Jeffrey Tlumak, boomer trujillo, John Lachs (Vanderbilt, 2019)
Ph.D. in Philosophy
Vanderbilt University, 2019
Dissertation: "No Laughing Matter: Playfulness and a Good Life" | Chair: John Lachs; Advisors: Jeffrey Tlumak, Rob Talisse, Kelly Oliver, Christian Miller
Hermannsdenkmal (2012)
Fulbright
Bochum, Germany, 2011-12
English Teaching Assistant at Schiller-Schule Gymnasium; Guest student Ruhr-Uni Bochum
David Phillips, boomer trujillo, Cynthia Freeland, Tamler Sommers (U of H, 2011)
M.A. in Philosophy
University of Houston, 2011
Thesis: “The Psychological Nature of Virtue and the Unity of the Virtuous Life” | Chair: Cynthia Freeland; Advisors: David Phillips, Tamler Sommers
Accepting the 2009 Presidential Award at St. Ed’s.
B.A. in Philosophy
St. Edward’s University, 2009
Summa Cum Laude in the Honors Program | Presidential Award Winner | Thesis: “On Why Film Cannot Be Philosophy” | Advisor: Peter A. Wake
What I Write About
OK, so imagine that all five Power Rangers (plus the Green Ranger) are combining their powers to create a Megazord.
Red Ranger: Aristotle with his power of analyzing human flourishing and character traits.
Pink Ranger: Diogenes with his power of trolling to make you a better person and recognize bullshit.
Blue Ranger: Hegel with his power of demanding that others see you for who you are (and recognizing that human history is messy, even if it sometimes make sense).
Black Ranger: Camus with his power coolness—in aesthetic, temperamental, and moral senses.
Yellow Ranger: David Foster Wallace with his power of seeing that we all want to be connected but that we all feel alone so we use our pleasures to make us feel alive but they sometimes also kill us.
Green Ranger: Ursula K. Le Guin with her power of imagining new possibilities for living with the nastiness and transcendence of humanity.
These six Power Rangers create a Megazord that I pilot in my writing. Maybe it’s a hulk of alloys that combine only to annoy you with my pretentiousness. But maybe the odd ways it lumbers and lands an occasional laser beam against a worthy adversary is kinda cool too.
Philosophy You Might Consider
“Stoicism Sucks: How Stoicism Undervalues Good Things and Exploits Vulnerable People”
TL;DR: Stoics are axiological solipsists (value is all in the head, and nowhere else), and they talk like sociopaths (you’re only good because you help me to reflect my values).
"The Friends of Sisyphus: Or, the Meanings Relationships Give Us"
TL;DR: People can make our lives more meaningful or miserable. Sisyphus with friends or enemies looks different to us than him all alone.
“Possessed: The Cynics on Wealth and Pleasure”
TL;DR: Cynics argued that living self-sufficiently is the goal of life. Any material possessions or social entanglements work against this, so Cynics argued against them. Possessions possess you, and no Cynic can abide that.
“Friendship for the Flawed: A Cynical and Pessimistic Theory of Friendship”
TL;DR: Cynics and Pessimists rightly point out that friends present moral risk and that solitude is preferable to ill company. But they also make great friends because they’re unpretentious.
“The Benefits of Being a Suicidal Curmudgeon: Emil Cioran on Killing Yourself”
TL;DR: Emil Cioran argues that the world is meaningless, so suicide is too. While one ought not finish suicide, one maybe should contemplate it because it changes you for the better.
Fiction You Might Feel
50-Word Stories: “Refrain” | "The Marvel" | "Mutant" | "Sudsy Surrender"
Religious speculation: "There"
On the wall of local authors at Literarity Book Story (El Paso, 2024, credit: Bill Clark)
A Book You Might Read
The Virtue of Playfulness: Why Happy People Are Playful
TL;DR: All people who have led the best kinds of lives have developed a virtue of playfulness. Playfulness is crucial for life because it helps us to use our leisure time to rest, develop ourselves, and engage our communities.
I read the book on YouTube to help with accessibility.