Research

The Wives of Western Philosophy examines the lives and experiences of the wives and women associated with nine distinct political thinkers—from Socrates to Marx—in order to explore the gendered patterns of intellectual labor that permeate the foundations of Western political thought. Organized chronologically and representative of three eras in the history of political thought (Ancient, Early Modern, and Modern), nine critical biographical chapters explore the everyday acts of intellectual labor and partnership involving these "wives of the canon." Taking seriously their narratives as intimate partners reveals that wives have labored in remarkable ways throughout the history of political thought.

Violence in the American Imagination: Gender, Race, and the Politics of Superheroes.
American Political Science Review, 116(2), 470-483 (2022)
What does the superhero—an icon of the American imaginary—communicate about the politics of violence? Responding to nationwide protests of police brutality in 2020, law enforcement officers adopted the skull logo of The Punisher, an exceptionally violent fictional vigilante. That adoption signals what I call the privilege of violence: the force individuals may deploy based on normative expectations concerning gender and race. Comparing Marvel-Netflix productions including The Punisher series, I identify three modes of violence in operation: the unrestricted rage of a white male vigilante, the vulnerability of a feminist heroine, and the sacrificial control of a Black male hero. The article demonstrates the gendered and racialized conditions under which heroic violence is rendered legitimate to American audiences. As I conclude, Punisher’s unrestricted violence valorizes white male grievance, and this is precisely what appeals to armed agents of the American state.

The Masked Demos: Anonymity and Democratic Practice, with Jennifer Forestal.
Contemporary Political Theory 19: 573–595 (2020).
From pseudonymous pamphleteers, to anonymous social media users, we examine how anonymity in public spaces can impact democratic politics.

Feminist Preoccupations: Liberalism as 'Method' in the Gender/Culture Debate.
Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 44(4): 955-977 (2019).
This article examines how preoccupations with liberalism have shaped scholarly work at the intersection of gender and culture. Through a comparative analysis of Susan Moller Okin and Saba Mahmood, I argue that those preoccupations keep scholars of gender in the space of ideological opposition, and displace opportunities for political collaboration.
Recipient of the 2020 Okin-Young Award in Feminist Political Theory (APSA)

Troubling Appropriations: JS Mill, Liberalism, and the Virtues of Uncertainty.
European Journal of Political Theory 18(1): 68-88 (2019).
Drawing on Mill's Autobiography to recover what I call his 'appreciation for uncertainty', I argue that Mill is a far more complex, and capacious political actor than is commonly depicted in contemporary studies of this famed liberal.

The Beloved and Deplored Memory of Harriet Taylor Mill: Rethinking Gender and Intellectual Labor in the Canon.
Hypatia: A Journal of Feminist Philosophy 33(4): 626-642 (2018).
I argue that gendering practices within the field of political theory have made Harriet Taylor Mill one of the most recognized, and unjustly censured spouses of a canonical political figure (JS Mill).

Democracy Dies in Darkness? Anonymity, Accountability, and Information as a Public Good, with Jennifer Forestal.
Under review
We examine the democratic utility and challenges of anonymously sourced information.