Austin Fuller is a student of philosophy that is particularly interested in the philosophy of art and aesthetics, but is really interested in too many philosophical topics to keep track of.
What is your favorite thing that you’ve written?
I once took a seminar on Heidegger and Wittgenstein, and I wrote a paper on the philosophy of language between the two of them. I don’t know if what I wrote was especially deep or groundbreaking, but this was the first time I had interacted with either of these thinkers and writing this paper felt like moving up to sitting at the grown-ups’ table.
What are you working on right now?
A lot of my work since being a graduate student has been related to video games because I’ve played video games almost my entire life and so have so many people in younger generations. There is obviously some work on the topic, but I think that it’s really only starting to get attention as a philosophical issue (which is fair since video games have really transformed into a new medium fairly recently). I am especially interested on the narratology of video games and the emotions we have while playing them, and how it’s related to how we feel with other mediums.
What is your favorite book of all time? (Or top 3). Why? To whom would you recommend them?
It must be Don Quixote. I was introduced to the book in high school and fell in love with it (even though I didn’t actually read it completely until college), and found it to be so charming, witty, and ambitious, all characteristics that I also have, of course. It’s a monster of a book, though, so I don’t recommend it to the faint of heart, but if you have the time and the patience, I think it’s worth it.
What advice do you wish someone had given you?
Don’t be so quick to quit when things aren’t going your way. Somebody may have actually given me this advice when I was a kid, but I didn’t listen well enough. I’ve always been relatively (very) impatient, so growing up if I wasn’t immediately good at something like sports, musical instruments, and so on, I would lose interest even though I would really want the skill. I feel like I’ve probably missed out on experiences and opportunities because of this, and I wouldn’t want to see anyone else suffer the same fate.
Who is your favorite philosopher and why?
It’s hard to say who my “favorite” philosopher is, but the philosopher that made me fall in love with philosophy the most is Søren Kierkegaard. I was already declared as a philosophy major but reading Kierkegaard and seeing how sharp and funny he is while writing about these lofty ideas. I thought it was fun to do philosophy before, but after Kierkegaard I felt like it was possible to have even more fun.
What’s your poison? (Favorite drink.)
I used to be a bartender and I loved making drinks, but it’s always tough to decide what I want to drink whenever I’m out. If I had to choose, it’d be between a Singapore Sling or Manhattan, with a Jägerbomb being an honorable mention.
What are you most proud of in your professional life?
I think completing and defending my honors thesis during the lockdown in 2020 is something I feel especially proud of. Before undertaking the project, all the students that were planning on writing an honors thesis were invited to a meeting about what was expected and given some advice; however, during this meeting they let us know that there was no shame in not being able to complete the thesis and seemed like they expected the majority of us to drop the project. So I was kind of expecting not to finish it, but kept working regardless, somewhat surprising myself when I completed the defense—a pleasant surprise of course.
Name a trait, skill or characteristic that you have that others may not know about.
Something that most people know about me from Dickinson, but not many people know past undergrad is that I was a part of a comedy improvisation team, which is part of the reason why I’ve been so interested in the philosophy of humor and comedy. Reading what philosophers say about the topic is all well and good, but actually participating or reading what professionals like Matt Besser or Del Close say on comedy I think is essential for getting closer to the art and answering questions around the topic.
If you could wake up tomorrow with a new talent, what would you most like it to be?
I’d love to be able to fluently speak/read/write in almost any language you could think of since we live in such a connected world and to be able to communicate with anyone at any time would be amazing. And to be able to read ancient texts or texts from any language in the original without any struggle would be life-changing.
What books are currently on your ‘to read’ list?
Too many.
This section of the APA Blog is designed to get to know our fellow philosophers a little better. We’re including profiles of APA members that spotlight what captures their interest not only inside the office, but also outside of it. We’d love for you to be a part of it, so please contact us via the interview nomination form here to nominate yourself or a friend.
Dr. Sabrina D. MisirHiralall is an editor at the Blog of the APA who currently teaches philosophy, religion, and education courses solely online for Montclair State University, Three Rivers Community College, and St. John’s University.
