Philosophy News

Interview and article by: Lora Lee Allen (Philosophy major)

We recently had the pleasure of introducing two new professors to the Philosophy Department, here at WVU; Jessica Wolfendale and Nathan Placencia. They seem to be made for their positions, fitting in perfectly with everyone here. You can catch them in the lounge discussing ethics, in the hallway joking around with a student, or in their office hard at work. They appear so comfortable with the department and the people in it, it feels like they’ve been here longer than just a few months.

Obviously, the Philosophy Department adores these two individuals, but I wanted to know what they thought of us. Dr. Placencia found the department, as well as WVU in general, to be a great place to work. Dr. Wolfendale agreed. “One of the main reasons I decided to come here was the supportive atmosphere in the department,” she told me.

Dr. Placencia told me that he grew up in the “very hot and smoggy” Riverside, CA. However, before coming here to WVU, he was finishing a two-year dissertation at DePauw. “I learned the true meaning of cold [and] heard tornado sirens for the first time?” Also finishing up a project was Dr. Wolfendale. She was ending a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at the University of Melbourne. And while she visited places like Oxford and Boston while doing her project, this is the first time she has lived overseas. “[It] is a little scary but very exciting,” she told me.

Dr. Wolfendale’s main research interests lie in the ethics of political violence. “I’m very interested in how state violence is justified and rationalized by those who carry out that violence.” In this way, she has published a book entitled “Torture and the Military Profession,” addressing the question of why “honorable professions” (such as military institutions around the world) engage in torture. The nature and justification of punishment is another research interest of hers. She looks at how places of punishment, such as prisons, follow theories of punishment.

Race and moral psychology are the main research interests of Dr. Placencia. “In the future, I would really like to teach a course on the philosophy of race. If things work out this semester, I’ll get my wish.” He is also currently working on a paper about social identity. He attempts to discern what it is to “identify with a social classification.”

When he isn’t researching or pondering philosophical questions, you can find Nathan on the basketball court, or watching “almost every Lakers’ game.” However, he also enjoys hiking and simply spending time with his family, which include his wife of 11 years, Inez and two children, Alethia (10 yrs) and Tavia (4 yrs). He told me that they were all enjoying living in Morgantown.

Born in the UK, Jessica comes from a very close family. She and her fraternal twin sister grew up in Canberra, Australia. Most of her family is living in Melbourne, “which is unfortunately rather a long way from Morgantown,” she said. Dr. Wolfendale is also very active, enjoying biking, hiking, dancing and racquetball. And while it’s clear from seeing her that she has a strong sense of fashion, she confirmed that she does indeed like to shop for vintage clothes. Which, she explains, is not easy to do in Morgantown.

And just for fun I asked them to name a few of their top 3s for a few different topics.

Dr. Placencia

Movies: The Matrix, Indiana Jones (The Last Crusade) and Star Wars (Return of the Jedi)
Albums: I don’t really listen to albums but I do have favorite Songs. Pearl Jam “Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town”, Slick Rick “Children’s Story”, Smashing Pumpkins “1979”
Books: I don’t read much fiction, but if I had to choose three they’d be the “Nate the Great” series of children’s stories, Chronicles of Narnia (Voyage of the Dawn Treader) and Things Fall Apart.
TV shows: The Office, 30 Rock, the A-Team
Philosophers: Kant, Charles Taylor, Sally Haslanger
Foods: Tacos de pescado (fish tacos), Chile Rellenos (stuffed chile), Tamales
Choose your own: Life, Family, Being paid for doing something you love.

Dr. Wolfendale

Movies: The Manchurian Candidate (the original, not the remake), Evil Dead 2, The Lives of Others
Albums: Ziggy Stardust, by David Bowie, most things by Miles Davis, and (for nostalgic reasons) Standing on a Beach by The Cure.
Books: Possession, by A. S. Byatt, The Robber Bride, by Margaret Atwood, and Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin novels.
TV shows: Breaking Bad (which I’ve just started watching, but its fantastic); Doctor Who (original and new versions), and Project Runway.
Philosophers: Bernard Williams, Thomas Nagel, David Luban
Foods: Italian pastas, Lebanese food, and lamb roast.
Choose your own: Fall leaves, 1930s fashions, cocktails & jazz.