I am Visiting Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. I recently earned my Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Maryland, College Park. My research focuses on ethics and the moral psychology of emotions. I take a humanistic approach to these topics, drawing on literature and other arts to defend philosophical conclusions embedded in ordinary understanding. I tend to work in a pluralistic framework, at the intersections of historical and contemporary philosophy, as well as the continental and analytic traditions.
Lately I've been interested in the rationality of emotions across time. One paper on this topic concerns the intermittent nature of grief. I've also been curious about the philosophy of love, and wrote papers about loving someone whose values you don't share and the ethics of seduction. Works in progress include a paper on anger and art, a paper on intense emotional commitment, and a couple of papers on philosophy and literature.
I teach introductory courses and seminars on emotions, love and sex, existentialism, ethical theory, and contemporary moral issues.
Besides Maryland, I studied philosophy at Bard College and The New School for Social Research. At Maryland, I advised philosophy majors as an undergraduate advisor and co-founded the department's Minorities and Philosophy chapter (MAPterps@umd.edu).
You can email me at tillje01@luther.edu. Once the APA and the UMD Center for Humanities Research interviewed me. Here is my CV.