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As of fall 2024, I'm visiting assistant professor in the honors program at The George Washington University. I've also taught at Franklin & Marshall College, the University of Mary Washington, and the University of Maryland.
I earned my PhD from Maryland in 2021, writing a dissertation advised by Alexander Williams with committee members Peter Carruthers, Yi Ting Huang, Ellen Lau, Paul Pietroski, and Georges Rey. For the academic years from 2013-2015, I was a graduate fellow in the National Science Foundation's IGERT program. Before Maryland I earned an MA in philosophy at Northern Illinois University; and before that I earned BAs in English and philosophy at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
I study word meaning. In my doctoral dissertation and related research, I ask what the notion of modularity has to do with the distinction between semantics (what a word means) and pragmatics (how a word is used). With co-authors in the linguistics department at the University of Maryland, I've experimentally investigated the processing of anaphoric expressions using behavioral measures (reading times and visual world eye-tracking). I'm currently working on projects related to the following topics: (i) slurring expressions and their meanings; (ii) polysemy; (iii) modularity and linguistic meaning; (iv) ancient Greek philosophy of language; and (v) the interpretation of legal texts.
Here is a recent CV. A complete teaching portfolio includes all student feedback on my instruction.
Research interests
Research interests
Philosophy of language and linguistics; philosophy of mind and cognitive science; ancient Greek and Roman philosophy
Teaching interests
Teaching interests
Logic; philosophy of science; epistemology; history of analytic philosophy; Indian and Chinese philosophy; philosophy of law
Publications
Publications
McCourt, M. & Vogel, C. (2024). Slurs, truth conditions, and semantic internalism. Grazer Philosophische Studien (101) 4: 486-528. pdf
McCourt, M. (2021). Semantics and pragmatics in a modular mind. Doctoral Thesis. pdf
Green, J.J., McCourt, M., Lau, E., & Williams, A. (2020). Processing adjunct control: Evidence on the use of structural information and prediction in reference resolution. Glossa: A Journal of General Linguistics, 5(1):112. doi: 10.5334/gjgl.1133 pdf
McCourt, M., Green, J.J., Lau, E., and Williams, A. (2015). Processing implicit control: Evidence from reading times. Frontiers in Psychology 6:1629. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01629. pdf
Papers in progress
Papers in progress
A paper about modularity of mind and the semantics/pragmatics distinction
A paper about polysemy
A paper about Socrates and conceptual engineering (co-authored with Rachel Singpurwalla)
A paper about semantic internalism and legal interpretation
Courses instructed at the George Washington University
Courses instructed at the George Washington University
Origins and evolution of modern thought: truth (HONR 1015) Fall 2024
Origins and evolution of modern thought: authenticity (HONR 1016) Spring 2024, Spring 2025
Language and Law (HONR 2053) Spring 2025
Courses instructed at Franklin & Marshall College
Courses instructed at Franklin & Marshall College
Introduction to philosophy (PHI100) Fall 2023; Spring 2024; Fall 2024, Spring 2025
History of ancient philosophy (PHI210) Fall 2023
What's in a word? (PHI271) Fall 2024
Courses instructed at the University of Mary Washington
Courses instructed at the University of Mary Washington
Introductory logic (PHIL151B) Fall 2023
Ancient Greek philosophy (PHIL201) Fall 2023
Medieval philosophy (PHIL301) Fall 2023
Modern philosophy (PHIL202) Spring 2024
Philosophy of Language (PHIL307) Spring 2024
Courses instructed at UMD-College Park
Courses instructed at UMD-College Park
Introduction to philosophy (PHIL100) Fall 2021; Fall 2022; Summer 2024 (online); planned for Summer 2025 (online)
Introduction to symbolic logic (PHIL170) Summer 2016 (online); Fall 2018; Spring 2019; Spring 2021 (online); Winter 2022 (online); Spring 2022; Winter 2023 (online); Spring 2023
Know thyself: wisdom through cognitive science (PHIL202) Winter 2023 (online); Summer 2023 (online); Winter 2024 (online); Winter 2025 (online)
Philosophy and neuroscience (PHIL309A) Winter 2017 (online), Summer 2020 (online)
Ancient philosophy (PHIL310) Fall 2019
Curses, swears, and slurs: the emotive dimension of language (PHIL318C) Summer 2018 (online)
Philosophy of language (PHIL360/LING350) Fall 2016
Theory of knowledge (PHIL362) Fall 2021
Philosophy of Plato (PHIL412) Fall 2020 (online)
Philosophy of Aristotle (PHIL414) Spring 2022
Things we do with words: statements, lies, innuendo (PHIL418F) Fall 2020 (online)
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