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Department of Philosophy

Graduate Students

adam bailey

Adam Bailey

ADB11@email.sc.edu

I am interested in ethics and political philosophy. I have published articles on various topics in ethics and political philosophy in a variety of journals such as: American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly, American Journal of Jurisprudence, Business and Society Review, Business Ethics Quarterly, Educational Theory, International Philosophical Quarterly, and Philosophia.
gray barber

Gray Barber

GB24@email.sc.edu

I am primarily interested in Thomistic, Aristotelian, and Platonic Metaphysics, though I also dabble in other subjects. Much of my work has been studying Individuation, the Problem of Universals, and the Divine Exemplars. I received my undergraduate degree(s) in Theology & Philosophy at Belmont Abbey College in May of 2022. Currently, I am a Master's Student working towards a PhD in Philosophy. Outside of Philosophy, I have become interested in art, chess, the mystery genre, and D&D.
John Boland

John Boland

bolandjm@email.sc.edu

 I am interested in epistemology. I received my undergraduate degree in history from the College of William and Mary. I began my formal study of philosophy at the New School for Social Research before coming to South Carolina.
nathan cesky

Nathan Cesky

ncesky@email.sc.edu

I am interested in the philosophy of action, free will, moral responsibility, and arguments for compatibilism. I am also interested in epistemology, particularly the problem of induction and what can be considered a proper source for knowledge. I received a B.S. in business administration in 2018 and a Master of Divinity in 2022.
joseph erickson

Joseph Erickson

josephde@email.sc.edu

I received a BA in philosophy from Columbia International University in 2013. My primary interests are ethics and philosophical hermeneutics, especially in the work of Hans-Georg Gadamer. Some of my side interests include bias, metaphor, and the nature of understanding.
Kelly Gallagher

Kelly Gallagher

kg6@email.sc.edu

My primary area of research is in contemporary neo-Aristotelian and Thomistic metaphysics. I am particularly interested in the relationship between Aristotelian conceptions of Nature and contemporary definitions of life. I explore this in my dissertation, where I argue that a strong version of hylomorphism (i.e. a Thomistic understanding) avoids the circularity problems that plague life definitions and thus provides a more fruitful framework for thinking about the nature of life. Furthermore, I am beginning to work on a related project where I argue that an Aristotelian understanding of Nature can provide a promising route for reconciling traditional views about essences with evolution, thus preserving belief in natural kinds. I also have an active interest in the role of skilled knowledge (techne) in human flourishing, and how technology can effect this for better or worse. When not doing academic things, I am probably doing renovation projects on my home or watching my chickens free range in the back yard.
anderson haris photo

John Anderson Harris

jah30@email.sc.edu

 I am interested in care ethics, care aesthetics, and pragmatism. My dissertation develops an account of caring relationships that takes seriously the work of John Dewey and his connection to care ethical thought. Using Dewey, I suggest that good caring relationships are aesthetic experiences. By cashing out caring relationships in terms of aesthetic experience, I explore how good care entails a particular practice of expression and results in the consummatory experience of growth.
tori hui

Tori Hui

torihui@sc.edu

 

My current research primarily centers on contemporary epistemology, with a specific focus on issues related to ignorance, virtue epistemology, and scepticism. During my undergraduate studies, I was particularly drawn to political philosophy and the philosophy of language. Apart from philosophy, I have a passion for playing tennis, photography, and watching CS:GO games.
leye komolafe

Leye Komolafe

komolafe@email.sc.edu

My areas of research are political philosophy and philosophy of law, while my areas of interest include the history of ideas and African philosophy (with emphasis on a critique of cultural essentialism in postcolonial discourses). My primary research is focused on legal theories and the notion of legal and political obligation, as I aim to develop a thesis on the ontological primacy of the human subject in law, which interrogates the state’s peremptory demand of obligation and the prima facie justification of law. 
 
Before joining the Ph.D. program at USC, I received my B.A. and M.A. degrees in philosophy from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, and the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, respectively. I also taught undergraduate courses in philosophy at Dominican University, Ibadan, and the University of Ibadan, both as an assistant lecturer and a teaching assistant. I enjoy theatrical productions, jazz music, and arthouse films.
 
Recent Publications: 
2023. Hegel’s Historical Denialism and Epistemic Eclipse in African Philosophy. Journal of Contemporary African Philosophy, 4(2), pp. 36-45. 
 
2022. African Jurisprudence as Historical Co-extension of Diffused Legal Theories. Thought and Practice: A Journal of the Philosophical Association of Kenya, 
8(1), pp.51-68. 
eric maher

Eric Maher

emaher@email.sc.edu

I graduated from The University of Pittsburgh in 2013. I am interested in the Philosophy of Physics and the Philosophy of Science.
emily mathias

Emily Mathias

emathias@email.sc.edu

Originally from Michigan, I received my MA in philosophy from Western Michigan University and I am working towards my PhD at U of SC. My primary research is at the intersection of philosophy of language and ethics. I also enjoy working with philosophy of mathematics, philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of Alasdair MacIntyre.
 
Recent Publications: 
"Groundwork for the Moral Evaluation of Speech Acts". Social Philosophy Today v.35, 2019, 129-142.
c miller

Carol Lynn Miller

carollm@email.sc.edu 

I am interested in personalism, philosophical anthropology, and existentialism. Before coming to UofSC I studied twentieth-century European personalism, which combines metaphysics and phenomenology to form a more complete understanding of the human person, at the University of Lublin in Poland. My Master’s thesis compared and contrasted the thought of Karol Wojtyla (Pope John Paul II who formerly taught at the university) and Norris Clarke (an American who taught at Fordham University but did his doctoral studies in personalism in Louvain), two of the more prominent thinkers in the field. 
kirk mishrell

Kirk Mishrell

mishrell@email.sc.edu

I am originally from Atlanta, Ga where I earned a MA in history from Georgia State University. My past research focused on radical youth subculture such as Norwegian black metal and Florida death metal. I have studied the history and theory of American horror and  (at one point) I was interested in historical accounts of the paranormal.
 
Currently, I am interested in the philosophy of religion and historical arguments for the existence of God in the tradition of monotheism.
amir motesharei

Amir Motesharei

moteshaa@email.sc.edu 

My primary focus is the philosophy of science, particularly the realism and anti-realism debate, and how the notion of scientific models relates to this discourse. I'm also intrigued by the role of non-epistemic values in science. Beyond this, I'm passionate about exploring the profound wisdom embedded in Iranian traditional philosophy, including the illuminationist philosophies of Suhrawardi and Mulla Sadra, and how they relate to contemporary philosophical discourse. I obtained my master’s in philosophy of science from Sharif University of Technology in Iran.
sarah pressman

Sarah Pressman

pressmas@email.sc.edu 

Before coming to UofSC, I received my BA in philosophy from Baylor University.  My research areas are in virtue ethics and moral psychology.  Currently, I am interested in how suffering plays a role in the virtuous life.
 
Outside of academics, I enjoy knitting, reading fiction, and playing piano.
dustin sigsbee

Dustin Sigsbee

dsigsbee@email.sc.edu

My general research interests are in normative and applied ethics, with specific interests in the norms of partiality and animal ethics. My dissertation focuses on the philosophical insights to be gained by extending the norms of partiality to non-human animals. I also have interests in the continuing debate regarding the moral community, epistemology, and other areas of applied ethics, such as environmental ethics, biomedical ethics, and food ethics.
 
Before entering the doctoral program at the University of South Carolina, I received my Master of Arts in Philosophy from Western Michigan University.
 
You can visit my personal website for more information on my research and teaching.
 
Recent Publications:
“Parental Responsibility and Our Special Relationship with Animal Companions”, (forthcoming in The Journal of Value Inquiry).
james stewart photo

James Stewart

jas41@email.sc.edu

I received my M.A. from the University of Wales, Trinity St. David. My primary area of interest is in epistemology as it relates to theory confirmation and inference to the best explanation. I am also researching in the philosophy of science, philosophy of biology, human evolutionary theory, and physical anthropology.
 
When not doing academic work, I enjoy hanging out with my wife Stephanie, and my two children, Augustina and Wesley.
patrick tully

Patrick Tully

ptully@email.sc.edu

I am interested in New Natural Law Theory, ethics in general (especially bioethics), and aesthetics. I received both my bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Franciscan University of Steubenville.
Carter Weinstein

Carter Weinstein

carterrw@email.sc.edu

I received my undergraduate degree in Philosophy from the University of Florida. I am interested in Normative Ethics, especially Virtue Ethics, the Philosophy of Emotion, and Jean Jacques Rousseau.
Nicholas Wilson

Nicholas Wilson

wilsonnp@email.sc.edu

I am interested in philosophy of religion and ethics with a side interest in metaphysics. In particular, I focus on approaches to natural theology and conceptions of natural law.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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