Contact
Department of Philosophy
314 Moses Hall #2390
University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA 94720-2390
Email: kolodny@berkeley.edu
Phone (Skype): (510) 984-3533
Positions
University of California, Berkeley
Professor of Philosophy, from Fall 2013
Associate Professor of Philosophy, Fall 2009–Spring 2013
Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Fall 2005–Spring 2009
Harvard University
Assistant Professor, Fall 2003–Spring 2005
Other Professional Affiliations
Philosophical Gourmet Report
Advisory Board, since 2024
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Editorial Board, since 2019
Philosopher's Annual
Member, Nominating Board, since 2016
Oxford Studies in Political Philosophy
Member, Board of Advisors, since 2016
Philosophy and Public Affairs
Editorial Board, since 2019
Associate Editor, Fall 2010–Fall 2018
Center for Human-Compatible Artificial Intelligence (CHAI)
Affiliate, since Fall 2018
New York Institute of Philosophy
Member, Project on New Directions in Political Philosophy, led by Samuel Scheffler, Fall 2010–Spring 2013
Princeton University
Member, Young Ethicists Network, led by Michael Smith, Liz Harman, and Sarah McGrath, Spring 2012–Fall 2013
Australian National University, Research School of Social Sciences
Harsanyi Fellow, Summer 2013
Australian National University, Research School of Social Sciences
Research Associate, Summer 2004
Funded by an Australian Research Council grant awarded to Michael Smith for the project, "Reasons and Rationality"
Education
Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley, Philosophy, 2003
- Dissertation: "Relationships as Reasons," supervised by Samuel Scheffler (Chair), R. Jay Wallace, and Christopher Kutz (Law)
- Jacob Javits Fellowship, 1998–2001
- University Fellowship, 1997–98, 2001–03
M.A., University of Oxford, Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (papers in Philosophy and Economics), First Class, 1996
- Henry Wilde Prize in Philosophy, 1996
B.A., Williams College, Philosophy, 1994
Books
- The Pecking Order: Social Hierarchy as a Philosophical Problem (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2023).
Edited Books
- The Possibility of Philosophical Understanding: Essays for Barry Stroud, co-edited with Jason Bridges and Wai-hung Wong (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011)
- Death and the Afterlife, by Samuel Scheffler, with an introduction by Niko Kolodny and commentary by Harry Frankfurt, Niko Kolodny, Seana Shiffrin, and Susan Wolf (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013).
Book Chapters
- "An Objection to Workplace Hierarchy Itself?" in Working as Equals edited by Julian Jonker and Grant Rozeboom (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2023).
- "Saving Posterity From a Worse Fate," in Ethics and Existence: The Legacy of Derek Parfit, edited by Jeff McMahan, Tim Campbell, James Goodrich, and Ketan Ramakrishnan (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2022).
- "Democratic Law as Medium and Message," in Seana Shiffrin, Democratic Law, with an introduction by Hannah Ginsborg and commentary by Niko Kolodny, Annie Stilz, and Richard Brooks (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021).
- "Being Under the Power of Others," in Yiftah Elizar and Genevieve Rousseliere, Republicanism and Democracy (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019)
- "Instrumental Reasons," in Daniel Star, ed, The Oxford Handbook of Reasons and Normativity (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018).
- "Help Wanted: Subordinates," in Elizabeth Anderson, Private Government, with an introduction by Stephen Macedo and commentary by David Bromwich, Tyler Cowen, Ann Hughes, and Niko Kolodny (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2017), pp. 99–107.
- "Introduction," in Sam Scheffler, Death and the Afterlife, with an introduction by Niko Kolodny and commentary by Harry Frankfurt, Niko Kolodny, Seana Shiffrin, and Susan Wolf (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013).
- "That I Should Die and Others Live," in Sam Scheffler, Death and the Afterlife, with an introduction by Niko Kolodny and commentary by Harry Frankfurt, Niko Kolodny, Seana Shiffrin, and Susan Wolf (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013).
- "The Quest to Understand Philosophy," co-authored with Jason Bridges, in Jason Bridges, Niko Kolodny, and Wai-hung Wong, eds, The Possibility of Philosophical Understanding: Essays for Barry Stroud (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011).
- "Aims as Reasons," in Samuel Freeman, Rahul Kumar, and R. Jay Wallace, eds, Reasons and Recognition: Essays on the Philosophy of T.M. Scanlon (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011).
- "Which Relationships Justify Partiality? General Considerations and Problem Cases," in Brian Feltham and John Cottingham, eds, Partiality and Impartiality: Morality, Special Relationships and the Wider World (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010).
Journal Articles
- "Is One More Powerful with Numbers on One's Side?" co-authored with Sean Ingham, Journal of Political Philosophy (forthcoming).
- "Partners and Patients: A Revised Grammar of Social Power," Political Studies 71:1 (2023).
- "Towards an Analysis of Social Hierarchy," Journal of Contemporary Legal Issues 23:2 (2022).
- "Discrimination, Subordination, and Pluralism," Jurisprudence 12:4 (2021).
- "What, If Anything, Is Wrong with Gerrymandering?" University of San Diego Law Journal 56:4 (2019).
- "Why Equality of Treatment and Opportunity Might Matter," Philosophical Studies 176 (2019).
- "Standing and the Sources of Liberalism" Politics, Philosophy, Economics 17:2 (2018).
- "What Makes Threats Wrong?" Analytic Philosophy 58:2 (2017).
- "Dynamics of Affirmation," Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 92:3 (2016).
- "Political Rule and Its Discontents," Oxford Studies in Political Philosophy 2 (2016).
- "Rule Over None II: Social Equality and the Justification of Democracy," Philosophy and Public Affairs 42:4 (2014).
- "Rule Over None I: What Justifies Democracy?" Philosophy and Public Affairs 42:3 (2014).
- "Foreword," Harvest Moon: The Berkeley Undergraduate Philosophy Journal, 2011 New Crop Prize Edition (2012).
- "Raz's Nexus," Jurisprudence 2:2 (2011).
- "Scanlon's Investigation: The Relevance of Intent to Permissibility," Analytic Philosophy 52:2 (2011).
- "Ifs and Oughts," co-authored with John MacFarlane, Journal of Philosophy 107:3 (2010).
- "The Explanation of Amour-Propre," Philosophical Review 119:2 (2010).
- "Which Relationships Justify Partiality? The Case of Parents and Children," Philosophy and Public Affairs 38:1 (2010).
- "Comments on Munoz-Darde's 'Liberty's Chains'," Supplemental Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society 83:1 (2009)
- "Reply to Bridges," Mind 118:470 (2009).
- "The Myth of Practical Consistency," European Journal of Philosophy 16:3 (2008)
- "Why Be Disposed to Be Coherent?," Ethics 118:3 (2008)
- "How Does Coherence Matter?," Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society 107:1 (2007)
- "State or Process Requirements?," Mind 116:462 (2007)
- "Why Be Rational?," Mind 114:455 (2005) (German translation in Christoph Halbig and Tim Henning, eds, Die neue Kritik der instrumentellen Vernunft (Frankfurt a.M.: Suhrkamp, 2012))
- "Love as Valuing a Relationship," Philosophical Review 112:2 (2003)
- "Promises and Practices Revisited," co-authored with R. Jay Wallace, Philosophy and Public Affairs 31:2 (2003)
- "Do Associative Duties Matter?," Journal of Political Philosophy 10:3 (2002)
- "The Ethics of Cryptonormativism: A Defense of Foucault's Evasions," Philosophy and Social Criticism 22:5 (1996)
Work in Progress
- "Privacy and Its Violation"
Encyclopedia Entries
- "Instrumental Rationality," co-authored with John Brunero in Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- "Objectivity in Ethics," in Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Second Edition, ed. Donald Borchert (Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2006)
- Addendum to "Love," in Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Second Edition, ed. Donald Borchert (Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2006)
Reviews
- Christopher H. Achen and Larry M. Bartels, Democracy for Realists (Princeton University Press, 2016) and Jason Brennan, Against Democracy (Princeton University Press, 2016) in Boston Review February 17, 2017.
- R. Jay Wallace, Philip Pettit, Samuel Scheffler, and Michael Smith, Reason and Value: Themes from the Moral Philosophy of Joseph Raz (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 2004) in Mind 115:458 (2006)
- Harry G. Frankfurt, The Reasons of Love (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2004) in Journal of Philosophy 103:1 (2006)
Talks
- Passmore Lecture, Australian National University, AUSTRALIA, Summer 2025
- Colloquium, University of Sydney, AUSTRALIA, Summer 2025
- Jurisprudence Lecture, UNITED KINGDOM, Summer 2025
- Colloquium, Indiana University, Spring 2025
- Keynote Lecture, AGENT Conference, University of Texas, Austin, Spring 2025
- "Should AI Satisfy Our Preferences?" Guest Zoom Lecture, Sungkyunkwan University, SOUTH KOREA, Fall 2024
- "Puzzles of Consent," Colloquium, Brown University, Fall 2024
- "The Pecking Order: An Overview and Second Thoughts" and "Replies," Conference on The Pecking Order, University of Minho, PORTUGAL, Fall 2024
- Comments on Lea Schroeder, "Epictetus on Practical Disagreement and Agent-Relativity," Ancient Metaethics Conference, Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin, GERMANY, Summer 2024
- "Replies," THINC Conference on The Pecking Order, University of Tromsø, NORWAY, Summer 2024
- ""Replies," Workshop on The Pecking Order, Hosted by the UCL Institute for Human Rights and the UCL Quain Center of Jurisprudence, University College London, UNITED KINGDOM, Summer 2024
- "Privacy and Its Violation," Shearman Lectures, University College London, UNITED KINGDOM, Summer 2024
- "Reflections on Privacy," Keynote Lecture, POLEMO conference, Central European University, Vienna, AUSTRIA, Spring, 2024
- "Reflections on Privacy," Workshop on Privacy, Ludwig Maximilians University, Munich, GERMANY, Spring 2024
- Discussion with a reading group on The Pecking Order, by Zoom, University of British Columbia, CANADA, Spring 2024
- "The Pecking Order: An Overview and Second Thoughts," Keynote Lecture, Equality and Social Hierarchies Conference, Freie University Berlin, GERMANY, Spring 2024
- "Reflections on Privacy," Tuesday Colloquium, Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin, GERMANY, Spring 2024
- "Reflections on Privacy," Roseman Lecture, University of Toronto, CANADA, Spring 2024
- "Privacy and Its Violation," Hempel Lectures, Princeton University, Spring 2024
- "Reflections on Privacy," Colloquium, University of Bielefeld, GERMANY
- "Reflections on Privacy," Colloquium, Humboldt University Berlin, GERMANY
- Author Meets Critics Session on The Pecking Order, Pacific APA, Spring 2023, with Richard Arneson, Pamela Hieronymi, and Sophia Moreau as critics.
- Discussion with a seminar on The Pecking Order, by Zoom, Northeastern University, Spring 2023
- Discussion with a seminar on The Pecking Order, by Zoom, UCLA, Spring 2023
- "What Others Think of You, Lecture I" Monthly Seminar in Moral, Social, and Political Philosophy, Australian National University, AUSTRALIA, Fall 2022
- Comment on Arash Abizadeh, "Power and Domination: An International Research Workshop," McGill University, CANADA, Summer 2022.
- "Towards an Analysis of Social Hierarchy," University of San Diego Law School, Fall 2021
- Keynote lecture, "Working as Equals" Workshop at Saint Mary's College of California, Spring, 2021. (Co-sponsored by the Zicklin Center for Business Ethics Research at the Wharton School and the Elfenworks Center for Responsible Business at Saint Mary's.)
- Workshop on The Pecking Order, USC Spring 2021
- Workshop on None Above, NYU, Fall 2020
- Keynote lecture, Conference in Legal and Political Philosophy, Torcuato Di Tella University, Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA, Postponed
- Brigham Young University, Postponed
- Excerpts from Equality and Rule, Conference on Discrimination and Subordination, University of Toronto, CANADA, Fall 2019
- Comments on Sophia Moreau, Faces of Inequality, University of Toronto, CANADA, Fall 2019
- Excerpts from Equality and Rule, Legal Theory Workshop, University of Toronto, CANADA, Fall 2019
- "Reasons for Which One X-ed," Keynote Lecture, Conference on Normativity, University of Cardiff, UNITED KINGDOM, Summer 2019
- "Saving Posterity from a Worse Fate," Keynote Lecture, Society for Applied Philosophy, University of Cardiff, UNITED KINGDOM, Summer 2019
- "Principles of Equality and Claims on Institutions" New Directions in Social Justice Theorizing, UC San Diego, Spring 2019
- Panelist for "Preferences: Uncertainty, Existence, Plasticity," Center for Human-Compatible Artifical Intelligence 3rd Annual Conference, Spring 2019
- "What, If Anything, Is Wrong with Gerrymandering?" Travails of Democracy Conference, University of San Diego Law School, Spring 2019
- "Equality and Rule," Work in Progress Talk, UC Berkeley, Spring 2019
- "Favoritism and Equality," APA author meets critics session on T.M. Scanlon, Why Does Inequality Matter?, Winter 2019
- "Official Corruption," Legal Theory Workshop, University of Virginia Law School, Fall 2018
- "Saving Posterity from a Worse Fate," Colloquium in Legal and Political Philosophy, Queens University, CANADA, Fall 2018
- "Saving Posterity from a Worse Fate," Philosophy Colloquium, Princeton University, Fall 2018
- "Should AI Satisfy Preferences?" Interdisciplinary Seminar, Center for Human-Compatible Artificial Intelligence, UC Berkeley, Fall 2018
- Comment on Felix Koch, "Facilitative Reasons and Instrumental Value," Value in Practice: A Conference on the Philosophy of Joseph Raz, King's College London, UNITED KINGDOM, Summer 2018
- "Official Corruption," The Practical, the Political, and the Ethical Workshop, Institute for Philosophy, University of London, UNITED KINGDOM, Summer 2018
- "Relational Equality and Political Legitimacy," Association of Social and Political Philosophy Conference, Rome, ITALY, Summer 2018
- "The Complaints of Posterity," Intergenerational Justice and the Rights and Duties of Procreators Conference, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, SPAIN, Summer 2018
- "Official Corruption," Lee Lecture, All Souls College, Oxford, UNITED KINGDOM, Summer 2018
- "Official Corruption," London School of Economics, UNITED KINGDOM, Summer 2018
- "Official Corruption," DaGERS, UC Davis, Spring 2018
- "Official Corruption," Political Philosophy Colloquium, New York University, Spring 2018
- "What, If Anything, Is Wrong with Gerrymandering?" Ethics Forum, New York University, Spring 2018
- "Official Corruption," Conference at Worcester College, Oxford, UNITED KINGDOM, Spring 2018
- "Being Under the Power of Others," Colloquium, Center for Political Philosophy, University of Leiden, NETHERLANDS, Spring 2018
- "Official Corruption," Keynote Address, Society for the Theory of Ethics and Politics, Northwestern University, Spring 2018
- "Official Corruption," Keynote Address, Berlin, GERMANY, Winter 2017
- "Political Corruption," Chapel Hill Colloquium, University of North Carolina, Fall 2017
- "Pathologies of American Democracy" What Now? Conference, UC Berkeley, Fall 2017
- "Being Under the Power of Others," Political Theory Colloquium, University of Chicago, Spring 2017
- "Democratic Law as Medium and Message," Comment on Seana Shiffrin's Tanner Lectures, UC Berkeley, Spring 2017
- "The Immorality of Coercion," Regulation of Coercion Conference, University of British Columbia, CANADA Spring 2017
- "Democracy for Idealists," Kadish Workshop in Law, Philosophy, and Political Theory, Joshua Cohen and Veronique Munoz-Darde, UC Berkeley, Fall 2016
- Nuffield Political Theory Workshop, Nuffield College, Oxford University, UNITED KINGDOM, Spring 2016 (cancelled)
- Political Theory Research Seminar, All Souls, Oxford University, UNITED KINGDOM, Spring 2016 (cancelled)
- Popper Talk, London School of Economics, UNITED KINGDOM, Spring 2016 (cancelled)
- Comte Lecture, London School of Economics, UNITED KINGDOM, Spring 2016 (cancelled)
- Colloquium, University of Pennsylvania, Spring 2016 (cancelled)
- "What Makes Threats Wrong?" Political Theory Workshop, Stanford University, Spring 2016
- "What Makes Threats Wrong?" Colloquium, MIT, Spring 2016
- Work in Progress Talk, University of California, Berkeley, Spring 2016
- "A Liberalism Beyond Liberty?"Politics, Philosophy, and Economics Conference, Murphy Institute, Tulane University, Spring 2016
- "What Makes Threats Wrong?" Analytic Philosophy Symposium, University of Texas, Austin, Fall 2015
- "Political Rule and Its Discontents," Conference on Responsibility Beyond the State, Institute for Practical Ethics and Public Life and the Program in Political Philosophy, Policy, and Law, University of Viriginia, Spring 2015
- "Being Under the Power of Others," Colloquium, University of Pittsburgh, Spring 2015
- "Corruption and Contribution," Panel on "Democracy in an Age of Inequality," with Ann Cudd, Derrick Darby, Lani Guinier, Samuel Issacharoff, and Rick Pildes, Pacific APA, Vancouver, Spring 2015
- Comments on Elizabeth Anderson's Tanner Lecture, "Private Government," Princeton University, Spring 2015
- Summary of Samuel Scheffler, Death and the Afterlife, Berkeley Social Ontology Group, University of California, Berkeley, Fall 2014
- "Being Under the Power of Others," Ethics, Law, and Public Policy Seminar, run by the Mexican Society of Applied Philosophy (SOMEFA), at the Department of Political Studies at the Center for Research and Teaching in Economics (CIDE), Mexico City, MEXICO, Fall 2014
- Comments on T.M. Scanlon, "Equality of Opportunity: A Normative Anatomy," Boalt School of Law, Fall 2014
- "Justifying the State," Colloquium, University of Arizona, Fall 2014
- "Being Under the Power of Others," Brown Bag Talk, Arizona Freedom Center, Fall 2014
- "Justifying the State," Oxford Studies in Political Philosophy Conference, University of Missouri, Fall 2014
- Comments on A.J. Julius, Reconstruction, University of Toronto, CANADA, Summer, 2014
- "Justifying the State," Seminar, Center for Ethics and Public Affairs at the Murphy Institute, Tulane University, Spring, 2014
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Colloquium, Arizona State University, Spring, 2014
- "Notes on Reasons and Rationality," Practical Reasoning Workshop, part of the Practical Thought and Good Action Research Network (funded by the DFG), University of Giessen, GERMANY, November 15-17, 2013
- Comments on Mark Schroeder, "The Price of Supervenience," Young Ethicists Network Workshop, Princeton University, Fall, 2013
- "Justifying the State," Dick Fallon and Tim Scanlon's Law and Philosophy Workshop, Harvard University, Fall, 2013
- "Justifying the State," Colloquium, Brown University, Fall, 2013
- "Love as Valuing a Relationship" and "Notes on Reasons and Rationality," Graduate Workshop, ANU, AUSTRALIA, Summer, 2013
- "Being Under the Power of Others," Justice and Democracy Conference, ANU, AUSTRALIA, Summer, 2013
- "Justifying the State," Graduate Workshop on Legitimacy with Massimo Renzo and Annie Stilz, ANU, AUSTRALIA, Summer 2013
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy, Part 2" Seminar, ANU, AUSTRALIA, Summer 2013
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy, Part 1," MSPT Seminar, ANU, AUSTRALIA, Summer 2013
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Colloquium, UCLA, Spring, 2013
- "Justifying the State," Ethics Writing Seminar, UCLA, Spring, 2013
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Colloquium, New York University, Spring 2013
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Colloquium, University of Colorado, Boulder, Spring 2013
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Workshop in Law, Philosophy, and Political Theory, Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California, Berkeley, Spring 2013
- Participant, Reasons and Normativity Conference, NYU Abu Dhabi, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, Winter 2013
- Comments on Fred Neuhouser on Rousseau, The Ninth NYU Conference on Issues in Modern Philosophy, "Inequality," New York University, November 9-10, 2012
- Comments on Sarah McGrath, Young Ethicists Network Workshop, Princeton University, Fall 2012
- "On the Justification of State Force," Joseph Raz's seminar, Columbia University, Fall 2012
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Understanding Equality Conference, University College London, UNITED KINGDOM, Spring 2012
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Young Ethicists Network Workshop, Princeton University, Spring 2012
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Keynote Lecture, Undergraduate Philosophy Conference, University of Puget Sound, Spring 2012
- "Comments on Leslie Green, 'Constituting the People'" Kadish Lecture, Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California, Berkeley, Spring 2012
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Darrell Royal Ethics Conference, University of Texas, Austin, Spring 2012
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Colloquium, Ohio State University, Fall 2011
- "Instrumental Reasons," Colloquium, University of Nebraska, Fall 2011
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Political Philosophy Colloquium, Princeton University, Fall 2011
- "Rule Over None: Social Equality and the Value of Democracy," Joseph Raz's seminar, Columbia University, Fall 2011
- "Which Relationships Justify Partiality?" Akeel Bilgrami and Jon Elster's Mellon Seminar, Columbia University, Fall 2011
- "Raz's Nexus," Workshop on Joseph Raz's Philosophy of Normativity, Centre for Law and Cosmopolitan Values, University of Antwerp, BELGIUM, April 2011
- "Instrumental Reasons," Session on "Instrumental Reason," American Philosophical Association Central Division, March 2011
- "Instrumental Reasons," Workshop on Reasons and Rational Choice, London School of Economics, UNITED KINGDOM, February 2011
- Master Class on Reasons and Rational Choice, London School of Economics, UNITED KINGDOM, February 2011
- "Toward a Principle of Instrumental Transmission," Colloquium, Harvard University, November 2010
- "Having a Say," Colloquium in Legal, Moral and Political Philosophy, New York University, fall 2010
- "Toward a Principle of Instrumental Transmission," Colloquium, University of Texas, Austin, October 2010
- "Toward a Principle of Instrumental Transmission," Colloquium, University of San Diego, May, 2010
- "Toward a Principle of Instrumental Transmission," Practical Philosopy Workshop, University of Chicago, April 30, 2010
- "The Explanation of Amour-Propre," Stanford Political Theory Workshop, March 5, 2010
- "Permissibility and Intention: Scanlon's Conjecture," Author Meets Critics Session on T.M. Scanlon, Moral Dimensions: Permissibility, Meaning, and Blame, American Philosophical Association Eastern Division Convention, December 2009.
- "Percontations: Loving Wives and Countries," Bloggingheads diavlog with Simon Keller (Victoria University of Wellington), October 2009
- "Instrumental Transmission," Departmental Talk, Texas Tech University, October 2009
- "A Problem With If-Then Arguments," Public Lecture, Texas Tech University, October 2009
- "Comments on Munoz-Darde's 'Liberty's Chains'," Joint Session of the Aristotelian Society and Mind Association, University of East Anglia, UNITED KINGDOM, July 2009
- "Ought: Between Objective and Subjective; Modus Ponens Invalid," Colloquium, Williams College, April 2009
- "Which Relationships Justify Partiality?" Legal Theory Workshop, Yale Law School, March 2009
- "Ought: Between Truth and Justification," Epistemic Normativity Workshop, Indiana University, December 2008
- "Ought: Between Objective and Subjective," Colloquium, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, April 2008
- Comments on Joseph Raz, "Reason, Reasons, and Rationality," Conference on Reason and Value, University of California, Santa Barbara, February 2008
- "Which Relationships?," Law and Philosophy Workshop, University of California, Berkeley, January 2008
- "The Myth of Practical Consistency," Law and Philosophy Workshop, University of Southern California, November 2007
- "The Myth of Practical Consistency," 2007 SPAWN on "Practical Reason," Syracuse University, July 2007
- "How Does Coherence Matter?," Moral Sciences Club, University of Cambridge, UNITED KINGDOM, April 2007
- "How Does Coherence Matter?," Aristotelian Society, London, UNITED KINGDOM, April 2007
- "How Does Coherence Matter?," Colloquium, University of Pittsburgh, April 2007
- "How Does Coherence Matter?" Colloquium, University of Southern California, March 2007
- "Why Be Disposed to Be Coherent?," Workshop on Value Theory and Epistemology, University of Stirling, UNITED KINGDOM, November 2006
- "Do Intentions Change Our Reasons?," Departmental Seminar, University of Stirling, UNITED KINGDOM, November 2006
- "Why Be Disposed to Be Coherent?," University of California, Irvine Colloquium, November 2006
- "Why Be Disposed to Be Coherent?," Hester Seminar on Agency and Action, Wake Forest University, September 2006
- "Do We Have Reason to Be Disposed to Be Rational?," Ohio State University/Maribor/Rijeka Conference, Dubrovnik, CROATIA, May 2006
- "Do We Have Reason to Be Disposed to Be Rational?," Workshop on the Normativity of Reasons, Universite de Fribourg, SWITZERLAND, May 2006
- "Why Have Consistent Beliefs?," In Pursuit of Reason: Engaging Joseph Raz on Reason and Value Conference, Institute of Philosophy, University of London, UNITED KINGDOM, May 2006
- "Why Have Consistent Intentions?," Moral Philosophy Seminar, University of Oxford, UNITED KINGDOM, May 2006
- "Why Have Consistent Intentions?," Workshop on Practical Reasons, University of Leeds, UNITED KINGDOM, May 2006
- "Why Have Consistent Intentions?," Bay Area Forum for Law and Ethics (BAFFLE), University of California, Berkeley, April 2006
- "Why Have Consistent Intentions?," Moral and Political Philosophy Group Talk, University of Toronto, CANADA, March 2006
- "Which Relationships?," Impartiality and Partiality in Ethics Conference, University of Reading, UNITED KINGDOM, December 2005
- "Does Intending the End Give One Reason to Take the Means?," Seminar in Ethics and Normative Theory (SENT), Stanford University, November 2005
- "Does Intending the End Give One Reason to Take the Means?," Seminar for Phronesis Analytic Philosophy Group, Universitat de Valencia, SPAIN, November 2005
- "Why Be Coherent?," Seminar for Phronesis Analytic Philosophy Group, Universitat de Valencia, SPAIN, November 2005
- "Why Be Coherent?," Forry and Micken Lecture at Amherst College, November 2005
- "Rationality and Reasons," ECAP 5 Conference, Lisbon, PORTUGAL, August 2005
- Comments on papers by Margaret Gilbert and Michael Pratt, Session on Promises, Pacific APA Convention, March 2005
- "Rationality and Reasons," Ohio State University, April 2005
- Comments on A. John Simmons, "Legitimacy and Territory," Fourth Annual Leadership Conference, Kennedy School of Government, March 2005
- "Rationality and Reasons," Moral Psychology Conference, Franklin and Marshall College, February 2005
- "Rationality and Reasons," University of California at Los Angeles, January 2005
- "Rationality and Reasons," University of California, Berkeley, January 2005
- "The Problems of Partiality," Australasian Association of Philosophy Conference, South Molle Island, AUSTRALIA, July 2004
- "What is Love?," Monash University, Melbourne, AUSTRALIA, July 2004
- "The Normativity of Rationality," Reasons and Rationality Conference, Australian National University, Research School of Social Sciences, AUSTRALIA, June 2004
- "What is Love?," Phi Sigma Tau Honors Society, California State University at Chico, April 2004
- "Partiality and the Contours of the Moral," Brandeis University, October 2003
- "Partiality and Morality," University of California at Los Angeles, February, 2003
- "Partiality and Morality," Columbia University, January, 2003
- "Partiality and Morality," New York University, January, 2003
- "Scanlon on Promising," Berkeley-Stanford Graduate Student Conference, April 2002
Teaching
Awards:
- Divisional Distinguished Teaching Award for Senate Faculty Members, 2010-11. (Awarded annually to one ladder-rank faculty member in the Division of Arts and Humanities.)
Introductory lecture courses:
- Individual Morality and Social Justice, Spring 2017, Spring 2011, Spring 2010, Fall 2007, Fall 2006, Summer 2002
- Are There Any Moral Truths?, Harvard University, Spring 2005
- Objectivity and Subjectivity in Ethics, Harvard University, Spring 2004
Intermediate lecture courses:
- Moral Questions of Data Science, Spring 2025, Spring 2022, Spring 2021, Spring 2019
- Philosophy of Race, Ethnicity, and Citizenship, Fall 2017
- Ethical Theories, Fall 2024, Fall 2016, Fall 2010, Spring 2007
- Contemporary Ethical Issues, Fall 2015, Spring 2014, Fall 2012, Summer 2010, Spring 2008
- Special Topics in Political Philosophy, Spring 2010
- Political Philosophy, Summer 2007; Harvard University, Fall 2003
- History of Political Philosophy, Spring 2012, Spring 2007; Harvard University, Fall 2004
Seminars:
- The Structure of Wronging, Spring 2025
- Privacy, Fall 2022
- Equality and Rule, Spring 2020
- Kadish Workshop in Law, Philosophy, and Political Theory, on the theme of Democracy, co-taught with Joshua Cohen, Spring 2018
- Senior Seminar, Spring 2023, Spring 2019, Spring 2018, Spring 2017
- First-year seminar, on metaphysics, co-taught with Seth Yalcin, Fall 2015
- Political Rule, Spring 2014
- Recent Work on Political Coercion, Fall 2012
- The Experience of Value, co-taught with Charles Altieri (English), Dorothy Hale (English), Susan Maslan (French), Kate van Orden (Music), Robert Kaufman (Comparative Literature), Whitney Davis (History of Art), Spring 2012
- Promises and Promissory Obligation, co-taught with R. Jay Wallace, Spring 2012
- Democratic Authority, Spring 2011
- Dissertation Seminar, Fall 2009 and Spring 2010
- First-year Seminar, on epistemic normativity, co-taught with John MacFarlane, Fall 2009
- Permissibility, Meaning, and Blame, co-taught with R. Jay Wallace, Spring 2008
- Training Seminar for First-time Graduate Student Instructors, Fall 2007
- Reasons and Rationality, Fall 2006
- Wronging, Harvard University, Fall 2004
- Partiality in Ethical Theory, Harvard University, Fall 2003
- Workshop in Moral and Political Philosophy, Harvard University, Fall 2003 and Spring 2004
Dissertation committees in Philosophy and Logic and Methodology of Science:
- Japa Pallikkathayil, Harvard University, "Your Money or Your Life: Coercion in Personal and Political Contexts," filed 2008
- Fabrizio Cariani, "The Semantics of 'Ought' and the Unity of Modal Discourse," Logic and Methodology of Science, filed 2009
- Ian Schnee, "Reasoning from the Facts," filed 2010
- Ben Boudreaux, "Recent Immigration and the Nation: An Account of the Demands of Assimilation," filed 2011
- Andy Engen, "The Reactive Theory of Punishment," filed 2011
- Brian Berkey, "Against Moderate Morality: The Demands of Justice in an Unjust World," filed 2012
- Joseph Barnes, "A Platonic Account of Epistemic Value," filed 2012
- Julia Nefsky, "The Morality of Collective Harm," filed 2012
- Erich Matthes, "Engaging with the Past: Essays on History, Value, and Practical Reason," filed 2013
- Justin Bledin, "Logic Informed," Logic and Methodology of Science, filed 2013
- Max Gee, "Rationality and Expected Utility," filed 2015
- Lindsay Crawford, "Epistemic Obligation in Perspective," filed 2015
- Julian Jonker, "In Defense of Directed Duties," filed 2017
- Jeffrey Kaplan, "Weightless Normativity: A Theory of Law, Language, and More," filed 2018
- Nick French, "Moral Obligation, Mutual Recognition, and Our Reasons to be Moral," filed 2020
- Kirsten Pickering, "Why Answer the Epistemic Challenge?" filed 2020
- Dan Khokhar, "Address and Response: The Normativity of Requesting, Begging, and Commanding," filed 2022
- Scott Casleton
- Christian Nakazawa
- Virginia Foggo
- James Evershed
- Luca Passi
Dissertation committees as external member:
- Carla Yumatle, "Philosophical Presuppositions of Liberal Democracy," Political Science, filed 2010
- Stephen Galoob, "A Liberal Theory of Reparation," Jurisprudence and Social Policy, filed 2014
- Adam Hill, "A Behavioral Approach to Contemporary Electoral Accountability," Jurisprudence and Social Policy, filed 2016
- Amin Ebrahimi Afrouzi, "Why Act Legally?" Jurisprudence and Social Policy, filed 2022
Qualifying exams in philosophy:
- Mike Titelbaum, 2005
- Tamar Lando, 2007
- Markus Kohl, 2007
- Julia Nefsky, 2008
- Justin Bledin, 2008
- Erin Beeghly, 2009
- Eugene Chislenko, 2009
- Stephen Thurman, 2010
- Max Gee, 2010
- Peter Epstein, 2010
- Katie Mantoan, 2011
- Kirsten Pickering, 2012
- Jeff Kaplan, 2013
- Dan Khokhar, 2016
- Ravit Dotan, 2017
- Blake Harper, 2018
- Scott Casleton, 2019
- Monika Chao, 2021
- Jes Heppler, 2021
- Christian Nakazawa, 2021
- Daniel Proske, 2022
- Virginia Foggo, 2023
- James Evershed, 2023
- Susanna McGrew
- Megan Wu
Qualifying exams as external member:
- Richard Ashcroft, Political Science, 2010
- Athmeya Jayaram, Political Science, 2010
- Stephen Galoob, Jurisprudence and Social Policy, 2010
- Luke Haqq, Jurisprudence and Social Policy, 2011
- Adam Hill, Jurisprudence and Social Policy, 2011
- Amin Afrouzi, Jurisprudence and Social Policy, 2019
- Joel Sati, Jurisprudence and Social Policy, 2019
Department Service
- Chair, July 2019–June 2022
- Summer Chair, July 2010, July 2011, June–July 2012, June 2017, June 2019
- GSI Coordinator, July 2024–
- Undergraduate Advisor, July 2010–June 2014, July 2015–June 2019
- Member, Search Committee, years omitted for confidentiality
- Member, Graduate Admissions Committee, year omitted for confidentiality
- Equity Officer, Fall 2009
University Service
- Member, Faculty Steering Committee, Kavli Center for Ethics, Science, and the Public, since December 2021
- Member, Arts and Humanities For the Future Task Force, Spring 2020–Spring 2021
- Member, Academic Freedom Committee, Fall 2017–Spring 2019
- Member, Advisory Board of Kadish Center for Morality, Law and Public Affairs, since Spring 2009
- Member, Tanner Lectures Committee, since Fall 2009
- Member, Steering Committee for the Berkeley Center for the Study of Value, Summer 2010
- Member, Selection Committee, President's UC Irvine Humanities Research Institute Fellowship, year omitted for confidentiality
Refereeing
- Acta Analytica
- American Political Science Review
- Australasian Journal of Philosophy
- Cambridge University Press
- Dialectica
- Ethics (multiple)
- European Journal of Philosophy (multiple)
- Harvard University Press
- Journal of Ethics and Social Philosophy
- Journal of Political Philosophy
- Journal of Philosophy
- Mind (multiple)
- Oxford University Press (multiple, also blurbs)
- Oxford Studies in Political Philosophy (multiple)
- Philosophers' Imprint (multiple)
- Philosophical Quarterly
- Philosophical Review
- Philosophical Studies
- Philosophy and Public Affairs (multiple as Assoc. Editor)
- Politics, Philosophy, and Economics
- Polity Press
- Princeton University Press (manuscript, also blurb)
- Routledge
- Theoria