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My work focuses mostly on topics in early modern philosophy (particularly Locke, Berkeley, and Hume), ancient philosophy (particularly Plato), ethics, and law.  Recent work includes a book on George Berkeley’s argument for idealism, and articles on the following topics: will and motivation in seventeenth century British philosophy (focusing on Bramhall, Hobbes, Cudworth, and Locke); seventeenth century accounts of the qualities of bodies; Locke’s account of sensitive knowledge; Locke’s account of the nature of persons; a reconstruction of Berkeley’s argument for the existence of God; Hume’s theory of the passions (particularly pity and malice); a defense of a non-classical version of the doctrine of double effect, along with a criticism of classical versions of the doctrine (with Dana Kay Nelkin); an investigation of the question whether citizens of wealthy countries enable or do harm to the global poor; and a refutation of epistemic contrastivism.  I am the editor for the History:Modern section of Blackwell Philosophy Compass.

News

Berkeley’s Argument for Idealism (Oxford University Press, 2013) is now available.  See here and here.

I received the 2010 Chancellor’s Associates Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching (for details and video, see here and here).