Mitchell Aboulafia

Mitchell Aboulafia
Born	(1951-05-04) May 4, 1951
Occupation(s)	Philosopher, social theorist, professor emeritus
Years active	1970s–present
Known for	Contributions to American pragmatism and philosophy of George Herbert Mead

Mitchell Aboulafia (born May 4, 1951) is an American philosopher and social theorist who holds the title of Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Manhattan College. He is widely acknowledged for his contributions to the study of American pragmatism and the philosophy of George Herbert Mead.

Career

Aboulafia completed his undergraduate studies in philosophy at Stony Brook University in 1973, followed by a doctoral degree from Boston College in 1978. His academic career includes teaching at the University of Houston-Clear Lake, after which he chaired departments at University of Colorado at Denver, Pennsylvania State University-University Park, and Manhattan College. Additionally, he directed the Interdivisional Liberal Arts program at The Juilliard School. In recognition of his scholarly achievements, he was honored with Boston College’s Distinguished PhD Award in 2004. From 2008 to 2013, he served as co-editor of the journal Contemporary Pragmatism and was a member of the executive board for the Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy between 1992 and 1995.

Research

Aboulafia’s research endeavors seek to connect American philosophical traditions with European intellectual currents, striving for a synthesis across these perspectives. Drawing extensively on George Herbert Mead’s work, he formulated a unique theory concerning the self and the concept of self-determination, which has influenced fields such as sociology, social psychology, ethics, and philosophy. His most recent publication, Transcendence: On Cosmopolitanism and Self-Determination (Stanford University Press), addresses themes of cosmopolitanism while emphasizing respect for cultural diversity.

Books

• Transcendence: On Self-Determination and Cosmopolitanism, Stanford University Press, 2010.
• Habermas and Pragmatism, co-edited with Myra Bookman and Cathy Kemp, Routledge, 2002.
• The Cosmopolitan Self: George Herbert Mead and Continental Philosophy, University of Illinois Press, 2001.
• Philosophy, Social Theory, and the Thought of George Herbert Mead (editor), SUNY Press, 1991.
• The Mediating Self: Mead, Sartre, and Self-Determination, Yale University Press, 1986.
• The Self-Winding Circle: A Study of Hegel’s System, W.H. Green, 1982.

External links

• Mitchell Aboulafia, Jacobin, 2019.
• “George Herbert Mead”, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, updated with Scott Taylor, 2022.
• Higher Ed’s Real Productivity Problem, The Chronicle of Higher Education, 2018.
• Mead and the Unity of the Self, European Journal of Pragmatism and American Philosophy, Vol. 8 No.1, 2016.