Faculty Spotlight: Dr. David Svolba
Check out our Faculty Spotlight located on the Faculty Publications Bookshelf near the Library's first floor entrance!
David Svolba received his PhD in Philosophy from the University of Chicago in 2008. After teaching for several years at the University of Illinois at Chicago, he joined Fitchburg State University in 2011 as an Assistant Professor in the Humanities Department.
At Fitchburg State, David has taught a wide range of courses covering core philosophical areas—logic, ethics, metaphysics, and political philosophy—as well as interdisciplinary topics such as consciousness and environmental ethics. His research interests are equally broad.
While his early publications focused on moral psychology and applied ethics, he recently published a book on consciousness with Broadview Press (summer 2026). That same summer, he published Arguments in Biomedical Ethics, an Open Educational Resource textbook developed with the support of an OER development grant.
David lives in Worcester, Massachusetts, with his wife and nine-year-old twins, Jack and Emma.
Be sure to attend Dr. Svolba's Author Talk Wednesday, September 23 at 3:30pm in the University Archives (S03-Hammond Hall).
Publications
Books
Svolba, David and Abe Witonsky (2026). Consciousness: An Interdisciplinary Guide. Broadview Press. https://broadviewpress.com/product/consciousness-an-interdisciplinary-g…
Svolba, David (2026). Arguments in Biomedical Ethics. Press Books. https://openbooks.fitchburgstate.edu/biomedicalethics/
Articles, Book Chapters, and Reviews
“What is Ethics and What Makes Something a Problem for Morality?" In N. Levin (Ed), Introduction to Ethics: An Open Educational Resource. N.G.E. Far Press; 2019. https://human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Philosophy/Ethics/Introduction…
“Justice at the Margins: The Social Contract and the Challenge of Marginal Cases,” with Nathan Bauer. Southern Journal of Philosophy (Wiley, 2017), 55:1, 51-67. https://doi.org/10.1111/sjp.12209.
“Is There a Rawlsian Argument for Animal Rights?” Ethical Theory and Moral Practice (Springer, 2016), 19:4, 973-984. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10677-016-9702-0.
“A Review of Brian Leiter’s Why Tolerate Religion?" Science, Religion, and Culture (Smith and Franklin, 2014), 1:2.
“Swindell, Frankfurt, and Ambivalence,” Philosophical Explorations (Routledge, 2011), 14:2. https://doi.org/10.1080/13869795.2011.569374.
“People Just Don’t Do That: Curb Your Enthusiasm and the Virtue of Civility,” with Chad Flanders, in Curb Your Enthusiasm and Philosophy (Open Court, 2011).
“Drawing a Line in the Sand: Rules of Aggression in The Big Lebowski,” with Adam Betz, in The Big Lebowski and Philosophy (Blackwell, 2012).