Publications

"The Veridicality of Noein and the Particularity of Noos in Parmenides' Poem and the Continuity Between Parmenides, Homer, and Hesiod's Usages." In Inquiring into Being: Essays on Parmenides, Ed. Colin C. Smith, SUNY University Press. Forthcoming.

"What it means to be a God: Punishment and Providence in the Consolation of Philosophy." In Boethius' Consolation of Philosophy: A Critical Guide, Ed. Michael Wiitala, Cambridge University Press, 2024.

"In What Sense Does the One Exist? Existence and Hypostasis in Plotinus." Cowritten with Michael Wiitala. Platonic Pathways: Selected Papers from the Fourteenth Annual Conference of the International Society for Neoplatonic Studies. 2018, pp. 77-92.

"Cephalus, Myth of Er, and Remaining Virtuous in Unvirtuous Times." Journal of the International Plato Society 14 (2014), pp. 63-84.

"Judgment and Perception in Plato's Theaetetus." Dissertation. University of Kentucky, 2015.

"Rabbit's Feet, Hatches, and Monsters: Mysteries vs. Questions in J.J. Abrams' Stories." The Philosophy of J.J. Abrams (The Philosophy of Popular Culture). Ed. Patricia Brace and Robert Arp. University Press of Kentucky, 2014.

Courses

• Philosophy 171 – Religions of the West

  The goal of this class will be to explore five of the major religions that develop in the Western world–Kemetic (Ancient Egyptian), Greco-Roman, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Each of these traditions have/had millions of adherents for thousands of years—why? What made these traditions so vibrant and compelling for so long? What ideal do each of these religions hold up, and what are the stakes for human life if we were to accept that ideal?

• Philosophy 174 – World Religions

  The goal of this class will be to explore six major religious traditions from around the world. From traditions that developed in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, we’ll consider Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. From traditions that developed in Asia, we’ll consider Hinduism and Buddhism. And from traditions that developed in the Americas, we’ll consider the Mayan religion. Each of these traditions still have countless adherents across the globe. Our goal will be to understand why that is by considering sacred or foundational texts from each tradition. Each articulates a way for human beings to think about their lives and how their lives relate to history, nature, and all of reality. We’ll attempt to discern what is appealing in each of these accounts, and what would be at stake in human lives were we to adopt these understandings of the world.

• Philosophy 303 – Medieval Philosophy

  This semester, we will trace out the development of philosophy over a 1200 year period (from the 2nd to the 14th centuries), on three continents (Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa, and in 4 major religious traditions (Mediterranean paganism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam). That is a lot to do in one semester! As a result, we are going to orient our investigation around a central topic. We will try to trace out how thinkers within each of these four religious traditions utilized Neoplatonism (a philosophical movement that started in the Late Roman Empire based on Plato) to articulate a conception of reality where everything–nature, people, political communities, etc.–are thought of as expressions of divine beauty and goodness. We’ll attempt to make sense both of Neoplatonic philosophy on its own terms and understand its appeal within these various religious traditions.

• Philosophy 354 – Philosophy and Science Fiction

  This semester, we will use fictional sci-fi works to philosophically explore the radical transformations that modern science has brought about in human life and our ways of conceptualizing the world. My sincere hope is that the class will simultaneously be fun–because both philosophy and science fiction are fun!–but also thought provoking. By the end of the semester, we will hopefully have reconsidered various facets of our worlds and ourselves that we had previously taken for granted.

• Philosophy 407 – Phenomenology and Existentialism

  This semester, we will explore two incredibly important philosophical movements in the Continental Philosophy tradition. In addition to their academic importance, elements of both phenomenology and existentialism have played a key role in shaping on a popular level how modern people conceive of themselves and the task of their lives during the past 50 years. Our main focus will be ontology–who/what are you, and how does your selves and the meaning of your lives emerge out of the complicated interactions that occur between individuals, their communities, and their world.