Sara De Leonardis is a PhD candidate in Philosophy at Cornell University, where she is writing a dissertation on perception and cognition in Plato’s late dialogues. Her research interests include ancient theories of mind and Plato’s cosmology and physics. She is also interested in feminism, technology, and AI, topics she enjoys exploring with her students.
https://www.saradeleonardis.com
1. What advice do you wish someone had given you?
I wish someone had told me earlier that it is worth exploring philosophy through different media, not only through traditional academic writing. I have always loved photography and art, but I had never taken a real photography class or used a professional camera. In my third year of the PhD, I enrolled in a photography course at Cornell. At first, I worried it might distract me from my academic work; instead, it opened my mind to how many different ways there are to approach philosophical questions outside of traditional writing. My final project grew out of my interest in technology and AI. I worked with AI-generated images (see below) and explored how they challenge older theories of photography, particularly Kendall Walton’s idea that photography is a “transparent” medium through which we see the reality behind the image. I wanted to explore whether AI-generated images can move us, convey meaning, and count as part of photography’s future as a creative medium.
That experience changed how I think about both philosophy and teaching. I began bringing short films and visual art into my classes as ways of helping students think philosophically without always starting from the text. It also reminded me that philosophy can be difficult without being intimidating. Sometimes students think most freely when the atmosphere is lively, curious, and a little playful. Moreover, this experience also sparked my interest in the relationship between technology and philosophy more broadly.
2. What are you most proud of professionally?
Professionally, I am most proud of the moments when a class really comes alive around an idea. At Cornell, I teach writing courses with a philosophical curriculum, and my students come from very different backgrounds. Many are taking the course because it fulfills a requirement, not because they already chose philosophy. So part of the challenge (and part of the fun!) is helping them care about questions they did not expect to care about.
For me, success does not mean that students remember every topic after the semester ends—I am realistic enough to know that not all of Plato will survive winter break. What matters more is that they leave the class able to approach familiar issues from a different perspective. A few semesters ago, I taught a course on feminism and technology, which was especially meaningful to me. Many students came in thinking philosophy was distant from contemporary issues, but over the semester they began to see how philosophical ideas could help them think differently about gender and technology. We discussed female characters in video games, menstrual suppression as a feminist technology, and social media. What I found most rewarding was watching students connect these topics to their own bodies, personal relationships, and everyday interactions with technology. Some of my favorite moments were when students told me they kept talking about something from class with a roommate or a friend afterward. By the end of the course, some students even asked me what other philosophy classes I would recommend, which felt like a sign that they wanted to keep exploring philosophy. Seeing them become curious and invested in ideas they had not expected to care about is probably what I am most proud of professionally.
3. What are your goals and aspirations outside work?
Outside work, one of my deepest goals is to support young women who are trying to find their professional path, especially those from disadvantaged or low-income backgrounds. I myself come from a low-income family, and I am a first-generation student, so I know how difficult it can be to navigate higher education when you do not already know the hidden expectations of academic and professional life. This aspiration became clearer when I received a scholarship that allowed me to spend time at Smith College, a women’s liberal arts college. That experience helped me imagine what it would mean to teach in an environment where women’s intellectual growth and professional futures are taken seriously and actively supported. So outside (or inside!) my own work, I hope to keep mentoring, teaching, or volunteering in spaces where I can help young women feel more confident and supported.
4. What technology do you wish the human race could discover?
I would want a technology that helps us slow down and really notice the moments we know we will miss: a long conversation with someone we love, a trip with people who matter to us, the early years of a child. We often say that these moments go too fast, and I think we mean it. But we do not always know how to stay present while they are happening. So, I would like a technology that helps us slow down just enough to be there—maybe a technology for presence. For me, this feeling comes partly from getting closer to meditation over the past few years. Meditation has made me realize how rare real presence is, and how easily it slips away if we do not protect it. Being present now feels less like something that happens naturally, and more like something we have to practice in a world that is constantly pulling our attention somewhere else.
5. What are you working on right now?
Right now, I am working on Plato’s account of perceptual transmission in the Timaeus. In this dialogue, Plato gives a detailed account of how sensory information travels from the body to the soul. The body receives physical inputs from the world—colors, sounds, and so on—and somehow the soul turns those inputs into perception. But how does that actually happen? What makes that transformation possible? That question connects to something else I find puzzling in the dialogue, which is the mathematical structure Plato gives to the soul. I am trying to explain how bodily motions become available to the soul as perceptual information, and what role the soul’s own organization plays in that process.
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.
Jessica Castellani
Jessica Castellani had a unique high school experience attending Toledo School for the Arts, where she played in a percussion ensemble and steel drum band for six years. She earned her dual Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology and religious studies from the University of Toledo. Her primary focus was “the Self” and the mystical experience of losing it. She earned her Master of Arts in philosophy from The University of Toledo as well, with a specialization in comparative philosophy, Eastern studies, and continental philosophy. She has taught World Religions and Introduction to Philosophy at The University of Toledo both in person and virtually. She is a member of the Buddhist Temple of Toledo, tutors students, and has worked in the service industry for over a decade. In her free time, she likes to spend time outside and with her pets, friends, and family.
