquis is currently Professor of Philosophy at the University of Kansas

University of Kansas

The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...

.

Marquis earned an A.B. in Anatomy and Physiology from Indiana University

Indiana University

Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...

 in 1957. After receiving an M.A. in History from the University of Pittsburgh

University of Pittsburgh

The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...

 in 1962, Marquis returned to Indiana University to study philosophy. He received an M.A. in History and Philosophy of Science

History and philosophy of science

The history and philosophy of science is an academic discipline that encompasses the philosophy of science and the history of science. Although many scholars in the field are trained primarily as either historians or as philosophers, there are degree-granting departments of HPS at several...

 from Indiana in 1964 and a Ph.D. in Philosophy in 1970. He has taught at the University of Kansas since 1967. During the 2007/08 academic year, Marquis held the Laurance S. Rockefeller Visiting Professorship for Distinguished Teaching at the University
Center for Human Values at Princeton University

Princeton University

Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....

.

Marquis is best known for his paper, "Why Abortion Is Immoral," which appeared in the Journal of Philosophy

Journal of Philosophy

The Journal of Philosophy is a monthly peer-reviewed academic journal on philosophy. Its stated purpose is "To publish philosophical articles of current interest and encourage the interchange of ideas, especially the exploration of the borderline between philosophy and other disciplines." The...

 in April, 1989. This paper has been reprinted over 80 times, and is widely cited in the philosophical debate over abortion

Philosophical aspects of the abortion debate

The philosophical aspects of the abortion debate are presented in the form of a number of logical arguments which can be made in support of or opposition to abortion.-Overview:...

. The main argument in the paper is sometimes known as the "deprivation argument," since a central premise is that abortion deprives an embryo or fetus of a "future like ours."