Education
Ph.D., The Johns Hopkins University
A. M., The University of Chicago
A. B., Colby College
Biography
Dr. Thomas J. Donahue-Ochoa 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, Unfreedom for All: How The World's Injustices Harm You, has just been published by Oxford University Press. You can read a precis and abstracts of various chapters by clicking here. He is beginning another book project on collective identities.
In his teaching, Donahue has added fifteen 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.
Book
Thomas J. Donahue-Ochoa, Unfreedom for All: How the World's Injustices Harm You (Oxford University Press, 2019)
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
Courses in Fall 2019
Development, Human Rights, and Transnational Injustices. ICPR H301 / POLS H301 (Every Fall, 2019-2014)
Comparative and Transnational Studies: From Kuala Lumpur to Kansas City. ICPR H271 (Also Fall 2018)
Courses Taught in the Tri-College Consortium
The Earth: Ethics, Politics & Economics. POLS H278/ ENVS H278. Featured in Haverblog's "Cool Classes" series. (Spring 2019, Fall 2014)
International Law and the Laws of Nations. POLS H317 / PEAC H317 (Spring 2019)
The Elements of Injustice: Oppression and Personal Harms. POLS H207 (Spring 2019)
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)
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)