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Dear Reader,        May 5, 2024

With great pleasure I present Issue XI of Dianoia: the 
Undergraduate Philosophy Journal of Boston College. This year 

we received over 40 submissions and following a great shortage of 
editors from the editorial board of Issue X, we are proud to present this 
journal as the consistent work of the few for the enjoyment of many. 
This year, we were fortunate to be able to publish four thoughtful 
papers, all of which are examples of the excellence of undergraduate 
scholarship and philosophical inquiry from around the country.

As a short preview of the contents of the papers, we offer a work of 
anthropological and existentialist philosophy, two pieces in moral 
p i s p  ne rguing  r ug   e ni i n  pers n   
us i i n r r i n n  e se n  rguing g ins  e rise  

evolutionary ethics. Lastly, we offer a rigorously defended paper of 
Aristotle’s notion of Final Cause or teleology. We hope that these 
p pers inspire ug u  re e i n  enge ur se  e ie s  n  s  
of all spark questions.

Thanks to the support from Department Chair, Professor Jeffrey 
Bloechl, two of our General Editors were able to conduct an interview 
with the Gadamer Chair of Philosophy, Professor Jean-Luc Marion. 
This interview offers an introduction to Marion’s phenomenology as 

e  s n in ep  is ussi n  is s  in uen i  n  r i  i e s 
such as “saturated phenomena”, “the gift”, and the possible end of 
metaphysics.

The editorial board chose William Bradford’s Shipwreck off Nantucket 
for the cover art of this year’s issue. We felt this represented the initial 
struggle of the editorial board to get Issue XI into the publication 
process. It was only with the help of our faculty and graduate advisors, 
and inner department supporters-represented by Bradford’s life boats-
that we acknowledge with great gratitude that Issue XI was able to be 
published. Furthermore, we believe that as Professor Marion in our 
interview remarks, the desire of all philosophers should be to “go in the 
regions you have never visited before”, just as we see in the ambitious 
drive of Bradford’s portrayal of the 19th century whaling industry.

The chance encounter I had this spring in meeting one of the 
cofounders of Dianoia is a testament not only to the far-reaching 
in uen e  is urn  u  s   e pe p e se supp r  es 
it possible. On this note, we must offer our thanks and gratitude to 



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Dianoia: The Undergraduate Philosophy Journal of Boston College

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αthe relentless support of former Editor-In Chief Tanner Loper, our 

faculty advisor, Fr. Ronald Tacelli, S.J., and our graduate advisor, 
Sean Heafner. 
Lastly, I offer thanks to those consistent members of the editorial 
board by whose diligence and passion this issue has been able to be 
published. I hope that you, our reader, continue to offer your support 
as we prepare Issue XII next spring.

Until then, enjoy this issue.

Sincerely,
On Behalf of the Editorial Board of Dianoia

Elliott Jones, Managing Editor


