Jean Bethke Elshtain

Jean Paulette Bethke Elshtain (January 6, 1941 – August 11, 2013) was an American ethicist, political philosopher, and public intellectual. She held the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Professor of Social and Political Ethics chair in the University of Chicago Divinity School, with a joint appointment in the department of political science. Born in Windsor, Colorado, Elshtain earned degrees from Colorado State University, the University of Wisconsin–Madison, the University of Colorado, and a PhD from Brandeis University in 1973. She taught at the University of Massachusetts and Vanderbilt University before joining the University of Chicago in 1995. Elshtain's work focused on the intersection of politics and ethics, particularly concerning gender roles and their impact on public and private life. Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, she became a prominent academic advocate for US military intervention in Afghanistan and Iraq. She authored and edited over twenty books and published more than five hundred essays. Notable works include "Democracy on Trial," "Just War Against Terror," "Jane Addams and the Dream of American Democracy," "Augustine and the Limits of Politics," and "Sovereignty: God, State, Self." Elshtain received numerous accolades, including Guggenheim Fellowships and honorary degrees. She was appointed to the Council of the National Endowment for the Humanities and the President's Council on Bioethics. Her influential contributions spanned over three decades, shaping national discussions on the family, gender, democracy, and international relations. She died in 2013 at the age of 72.