Books and Chapters

 

Liberating Revolution: Emancipating Radical Change from the State: Liberating Revolution challenges the idea that we understand what revolution is. All current understandings of revolution are different ways of portraying the state. To liberate revolution, we must explain radical change without determining its course or limiting what it can do. Nathan Eckstrand reviews earlier theories of revolution from history—social contract theory, Marxism, Hegelianism, liberalism, communism, totalitarianism, and Machiavellism—and studies how they describe political change. He then puts forth a new theory of change called Dynamic Anarchism, drawing on Event Ontology's discussions of radical change, systems theory's understanding of dynamic and adaptive systems, and anarchism's attempts to think of politics independent of the state. In its final chapter, Liberating Revolution advises how to produce radical change effectively. A valuable contribution to the ongoing discussion of how best to understand change given discoveries both microscopic and global, this book offers useful ideas to students curious about why revolutions often fail to achieve their goals or to anyone learning how change is depicted in political theory.

Philosophy and the Return of Violence: Essays from this Widening Gyre: Emerging across specters of genocide, racism, oppression, terror, poverty, or war, the threat of violence is not only concrete and urgent, but all too often throws the work of critical reflection into vulnerable paralysis. With essays by some of today’s finest scholars, these pages breathe new life into the hard work of intellectual engagement. Philosophers such as Peg Birmingham, Robert Bernasconi, and Bernhard Waldenfels not only feel the distinct burden of our age but, with unflagging attention to the philosophical tradition, forge a pronounced counterweight to the violent gyre of today. Philosophy and the Return of Violence is a stirring critique that looks outward upon the phenomena of injustice and inward upon the instruments and assumptions of philosophical discourse itself. See the review at Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews here.

“20th Century Social and Political Philosophy” in Introduction to Philosophy: Social and Political Philosophy

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles

 

“Direct Action and the Humanities: Leaving the Ivory Tower.” Humanities advocates focus on demonstrating the humanities’ value to encourage participation. This advocacy is largely done through institutional means, and rarely taken directly to the public. This article argues that by reframing the theory of Direct Action, humanities advocates can effectively engage the public. The article begins by exploring three different understandings of the humanities: that they develop good citizenship, that they develop understanding, and that they develop critical thought. The article then discusses what Direct Action is and how it works. The article concludes by describing how to reframe Direct Action to suit the needs of the humanities, including potential actions that will achieve those ends. Humanities Direct Action must be seen as a debate and will focus on increasing critical thinking.

“Complexity, Diversity, and the Role of the Public Sphere on the Internet.”: This paper explores the relationship between deliberative democracy, the internet, and systems theory’s thoughts on diversity. After introducing Habermas’s theory of deliberative democracy and how diversity fits into it, the paper discusses various ideas about if and how it could work on the internet. Next, the paper looks at research into diversity done in the field of complex adaptive systems, showing that diversity has both good and bad effects, but is clearly preferred for the purpose of survival. The paper concludes with an analysis of how the results of systems theory’s study of diversity can assist society in bringing democracy to the web.

“Does Fidelity to Revolutionary Truths Undo Itself: Systems Theory on Badiou and Žižek.”: This article examines Alain Badiou’s and Slavoj Žižek’s advocacy for fidelity to revolutionary truths in light of complex system theory’s understanding of resiliency. It begins with a discussion of how Badiou and Žižek describe truth. Next, it looks at the features that make a complex system resilient. The article argues that if we understand neoliberalism as a resilient system, then the fidelity to revolutionary truths that Badiou and Žižek advocate is not enough, for it doesn’t realize how truths come from the system as a whole. The article concludes by describing how this viewpoint alters discussions of political change.

“The Ugliness of Trolls: Comparing the Methodologies of the Alt-Right and the Ku Klux Klan.”: The alt-right claims it responsibly advocates for its positions while the Ku Klux Klan was “ad-hoc.” This allows them to accept the philosophy of white nationalism while rejecting comparisons with prior white nationalist organizations. I confront this by comparing the methodologies of alt-right trolls and the KKK. After studying each movement’s genesis in pranks done for amusement, I demonstrate that each uses threats to police behavior, encourages comradery around ethnic heritage, and manipulates politics to exclude voices from public deliberation. Differences between alt-right trolls and the KKK originate in the technologies they use, not out of a concern for responsible advocacy.

“A Phenomenology of Whiteness”: This article uses phenomenology to examine the way whiteness appears. It begins by discussing the phenomenologies of race done by Linda Martin Alcoff and Sara Ahmed, focusing on their accounts of how race develops and the role that proximity and visibility play in the production of racial categories. It then offers critiques of Ahmed and Alcoff for naturalizing part of the process by which race develops, arguing that a better account of race can be given if we avoid seeing race as a function of proximity or visibility. A stronger account of whiteness can be given if we draw from the work of Merleau-Ponty, in particular his claims that there is always a directionality to perception and that we complete the world in our perceptions of it. A phenomenology that is motivated by these considerations will be able to explain how whiteness is able to appear in so many ways as it is constantly being completed differently in different contexts. The article ends by describing some of these contexts, such as how whiteness is often occluded but can also manifest the qualities of malignancy and autoimmunity.

“Deleuze, Darwin, and the Categorization of Life”: I begin with Deleuze’s criticism of the Darwinian concept of difference as leading to the inaccurate assumption that difference occurs within individuals and species. Deleuze radicalizes Darwin’s theory by disrupting the ontological stability of species and extant individualities. I examine how Deleuze’s project relates to punctuated equilibrium and the discovery of the amount of variation within the human genome, showing that these recent developments make Deleuze’s critique less applicable by showing that Darwinian classification schemes should include a greater openness to difference. A complete alignment between evolutionary biology and Deleuze may be impossible given the limitations of evolutionary biology, but evolutionary biology can rethink the ontological permanence it gives to species and individuals.

Non-peer reviewed publications

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Invited Presentations

Contact me to learn more about any of these presentations.

 

“Cultural Relativism vs. Ethical Objectivism,” with Jeremy DeLong. Invited presentation at SIAS University, Zhengzhou, China, October 2019.

“Taking Philosophy Online: APA Blog Perspectives.” Invited presentation at the Eastern APA 2019.

“Gender Oppression in China.” Invited Presentation at the 2018 Women’s Symposium at SIAS University in Zhengzhou, China.

“Revolution in the 21st Century.” Invited presentation and panel organizer at the Central APA 2018

“Black Mirror and the Dangers of Social Media.”  Invited presentation at the 14th Annual Academic Symposium at Marian University, March 28, 2017

“Fostering Unconventional Careers for a Flourishing Future.”  Meeting of the Mountain Sky Group, Emigrant, Montana, October 11-16, 2016

“Dynamic Anarchism, or How to Liberate Revolution from the State” Invited lecture at Mercyhurst University, Erie, PA, on Dec 1, 2015.

“Response to Gabriel Rockhill,” presented at the 2015 Critical Theory Workshop, Paris, France, July 17, 2015.

“Why Philosophy is Important”, Philosophy Seminar at Kumasi Polytechnic University, Kumasi, Ghana, April 13, 2013.

“How Can We Influence Agriculture and Medicine in Achieving the Necessary Transition to a Dynamic—Resilient—Sustainable Future?” Meeting of the Mountain Sky Group, Emigrant, Montana, October 8-15, 2013.

Presentations at Professional Conferences

Contact me to learn more about any of these presentations.

 

“The History of Online Philosophy.” Paper presented at Eastern APA 2021.

“The Humanities and Direct Action.” Paper presented at National Humanities Conference, November 5-7, 2020.

“Taking Philosophy Online: The Blog of the APA,” Paper presented at the Eastern APA 2019, New York City, NY, January 7-9, 2019.

“Do Complex Systems Revolutionize our Understanding of Political Frameworks,” Paper presented at the Central APA 2018, Chicago, IL, February 21-24, 2018.

“What is to be Done about Marxism-Leninism? An Anarchist’s Perspective,” Paper presented at the Society for Phenomenological and Existential Philosophy, Salt Lake City, UT, October 20-22, 2016

“Rawls and the Right to Revolution: Decoupling Dissent from the State,” Paper presented at the North American Society for Social Philosophy (NASSP), Ottowa, Canada, July 21-23, 2016

“Towards a Phenomenology of Whiteness”, Paper presented at the Central American Philosophical Association Division Meeting, Chicago, IL, February 26-March 1, 2014.

“Developing an Ecosystem of Voices: A Critique of Ecosocialism”, International Association for Environmental Philosophy (IAEP) Annual conference, Rochester, NY, November 3-5, 2012.

“Treading Whiteness, or How I Became a Radical”, North American Society for Social Philosophy (NASSP) Annual Conference, Boston, MA, July 26 – July 28, 2012.

“Problematics and Possibilities in Philosophies of Change: Comparing Hegel and Ch'eng I”, Australasian Association of Philosophy Annual Conference, Wollongong, Australia, July 1-6, 2012.

“The Related Methodologies of Arendt and Foucault”, Duquesne University Philosophy Department Graduate Colloquia, Pittsburgh, PA, January 20, 2012.

“Reassessing Genetic, Social, and Political Diversity: A Rawlsian and Deleuzean Perspective on Categorizing the Body Politic”, Annual Three Rivers Conference in Philosophy, Columbia SC, April 1-3, 2011.

“Foucault, Arendt, and the Possibility of a Transformational Politics”, Annual meeting of the Foucault Circle, Alberta, Canada, March 25-27, 2011.

“Modeling Electronic Media” Duquesne University Philosophy Department Graduate Colloquia, January 12, 2011.

“Contemporary Orientalism: East-West Relations in the Global War on Terror”, Society for Indian Philosophy and Religion, Philadelphia, PA, October 8-9, 2010.

“Response to Jim Vernon”, Annual Meeting of the American and Canadian Hegelians, Pittsburgh, PA, March 19-21, 2010.

“Kant, Foucault, and the Importance of Thinking”, Hawaii International Arts and Humanities Annual Conference, January 10-13, 2010.

“Orientalism in the Global War on Terror”, Concerned Philosophers for Peace Annual Conference, Dayton, OH, November 5-7, 2009.

“Performatives and the Female Politician” North American Society for Social Philosophy (NASSP) Annual Conference, Portland, OR, July 17-18, 2008.

“Arendt, Rawls, and the Modern Corporation”, Global Studies Association (GSA) Annual Conference, New York, NY, June 6-8, 2008.