Phillipa Foot

Has died.

She was one of the great founding figures in the revival of virtue ethics and a hero of mine when I was in university. I'll have a lot more to say about her tomorrow.

For now, I'd like to confess that I was once madly in love with her.This was before I'd read even a word of her philosophy; at a time when I thought I would find nothing of value in her writings (for reasons that I will explain tomorrow).

What I fell in love with was her name. It  was the only thing I knew about her when I fell in love with her. Isn't "Phillipa Foot" the most perfect name imaginable? And if not that name, how about her maiden name "Phillipa Bosanquet"? These are like the names of heroines in classic English novels only I don't think there is a novel in the entire English novel tradition quite good enough to contain Phillipa Foot.

Back when all I knew was her name, I fell in love with her and I imagined a secret affair I would have with her. It would have to be secret because a woman with a name like Phillipa Foot would insist on her privacy. I used to imagine sitting with her having tea and oatmeal cookies in a quiet room having a quiet conversation about novels and morality using every bit of my will power to remain relaxed and calm although I would be craving the great sex I knew we would eventually work our way up to.

Great sex I won't elaborate on here not just because it never happened but also because, you know, it would be a betrayal of everything a woman with a name like Phillipa Foot would stand for.