In addition to her history of philosophy courses, Cox also teaches special topics courses whose material might seem controversial to some: Advanced Feminist Philosophies, Queer Theory and Culture, Unruly Bodies: Constructing and Deconstructing Sex, Philosophy and Disability.
Her current research addresses the emergence of a “fat identity,” which philosopher Michel Foucault would argue indicates that society has taken notice and wants to assert some control over those whose bodies are classified as “overweight” or “obese” according to current norms. Cox hopes to develop a course that will address, in part, the political fallout from the nascent “war on obesity.”
In these sometimes emotionally-charged classes, Cox works hard not to let her personal opinions direct the discussion. Everyone in the room looks to the original source—the text they’re reading—as the authority.
“The students and I, regardless of our ideological positions, we’re trying to crack this text together. I’m not trying to tell them anything. I’m trying to help them read this text with me and see where it might be right, where it might help us think about things, where it calls attention to beliefs we may have, or where it might be problematic.
Philosophy is kind of a secret weapon. Students who figure it out realize it’s training them to think. And that’s a non-discipline specific skill they’ll be able to use in law school, medical school, or the business world.
“My primary goal as an educator is to teach students to read.”
Cox finds the courses she teaches in women’s studies or sexuality studies the most rewarding. She values the chance to help students consider the “biases or privileges that might make their points of view alienating to those with different life experiences.” Sometimes she finds it necessary to remind students of ways they may be disenfranchised.
Teaching these subjects has been a learning experience for her, too. She now feels “a sort of political responsibility, an ethical commitment to the things that I’m teaching in those areas.”
Students leave Cox’s classes ready to tackle all sorts of contemporary issues. Philosophy students typically enjoy academic challenges, and many decide to pursue advanced studies in medical school, law school, or other graduate programs. Others will prepare for careers in business, teaching, or public policy.
Cox appreciates that her academic and personal interests are sometimes folded into new courses at Transylvania. In 2011 she and philosophy professor Peter Fosl took a group of students to Paris to study the philosophy of food.
Students looked at how where you live and what you eat affect your life philosophically. They also discussed how cultures, cities, historical figures, and even philosophical theories have become consumable commodities. “We talked about consumption both as a metaphor and also in the literal sense of French cuisine.”
Given Cox’s affection for French literature and French food, it seems likely the students had the opportunity to savor some petites madeleines, those magical treats that made writer Marcel Proust reflect so eloquently on consciousness and memory and the philosophical state of one’s mind. For Cox, that would result in the perfect melding of academic enlightenment and gustatory joy.
Academic History
Ph.D., Philosophy, DePaul University, 2001
M.A., Philosophy, DePaul University, 1997
B.A., Philosophy and History, Miami University of Ohio, 1993
Courses Taught at Transy
Introduction to Philosophy
Feminist Philosophies
Advanced Feminist Philosophies
Major Thinkers: Foucault
Philosophy and Disability
Unruly Bodies: Constructing and Deconstructing Sex
Queer Theory and Culture
Ancient Greek and Roman Philosophy
Nineteenth Century Philosophy
Existentialism
Recent Philosophy
Ethical Theory
Senior Seminar
California or Bust: Identity and the American Dream with Spanish professor Jeremy Paden
The Philosophical Gourmet with philosophy professor Peter Fosl
Areas of Research
Post-structuralism
Queer theory
Feminist philosophies
Cultural studies
Fat studies
Professional Memberships
Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honorary
American Philosophical Association
International Association of Philosophy and Literature
Society for Phenomenological and Existential Philosophy
National Women’s Studies Association
Phi Beta Kappa
Awards
Kenan Fund for Faculty and Student Enrichment, 2013, 2012, 2006, 2005
Ping Fellowship (Council for International Educational Exchange), 2012
Jones Sabbatical Grant, 2012
Bingham Award for Excellence in Teaching, 2007
Jones Faculty Development Grant, 2005
Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honorary, 2004
Recent Publications
“Reading and Writing the White City Legend: Allegories Past and Future” with Christopher Begley. Southwest Philosophy Review, 2006.
“Reading By Example” with Karen Feldman. Intersubjectivité et Pratique: Contributions à L’études pragmatisms dans la philosophie contemporaine. Eds. Bertram, Blank, Laudou, Lauer (Paris: L’Harmattan, 2005).
“Les Lois Qui Parlent: Nelson Mandela et le legs de l’admiration,” in En deçà du principe du sujet/Diesseits des Subjektprinzips, eds. Thomas Bedorf and Stefan Blank (Berlin: Harmattan, 2004).
Recent Papers
“Foucault, Feminism, and Fat: Developing New Feminine Subjectivities,” Midwest Society for Women in Philosophy, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, November 2012
“Rethinking the Lesbian Obesity Epidemic: Foucault, Norms, and the Mautner Project,” Women and Society Conference, Marist College, Poughkeepsie, N.Y., October 2012
“Heavy Prohibitions, Heavy Pleasures: Producing the Fat Sexual Subject,” Sexual Cultures Conference, University of Brunel, London, April 2012
“Control Masquerading as Concern: Problematizing the ‘Lesbian Obesity Epidemic,’” Lesbian Lives Conference, University College, Dublin, February 2012
“The Color of Fat: the Place of the Black Body in Fat Studies,” Body Politics Conference, Sarah Lawrence College, Bronxville, N.Y., March 2011
“Ideology Critiques Matter: Fat Studies and the Politics of Obesity,” Does Marx Matter Today? conference, Lewis University, Chicago, February 2011
“Making Ourselves Sick: Queer Theory, Fat Studies, and Epistemologies of the Body,” Bodies of Knowledge Conference, University of South Carolina Upstate, Spartanburg, S.C., April 2010
“Philosophy as Fiction: The Difficulty of Reading Proust as Philosopher,” Midsouth Philosophy Conference, University of Memphis, Memphis, March 2010
Additional Information
Faculty mentor for T-Unity, Transylvania’s LGBTQ Student Group; Sophia, Transylvania’s Undergraduate Philosophy Society; Voice, Transylvania’s Women’s Organization; Tri-Iota, Transylvania’s Women’s Studies Honorary