Congratulations to Steven Coyne who, alongside his E3I colleagues Sheila McIlraith, Diane Horton, and David Liu, all from the Department of Computer Science, was honored with the 2024 Northrop Frye Award (Team), one of the prestigious U of T Alumni Association Awards of Excellence. The post 2024 Northrop Frye Award (Team) for Embedded Ethics Education Initiative (E3I) appeared first on Department of Philosophy ..read more

Congratulations to Rebecca Comay, a professor of Philosophy and Comparative Literature, who was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Copenhagen on recommendation of its Faculty of Theology. Her citation described Comay as “an internationally renowned scholar who for more than three decades has made significant contributions to research in modern European philosophy, aesthetics, and literary studies, as well as to trauma and memory studies.” It also noted her “pioneering” examination of the work of G. W. F. Hegel, leading to remarkable monographs such as Mourning Sickness: Hegel ..read more

In the past few months, a number of our graduate students have successfully defended their dissertations. We congratulate them on their success and look forward to seeing where their intellectual journeys will next take them. In order of defense date, they are: Rashad Rehman, whose thesis was titled “The Ethics of Intersex Pediatric Surgery,” supervised by Amy Mullin; Rashad is now an assistant professor of Philosophy at Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio Dylan Shaul, who defended “Hegel’s Concept of Reconciliation: On Absolute Spirit,” supervised by Rebecca Comay; Dylan is currently ..read more

Rachel Barney, internationally recognized as one of the world’s most innovative and creative researchers on ancient Greek philosophy, has received a 2023 Dean’s Research Excellence Award from the Faculty of Arts & Science at the University of Toronto. Launched last year, the Dean’s Research Excellence Awards recognize faculty members with research achievements cited as having had a sustained influence in their chosen disciplines. The prizes further aim to help accomplished mid-career researchers compete successfully in national award competitions. Barney’s research ranges from the early so ..read more

With great pleasure we announce that Andriy Bilenkyy has won the 2023 Martha Lile Love Teaching Award for his exemplary work in teaching PHL388 Literature and Philosophy. Andriy’s thoroughgoing dedication to teaching and to rigorous reflection on pedagogy evident, the committee was impressed by his thoughtful of application of principles and practices derived from pedagogical research in all stages of planning, and delivering, his course. For example, Andriy “reverse-designed” his syllabus, going from an understanding of the circumstances of the course,  ..read more

A generous donation from Michael and Virginia Walsh, matched by the Faculty of Arts & Science, will create a $5 million endowment to support the first endowed chair in the Department of Philosophy, the Michael & Virginia Walsh Chair in History of Philosophy. The post New Michael & Virginia Walsh Chair in History of Philosophy appeared first on Department of Philosophy ..read more

For his exceptional work in the field of legality in the philosophy of law and political theory, University Professor David Dyzenhaus has been honoured with a Gold Medal from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), the organization’s highest recognition. The post David Dyzenhaus Awarded SSHRC Gold Medal appeared first on Department of Philosophy ..read more

We are delighted to announce Chi-ho Hung as the winner of this year’s Martha Lile Love Essay Award for his essay “A Counterfactual Theory of Universal Statements.”  The essay, written for Franz Huber’s graduate class, elicited the following praise from the 2023 award’s selection committee: “This superbly crafted paper offers a clear and inventive theory of an important class of universal statements. The novel view is motivated by careful consideration of relevant cases and defended with exemplary argumentative skill.” Congratulations to Chi-ho on his work! The Martha Lile Love&n ..read more

The Department of Philosophy is saddened to announce the death of Professor Emeritus Robert A. Imlay. He passed away on Wednesday, November 15, 2023, at Sunnybrook Hospital. The London, Ontario, native earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University of Western Ontario before heading to the University of Glasgow for his doctoral work. He joined U of T’s Philosophy Department in 1963 and retired in 2002 after almost 40 years of service. His colleagues and family remember him as a passionate debater concerning questions of political and social justice, as well as an avid reader in mu ..read more

It is with great sadness that the Department of Philosophy announces that our colleague, friend, alumnus, and respected teacher David Gauthier has died. He passed away on Thursday, November 9, 2023, at the age of 91. Gauthier earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from our department in 1954, to then do graduate work first at Harvard and then at Oxford. He rejoined the department in 1958, serving as chair from 1974 to 1979. In 1980, he left for the University of Pittsburgh, but moved back to Toronto post retirement, and actively participated in many departmental events. The focus of Gauthier ..read more