William Bristow
- Associate Professor, Philosophy
- Chair, Philosophy
Education
- PhD, Philosophy, Harvard University (1997)
- BA, Philosophy and Religious Studies, Stanford University (1987)
Office Hours
Thursdays, 2-3:30pm, or by appointment (Curtin 616)
Teaching Schedule
| Course Num | Title | Meets |
|---|---|---|
| PHILOS 243-001 | Moral Problems: Capital Punishment | MW 1pm-2:15pm |
| PHILOS 432-001 | Great Thinkers of the Modern Period | TR 1pm-2:15pm |
| PHILOS 432G-001 | Great Thinkers of the Modern Period | TR 1pm-2:15pm |
Courses Taught
- PHILOS 250 - God, Faith and Reason
- PHILOS 355 - Political Philosophy
- PHILOS 432 - Great Thinkers of Modern Philosophy
- PHILOS 435 - Existentialism
- PHILOS 554/G - Kant's Theoretical Philosophy
- PHILOS 681/G - Self-Consciousness and Self-Knowledge
- PHILOS 758 - Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit
Teaching Interests
Bill Bristow teaches courses in history of modern western philosophy, nineteenth and twentieth century continental thought, philosophy of religion, existentialism, moral and political philosophy, and on thematic issues related to the nature of the self.
Research Interests
Bill Bristow's research focuses historically on the philosophical systems of Immanuel Kant and of the post-Kantian German idealists and on the writings of other nineteenth century philosophers. As for general topic or theme, his research focuses on the nature of the self and its relation to philosophy's distinctive methods and ambitions, particularly in classical German philosophy. Bristow's current research is directed at the notion of human experience, particularly transformative experience, particularly as related to the ambitions of philosophical inquiry, and particularly as grounded in Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit.
Biographical Sketch
Bill Bristow was born and raised in small towns in the state of Montana. He received his undergraduate degree in Philosophy and Religious Studies at Stanford University, and then his PhD in Philosophy at Harvard University in 1997. During his undergraduate education, he studied a year at the University of Haifa in Israel, and during his graduate education, he studied a year at the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich. After receiving his PhD, he taught for two years as a Harper Schmidt Fellow in the Core Curriculum at the University of Chicago, and then taught 8 years as an Assistant Professor in the Philosophy Department at the University of California, Irvine. He has been teaching in the Philosophy Department at UW-Milwaukee since 2007.