Dr Hannah Laurens

College Lecturer in Philosophy

After a youth spent immersed in music (junior music college in the Netherlands, BA and MA at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London), I switched to philosophy. While waiting for my BA interview in the philosophy library of Birkbeck College, London, I realized I had found a new home. From day one I loved the puzzles, the grand questions, and the precision involved in doing philosophy.

My current research is in the History of Philosophy, in particular in Ancient and Early Modern Philosophy. My PhD (University of St Andrews) examined Aristotle’s views on the place of nous (the intellect) in nature, and my most recent postdoctoral project (Descartes Centre, Utrecht University) explored Spinoza’s account of the salvation of the non-philosopher. Currently, I am a Postdoctoral Fellow of the British Society for the History of Philosophy as well as College Lecturer at Pembroke and Editorial Assistant at Philosophy, Royal Institute of Philosophy. In Spring 2023 I will carry out a project at the History of Philosophy Forum (University of Notre Dame) on Aristotle’s conception of God or the Prime Mover as the paradigm of life.

At Pembroke I teach Ancient and Early Modern Philosophy and I hope to instil a fascination for these subjects in my students in the way that my tutors did when I was a student at Oxford myself (BPhil).

Dr Hannah Laurens

College Lecturer in Philosophy

After a youth spent immersed in music (junior music college in the Netherlands, BA and MA at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London), I switched to philosophy. While waiting for my BA interview in the philosophy library of Birkbeck College, London, I realized I had found a new home. From day one I loved the puzzles, the grand questions, and the precision involved in doing philosophy.

My current research is in the History of Philosophy, in particular in Ancient and Early Modern Philosophy. My PhD (University of St Andrews) examined Aristotle’s views on the place of nous (the intellect) in nature, and my most recent postdoctoral project (Descartes Centre, Utrecht University) explored Spinoza’s account of the salvation of the non-philosopher. Currently, I am a Postdoctoral Fellow of the British Society for the History of Philosophy as well as College Lecturer at Pembroke and Editorial Assistant at Philosophy, Royal Institute of Philosophy. In Spring 2023 I will carry out a project at the History of Philosophy Forum (University of Notre Dame) on Aristotle’s conception of God or the Prime Mover as the paradigm of life.

At Pembroke I teach Ancient and Early Modern Philosophy and I hope to instil a fascination for these subjects in my students in the way that my tutors did when I was a student at Oxford myself (BPhil).