Philosophy Faculty at SUNY Plattsburgh - Kurtis Hagen

Philosophy Faculty — Kurtis Hagen

Chair
Associate Professor

While Dr. Hagen specializes in early Chinese philosophy, particularly Confucianism, he also has interests in a number of other topics, from Buddhist anti-essentialism to the East Asian challenge to human rights, as well as Western metaphysics and the philosophy of religion. Recently, he has developed an interest in applied epistemology, especially the assessment of conspiracy theories, and issues concerning when one should defer to "experts." Also, on a nice day, he can sometimes be found playing Ultimate Frisbee.

Education

• Ph.D. University of Hawaii at Manoa.
• M.A. University of Hawaii at Manoa.
• B.S. in Electrical Engineering, University of California at Davis.

Teaching Areas

• Philosophy of religion.
• Political philosophy.
• Asian philosophy.
• Metaphysics.
• Ethics.

Research Areas

• Chinese philosophy.
• Applied philosophy.

Recent Scholarship

• "Xunzi and the Prudence of Dao: Desire as the Motive to Become Good," Dao: A Journal of Comparative Philosophy 10.1 (March 2011) 53-70.
• "Is Infiltration of 'Extremist Groups' Justified?" The International Journal of Applied Philosophy 24.2 (fall 2010) 153-168.
• "The Propriety of Confucius: A Sense-of-Ritual," Asian Philosophy 20.1 (March 2010) 1-25. 
• The Philosophy of Xunzi: A Reconstruction (Chicago: Open Court Press), 2007.

Contact Kurtis Hagen

Office: Champlain Valley Hall 303
Phone: (518) 564-2834
Email: hagenkg@plattsburgh.edu