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Dr Emily McTernan

Emily McTernan
Associate Professor in Political Theory
Room: 4.02, 29/30 Tavistock Square
Email: e.mcternan@ucl.ac.uk
Website

 

Biography

I am an Associate Professor in Political Philosophy at the Department of Political Science/School of Public Policy, UCL, and the co-host of the department’s podcast, UCL Uncovering Politics. I am an Area Editor at Ergo and Associate Editor of Politics, Philosophy, & Economics. I have held visiting positions in Philosophy, ANU and at ICREA, Pompeu Fabra University. 

My monograph, On Taking Offence (OUP, 2023), offers a novel analysis and a political and moral defence, of this neglected and much maligned social emotion. I have also published in Mind; Philosophy & Public Affairs; The Journal of Political Philosophy; Political Studies; and The Journal of Moral Philosophy; amongst other venues. I won the 2021 Early Career Prize of the Britain and Ireland Association for Political Thought. My research has been supported by a Leverhulme Research Fellowship, and funding awards from the Templeton Trust, the Society for Applied Philosophy, and the British Academy. 

I have taught a range of topics across ethics, political philosophy, and the philosophy of science. Currently, I run courses on the ethics and politics of social science, on political philosophy, and, from next year, on the philosophy and ethics of emotions. Last year I was nominated for a student choice award for inspiring teaching. I have supervised four PhD students to completion, all currently in academic careers, and ran the MA in Legal and Political Theory for six years.

Research

I’m a political philosopher of the social world. My research explores the ethics and politics of our interactions; our social norms and social emotions; and equality and the nature of injustice and hierarchy. I’ve written about these themes on topics including microaggressions, the emotion of offence, civic education, freedom of association and heckling, the value of encounters, the ethics of humour, and theories of egalitarianism. Sometimes, I also write about bioethics, especially where it intersects with social injustices and on fertility treatment.

Currently I am working on two projects: 
(1) Freedom, the Value of Association, and Spaces of Association. Addressing the value and nature of our associations promises to illuminate contemporary issues from the ethics of sexual advances, to no platforming protests and the design of hospitals. You can read its first publications, ‘Against Visitor Bans’ and ‘Heckling, Free Speech, and Free Association’ or read about my new collaborative project with Professor Ben Colburn and Dr Jane Clossick: ‘Spaces of Birth and Death’.
(2) A new monograph on social equality, hierarchy, and the significance of social norms and everyday interactions. As a short slogan, my argument is, ‘more Goffman, less Kant’ and you can see a small part of this work defending the significance of microaggressions in structures of social inequality: Microaggressions, Equality, and Social Practices and In the eyes of the beholders
 

Uncovering Politics logo showing people with raised banners and hands in silhouette

Podcast: UCL Uncovering Politics

Hear Dr McTernan speak about her research on the following podcast episode:
S5 Ep3 | Taking Offence

Publications

Books
Journal articles
Book chapters
Other articles

Teaching

I teach the postgraduate modules ‘Meanings of Liberty’ and ‘Contemporary Political Philosophy II’, and the undergraduate module ‘Philosophy, Values, and the Social Sciences’.

I am currently supervising PhD students working on social equality and dementia, and on republicanism. My supervision interests are: equality (particularly relational/social egalitarianism and distributive justice); responsibility; political emotions; social norms and social practices; civic virtue and citizenship; freedom of association; political theory and architecture; and fertility treatments.

Public appearances (external)

Podcast Interviews
New Books Network Podcast - On Taking Offence
The Prindle Institute For Ethics Podcast - Taking Offence With Emily McTernan
Prairie Public Radio - Why? Philosophical Discussions about Everyday Life

Videos
Harvard's Ethics Centre Channel - On Giving and Taking Offence

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