Research

My research interests primarily fall within aesthetics or the history of philosophy. My work in aesthetics looks at the ways in which artworks intervene in our intellectual, moral, and political lives. My current postdoctoral fellowship explores the intersection between art and journalism which I argue generates a helpful framework for understanding the distinctive contributions artworks make to political understanding. In particular, I argue there are distinctive epistemic or moral challenges faced or stoked by modern journalism that artworks are well-equipped to mitigate.

In the history of philosophy, I have been working lately on the role that love plays in the moral philosophies of Hegel, Murdoch, Weil, and Beauvoir. I am particularly interested in whether reciprocation problematises attentive love. Literature also plays a key role within our loving lives for Beauvoir, Weil, and Murdoch which is another feature of their work that interests me.

My AHRC-funded doctoral research at Kings College London looked at a figure for whom the connection between art, ethics, and politics was central: the 19th century Russian philosopher Vissarion Grigoryevich Belinsky. Belinsky’s idea that art could function as a form of philosophy and activism continues to inform my approach to contemporary puzzles in aesthetics. In particular, he was interested in how art could overcome populist political movements, how it might overcome epistemic obstacles that journalism and philosophy face, and how it functions in a well-rounded education.