I am an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Union College. Previously, I was a Postdoctoral Fellow at UBC. I have taught also at Barnard College of Columbia University and the University of the West Indies in Jamaica. I completed my PhD in Philosophy at UCLA.

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My research is in Metaphysics, Aesthetics, and Philosophy of Language. Much of my research is about abstract artifacts. These are abstract objects that people create: e.g., novels, symphonies, corporations, languages, words, and fictional characters. Abstract artifacts have ramifications for questions in metaphysics pertaining to causation, vague existence, vague identity, change, time, and creation. 

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I have other research interests in the meaning of artworks (including the meaning of statues and Confederate monuments), lookism and personal beauty, personal identity, and Jewish identity. I'm editing a volume The Philosophy of Ted Chiang that is under contract at Palgrave Macmillan. 

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My teaching interests are diverse. I have taught courses in Environmental Ethics, Biomedical Ethics, Philosophy of Race and Gender, Epistemology, Metaphysics, Aesthetics, Philosophy of Language, Philosophy of Sports and Games, Philosophy of Religion, Philosophy of Law, Philosophy and Film, Time Travel, Philosophy of Technology, and Introduction to Philosophy. 

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David Friedell
Department of Philosophy

Union College

807 Union Street

Schenectady, NY 12308
Email: friedeld@union.edu