Education
Ph.D., The Johns Hopkins University
A. M., The University of Chicago
A. B., Colby College
Biography
Dr. Thomas J. Donahue is Visiting Assistant Professor in the Political Science Department, Independent College Programs, and the Center for Peace and Global Citizenship. Before joining Haverford in 2014, he taught in the Program in Ethics, Politics & Economics at Yale and held a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in the Institute for Philosophical Research at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).
A political philosopher, Donahue's research examines the structure of injustices in global, comparative, and historical perspective; and the relationships among moral principles and political and economic theories. Some of his research is published in European Journal of Political Theory, The Philosophical Forum, Public Affairs Quarterly, Ethics & the Environment, and Nexos. His book manuscript, Unfreedom for All: How Global Injustices Harm You, is under contract with Oxford University Press. You can read a precis and abstracts of various chapters by clicking here.
In his teaching, Donahue has added thirteen different courses to the offerings of the Tri-College Consortium. He has also pioneered a new approach to teaching students to learn and use theories. This approach holds that all theories--no matter how complex and abstract--can ultimately be boiled down to simple metaphors about the objects they treat. Hence one can master a difficult theory by articulating its basic metaphor, and then building up from there.
If you are curious about what political philosophy is, visit Donahue's homepage. To check out Donahue's work in progress, visit his page on academia.edu. He is a founding member and regular participant in the Tri-College Political Theory Workshop.
Peer-reviewed Articles
Thomas J. Donahue and Paulina Ochoa Espejo, "The analytical-Continental divide: Styles of dealing with problems," European Journal of Political Theory 15, 2 (2016): 138-154
Thomas J. Donahue, "Terrorism, Moral Conceptions, and Moral Innocence," The Philosophical Forum 44, 4 (2013): 413-435
Thomas J. Donahue, "Anthropocentrism and the Argument from Gaia Theory," Ethics & the Environment 15, 2 (2010): 51-77
New Courses for 2018
Comparative and Transnational Studies: From Kuala Lumpur to Kansas City. ICPR H271 (Fall 2018)
Introduction to Political Theory: Ideologies and the Struggle to Control Authority. POLS H171 (Spring 2018)
Thinking across Borders: Comparative and Transnational Studies. POLS H324 (Spring 2018)
Courses Taught in the Tri-College Consortium
What We Owe to Groups: The Ethics and Politics of Collective Life. POLS H319 (Fall 2017)
The Contest over Quality: The Ethics and Politics of Craft and Design. ICPR H374 / POLS H374. Featured in Haverblog's "Cool Classes" series. (Spring 2017)
Globalization: Ethics, Politics & Economics. POLS H161 (Spring 2017)
International Law: History, Structure, Principles. POLS H317 / PEAC H317 (Fall 2016)
The Power of Ideas: Political Ideologies. POLS H312 / PEAC H312 (Spring 2016)
Ends and Means: Moral Choices in Politics. POLS H274 Featured in Haverblog's "Cool Classes" series (Spring 2016, Spring 2015)
Majorities and Minority Rights: Ethics & Economics. POLS H305 (Spring 2016, Spring 2015)
Injustices: Human & Animal. POLS H207 (Fall 2015)
The Earth: Ethics, Politics & Economics. POLS H250/ ENVS H250. Featured in Haverblog's "Cool Classes" series. (Fall 2014)
Development, Human Rights, and Transnational Injustices. ICPR H301/ POLS H301 (Fall 2018, Fall 2017, Fall 2016, Fall 2015, Fall 2014)