Areas of Specialization: Late Modern to Contemporary Continental Philosophy; Late Antique to Medieval Neoplatonism. Areas of Competency: History of Philosophy; Philosophy of Religion; Aesthetics & Cultural Theory; Environmental Philosophy; Eastern Philosophy & Comparative Religions; Critical Philosophy on Gender & Race.
EDUCATION
Ph.D. Philosophy; Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, December 2009.
Dissertation Title: “Expressing the Inexpressible: Bearing Witness in Jean-François Lyotard and Pseudo-Dionysius.” Director: Lanei Rodemeyer, Ph.D.
M.A. Philosophy; Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2004.
B.A. Philosophy, Comparative Religions, & Creative Writing; Sarah Lawrence College, Bronxville, New York, 1999.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE Associate Professor, Belmont University, Nashville, Tennessee, fall 2017-summer 2020 & Assistant Professor, Belmont University, Nashville, Tennessee, fall 2011-spring 2017.
“Postmodernism and Feminism.” Phi-4990; advanced independent study.
“Introduction to Philosophy.” Phi-1600; multiple introductory seminars & online components; eight “Life & Suffering,” two “Hidden Landscape of Being Human,” & two “Wisdom of Life” Learning Community courses linked to Religion’s “Understanding the Bible,” & two “Good & Evil” Maymester independent studies.
“Our Postmodern Condition.” Bel-1015; First-Year Seminar, philosophy plus interdisciplinary material.
Adjunct Instructor, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio, spring 2011, fall 2010, fall 2007.
“Introduction to Philosophy.” Phil-11001; five sections with online components.
Adjunct Instructor, Hiram College, Hiram, Ohio, spring 2010, spring-fall 2008.
“Expressing the Inexpressible.” Fsem-191; interdisciplinary freshmen seminar, online component.
“Early Modern Philosophy.” Phil-229; two seminars, each with online components.
“Theories of Human Nature.” Phil-212; interdisciplinary seminar, online component.
Adjunct Instructor, Kent State University, Geauga Campus, Burton, Ohio, spring 2007.
“Introduction to Philosophy.” Phil-11001.
Adjunct Instructor, Chatham College, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, spring 2005.
“Introduction to Philosophy.” Phil-113; with an online component.
“What Can Love Say?—Lyotard on Caritas and Eros.” Chapter six in Thinking about Love: Essays in Contemporary Continental Philosophy, eds. Diane Enns and Antonio Calcagno (University Park, PA: Penn State University Press, 2015). ISBN: 978-0271070964.
Reviewed: Helen A. Fielding, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews (2016): available here.
“From Automatons to Doppelgängers: A Spectrum from ‘Utterly Foreign’ to ‘Exactly Me,’” The Belmont Humanities Symposium Journal, ed. John Paine (2015).
“The Civil Self: Authenticity without Alienation,” The Belmont Humanities Symposium Journal, ed. John Paine (2014).
Expressing the Inexpressible in Lyotard and Pseudo-Dionysius: Bearing Witness as Spiritual Exercise. (Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, August 29, 2013). ISBN: 978-0-7391-8341-0. Available Here.
“Mélanie Walton: Expressing the Inexpressible,” Author Meets Critics Panel, The 47th Annual Meeting of the Tennessee Philosophical Association, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, October 30-31, 2015.
Reviewed by Timothy D. Knepper, “Book Review: Mélanie V. Walton: Expressing the Inexpressible in Lyotard and Pseudo-Dionysius: bearing witness as spiritual exercise,” International Journal for Philosophy of Religion 77.2 (2015): 191-94.
Noted in “New Scholarly Books: Weekly Book List, October 4, 2013,” The Chronicle of Higher Education. Available Here.
“Hardly Black and White: Racism and Sexual Stereotypes in Manderlay and Black Snake Moan.” Chapter ten in Race, Philosophy, and Film, eds. Mary K. Bloodsworth-Lugo and Dan Flory (New York: Routledge Studies in Contemporary Philosophy, 2013). ISBN: 978-0415624459. Available Here.
“Book Review: Jean-François Lyotard’s Sam Francis: Lesson of Darkness: ‘like the paintings of a blind man,’” The Journal for Aesthetics and Art Criticism, 70, 2 (Spring 2012): 249-51. Available Here.
“Re-creation: Phenomenology and Guerrilla Gardening.” Chapter five in Placing Nature on the Borders of Religion, Philosophy and Ethics, eds. Forrest Clingerman and Mark H. Dixon (Surrey, United Kingdom: Ashgate Publishers, August 2011). ISBN: 978-1-4094-2044-6. Available Here.
Reviewed: Sarah E. Fredericks, Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences 2 (2012): 96-98. Available Here.
“Confession as Testimony of Existence: Reason and Myth in Augustine and Heidegger.” EXIS-TENTIA ΜΕΛΕΤΑΙΣΟΦΙΑΣ: An International Journal of Philosophy XIX, 3-4 (2009): 309-316.
“The Challenges for its Future: Jean-François Lyotard’s Postmodernism.” Selected Conference Proceedings, Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities, Digital Publication, January 2009. ISSN: 1541-5899.
“Response to C. Rentmeester’s ‘Heidegger and the Founding of a Political State: How the Daoist Sage-ruler fits within the Heideggerian Framework.’” Online Conference Proceedings, Kent State University’s ‘May Fourth’ Philosophy Graduate Student Conference, Number 7 (2008).
“Collage Art: The Art of Construction or the Constructed Art.” Prologue in Annual Juried Exhibit of the National Collage Society Catalogue, The Philip and Muriel Berman Museum, Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, September 2006.
“Miguel de Unamuno’s Ethic of Invasion: A Viable Alternative?” Online Conference Proceedings, Kent State University’s ‘May Fourth’ Philosophy Graduate Student Conference, Number 1 (2002).
Projects Currently in Progress:
A Phenomenology of Burnout: Drear through the Canon and Lived Experience.
Actio Passio CreatioEx Nihilo: Aesthetic Readings of the Creation of Meaning from the Nothing.
Jean-François Lyotard’s The Differend: A Reading Guide.
“A Phenomenology of Burn-Out: Drear in Heidegger, Levinas, Nancy, etc.,” Duquesne Philosophy Reunion Conference at the 58th Annual Meeting of the Society for Phenomenological and Existential Philosophy, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Oct. 30-Nov. 2, 2019.
“Sensuous Stutters, Expressive Displacements: Ps.-Dionysius and Boethius as Medieval Postmoderns,” Society for Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy Panel at the American Philosophical Association Annual Meeting of the Pacific Division, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, April 17-20, 2019.
“Explorer/ing: Using Lugones’ ‘Pluralist’ as a Map,” U.S. Midwest 2018 Society for Women in Philosophy Conference, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, Nov. 2-4, 2018.
“Narratology: ‘… In the Garbage-Heap of Finality Looking for Leftovers …’,” The Present and the Future of the Past: 17th Annual Belmont University Humanities Symposium, Belmont University, Nashville, Tennessee, Sept. 17-24, 2018.
“At Home in the Uncanny,” Making it Home: The 16th Annual Humanities Symposium, Belmont University, Nashville, Tennessee, Sept. 18-25, 2017.
“Magic [&/Is/Vs.] Technology,” Machines Made of Words: Technology, Progress, and the Humanities: The 15th Annual Humanities Symposium, Belmont University, Nashville, Tennessee, Sept. 19-26, 2016.
“Expressing the Inexpressible: Mysticism and Postmodernism,” The Dr. Robert E. Simmons Lectureship Presentation, Belmont University, Nashville, Tennessee, April 4, 2016.
“Mélanie Walton: Expressing the Inexpressible,” Author Meets Critics Panel, The 47th Annual Conference of the Tennessee Philosophical Association, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, Oct. 30-31, 2015.
“From Barley Bread to Haute Cuisine: The Epicurean Ethic of Pleasure Evolves,” Many Tables Fayre: Cuisine in Culture and Community: The 14th Annual Humanities Symposium, Belmont University, Nashville, Tennessee, Sept. 28-Oct. 5, 2015.
“Inclining Thought: Heidegger and Anselm,” The 39th Annual Midsouth Philosophy Conference, Rhodes College, Memphis, Tennessee, March 13-14, 2015.
“Self Knowledge for Divine Knowledge in al-Ghazzali and Attar,” 31st Annual Joint Meeting of The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy with The Society for the Study of Islamic Philosophy and Science, Fordham University, Lincoln Center, New York, New York, Oct. 11-13, 2013.
“From Automatons to Doppelgängers: A Spectrum from ‘Utterly Foreign’ to ‘Exactly Me’,” Encountering Otherness: The 12th Annual Humanities Symposium, Belmont University, Nashville, Tennessee, Sept. 23-30, 2013.
“Pseudo-Dionysius and the Possibility of Proportionate Privation,” 37th Annual Midsouth Philosophy Conference, Rhodes College, Memphis, Tennessee, Feb. 15-16, 2013.
“Lyotard on Myth and Narration: A Solution for or Cause of the Inexpressible?,” 51st Annual Meeting of the Society for Phenomenological and Existential Philosophy, Rochester, New York, Nov. 1-3, 2012.
“The Civil Self: Authenticity without Alienation,” Civility and its Discontents: The 11th Annual Humanities Symposium, Belmont University, Nashville, Tennessee, Sept. 24-Oct. 1, 2012.
“Beauty, Monstrosity, Sublimity: Classical and Kantian Dichotomies in Cocteau’s La Belle et La Bête,” Society for the Philosophical Study of the Contemporary Visual Arts Panel at the American Philosophical Association Annual Meeting of the Central Division, Minneapolis, Minnesota, March 30-April 2, 2011.
“When Difference Becomes Differend: Lyotard’s Compendium of Impossible Communications,” Cultures of Differences: National, Indigenous, Historical, 34th Annual Meeting of the International Association of Philosophy and Literature, University of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, May 24-30, 2010.
“Mapping the Myths of Babylon,” Fields of Dreams: Landscapes of Myth and Imagination, Annual Conference for Greenscapes: Sense and Meaning, Brock University, Saint Catherines, Ontario, Canada, Oct. 1-3, 2009.
“The Daydream and its Failure in the Cartography of the Sexes: Lyotard, Deleuze, and Guattari,” Double Edges: Rhetoric, Rhizomes, Regions, 33rd Annual Meeting of the International Association of Philosophy and Literature, Brunel University, London, England, June 1-7, 2009.
“Elaborating the World with the World: A Phenomenology of Guerilla Gardening,” Recreate, Replace, Restore: Exploring the Intersections Between Meanings and Environments, Ohio Northern University Working Group on Religion, Ethics, and Nature, Ada, Ohio, April 17-19, 2009.
“The Mystic versus the Ascetic: Erotic Consummation or Postponement?” Sexuality, Eroticism, and Gender, Louisiana State University Department of French Studies Third Annual Graduate Student Conference, Bâton Rouge, Louisiana, Jan. 30-31, 2009.
“The Challenges for its Future: Jean-François Lyotard’s Postmodernism,” Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities, Honolulu, Hawaii, Jan. 9-12, 2009.
“Heeding Postmodernism: A Philosophy of the Event,” Philosophy and the Event Conference, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, Feb. 29-March 1, 2008.
“Expressing the Inexpressible,” Kent State University’s Philosophy Club, Invited Guest Speaker, Kent, Ohio, Feb. 22, 2008.
“The Liberal Arts Education: Derailment at the Intersection of Theory and Practice,” Duquesne University’s Ninth Annual Graduate Student Interdisciplinary Conference, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2002.
“Miguel de Unamuno’s Ethic of Invasion: A Viable Alternative to Socio-Political Ethics?” Kent State University’s ‘May Fourth’ Philosophy Graduate Student Conference, Kent, Ohio, 2002.
Respondent Presentations:
“Monad to Nomad?: A Response to K. Noe’s ‘Habit, Phenomenology, and Deleuze’s Philosophy of Art’,” The 49th Annual Conference of the Tennessee Philosophical Association, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, Oct. 27-28, 2017.
“The Subtle: A Response to Borland and Hillman’s ‘Scotus and God’s Arbitrary Will—A Reassessment’,” The 39th Annual Midsouth Philosophy Conference, Rhodes College, Memphis, Tennessee, March 13-14, 2015.
“Hindu Philosophy and Hegel: A Response to Fritzman, Lowenstein, and Nelson’s ‘Kasmir to Prussia, Round Trip: A Comparison of Monistic Saivism and Hegel’,” The 37th Annual Midsouth Philosophy Conference, Rhodes College, Memphis, Tennessee, Feb. 15-16, 2013.
“Possibilities: A Response to C. Smith’s ‘Sliding Doors’,” Philosophy of Time Society Panel at the American Philosophical Association Annual Meeting of the Eastern Division, Washington D.C., Dec. 27-30, 2011.
“Response to C. Rentmeester’s ‘Heidegger and the Founding of a Political State: How the Daoist Sage-ruler fits within the Heideggerian Framework’,” Kent State University’s ‘May Fourth’ Graduate Student Philosophy Conference, Kent, Ohio, March 8, 2008.
AWARDS and NOMINATIONS
The Dr. Robert E. Simmons Lectureship; College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, Belmont University; spring 2016.
The Belmont Christian Scholar Award; Belmont University; spring 2016.
University Nomination: The Eighth Biennial Arlin G. Meyer Prize in Nonfiction, Lilly Fellows Program; fall 2015.
ACADEMIC and PROFESSIONAL SERVICE Publishing Editorial Service:
Founding and Managing Editor: Philologoi: Belmont University’s Undergraduate Journal of Philosophy, fall 2011-. Available Here.
Outside Manuscript Reviewer: Polity Press, fall 2015. Pickering and Chatto Publishers, spring 2015. Broadview Press, spring 2014.
Outside Article Reviewer: AsiaNetwork Exchange, fall 2014. Landscape Research, fall 2013. PhaenEx: Journal of Existential and Phenomenological Theory and Culture / Revue de Théorie et Culture Existentialistes et Phénoménologiques, summer 2010.
Editorial Assistant: Bibliography transcription and translation, editorial work, Marlène Zarader’s La Dete Impensée: Heidegger et l’Héritage Hébraïque, advisor: Dr. Bettina Bergo, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2002. Manuscript research, editorial work, advisor: Dr. Charles Don Keyes, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2000-2001.
Research Assistant: Research, creation, Philosophy Department Educational Theory Guide, advisor: Dr. Wilhelm Wurzer, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2002.
Publishing Internship: Column byline, general editorial work, American Floral Services, Inc., Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, 1998.
Conference Organizing and Assistance Service:
Organizing Committee Roles: Member, Making it Home: 16th An. Belmont University Humanities Symposium, 2016-17. Chair, 48th An. Conference of the Tennessee Philosophical Association, 2016. Chair, Belmont University’s Philosophy Spring Speaker Series, 2013. Member, Global Asia: AsiaNetwork An. Conference, 2012-13. Member, Encountering Otherness: 12th An. Belmont University Humanities Symposium, 2012-13. Member, Civility and Its Discontents: 11th An. Belmont University Humanities Symposium, 2011-12. Chair, Duquesne University’s Graduate Students in Philosophy Organization-Graduate Students in Philosophy Colloquium, Duquesne University, 2002-03.
Additional Conference Service: Coordinators Panels, 16th, 12th, 11th An. Belmont University Humanities Symposiums, 2012, 2013, 2017. Sessions Chair, 10th-16th An. Belmont University Humanities Symposium, 2011-17. Panel Chair, 48th An. Conference of the Tennessee Philosophical Association, 2016. Panel Chair, American Philosophical Association An. Meeting of the Pacific Division, San Francisco, CA, 2010. Panel Chair, Duquesne University’s 11th An. Graduate Student Interdisciplinary Conference, 2004. Philosophy and Religion Sessions Conference Judge: Harmonious Hemispheres: The Nexus of Science and the Arts: Alpha Chi National Convention, Chicago, Illinois, 2015. Transcending Boundaries, Alpha Chi National Convention, Washington DC, 2016.
Teaching Development and Student-Centered Work:
Teaching development Experiences: Participant, Belmont University New Faculty Orientation, Teaching Workshops, Teaching Center Symposium, Junior Cornerstone Workshops, Learning Community Workshops, Belmont University, Nashville, Tennessee, 2011-. Invited Speaker and Participant, Philosophy Department Teaching Seminars, Center for Teaching Excellence Workshop for New Instructors, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2002-04. Research Assistant, Philosophy Department Educational Theory Guide, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2002.
Technological Pedagogy Development: Development, maintenance of independent course-related websites, www.aquestionofexistence.com, www.threshold-to-lintel.com. Online Learning Management Systems experience: Blackboard, iWeb, WebCT, Sakai, and LiveText.
Education and Communications Consultantships: Smithers-Oasis Company, Kent, Ohio, 2006-2007, research on new technology for education and communications for the floral industry; organization and analysis of two Floral Education Summits. Instituto Mexicano Técnico Floral, Mexico City, Mexico, 2006, research on online education design; implementation of distance education floral program.
Student Organization Advisor Positions: University Faculty Co-Advisor, Alpha Chi National College Honor Scholarship Society, fall 2014-. Faculty Advisor, Philologoi: Belmont University’s Undergraduate Journal of Philosophy, fall 2011-. Philosophy Department Graduate Studies Advisor, Belmont University, fall 2012-.
Professional Memberships: Society for Medieval & Renaissance Philosophy, 2019-. Tennessee Philosophical Association, 2015- (President, 2015-16). American Philosophical Association, 1999-. Society for Phenomenological and Existential Philosophy, 2008-. American Society for Aesthetics, 2009-. The International Association of Philosophy and Literature, 2004-13. Society for the Philosophical Study of the Contemporary Visual Arts, 2010-11. The Golden Key International Honour Society, 2008-.
LANGUAGES
French, advanced reading and moderate speaking proficiency; independent study and study abroad at The Language Institute, Strasbourg, France, summer 1994.
German, reading proficiency; graduate courses at Duquesne University, fall 2000, spring 2003.