Jonathan Quong
Email quong@usc.edu
Office STO 114
Research & Practice Areas
moral and political philosophy
Biography
Jonathan Quong is the author of Liberalism Without Perfection (Oxford University Press, 2011), The Morality of Defensive Force (Oxford University Press, 2020), and Political Philosophy: The Puzzle of Legitimate Injustice (Princeton University Press, 2026), as well as articles on political liberalism, public reason, democracy, distributive justice, and defensive ethics. He is an associate editor for Free & Equal: A Journal of Ethics and Public Affairs. He also served as associate editor for Ethics for seven years.
Education
- Ph.D. University of Oxford, 2004
- M.A. University of British Columbia, 2000
- B.A. University of British Columbia, 1999
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Research Specialties
moral and political philosophy
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Book
- Quong, J. (2026). Political Philosophy: The Puzzle of Legitimate Injustice. Princeton University Press.
- Quong, J. (2020). The Morality of Defensive Force. Oxford University Press.
- Quong, J. (2011). Liberalism Without Perfection. Oxford University Press.
Book Chapters
- Quong, J. (2026). Public Reason and Political Legitimacy. The Oxford Handbook on the Philosophy of John Rawls Oxford University Press.
- Quong, J. (2022). Miller’s Crossing. Political Philosophy Here and Now pp. 65-79. Oxford University Press.
- Quong, J. (2019). In Defense of Functionalism. Political Legitimacy: NOMOS LXI New York University Press.
- Quong, J. (2018). Consequentialism, Deontology, Contractualism, and Equality. The Oxford Handbook of Distributive Justice pp. 306-326. Oxford University Press.
- Quong, J. (2017). Contractualism. Methods in Analytical Political Theory pp. 65-90. Cambridge University Press.
- Quong, J. (2014). On the Idea of Public Reason. A Companion to Rawls pp. 265-280. Wiley-Blackwell.
- Quong, J. (2012). Rights. The Companion to Social and Political Philosophy pp. 618-628. Routledge.
Encyclopedia Article
- Quong, J. (2013). Public Reason. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
Journal Article
- Quong, J., Tahzib, C. (2027). It’s Not Just About the Money: A Reply to Birks and Carroll. Ethics. Vol. (forthcoming)
- Quong, J. (2026). Freedom, Fairness, and Sufficiency in Tahzib’s Perfectionist Theory of Justice. Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy. Vol. (forthcoming)
- Quong, J. (2025). Paternalism, Disagreement, and Groups. Oxford Studies in Political Philosophy: Volume 11. pp. 221-246.
- Quong, J. (2023). Fair Equality of Opportunity and the Gendered Division of Labor. Philosophy and Phenomenological Research. Vol. 107, pp. 283-289.
- Quong, J. (2023). Legitimate Injustice: A Response to Wellman. Journal of Political Philosophy. Vol. 31, pp. 222-232.
- Quong, J. (2023). The Morality of Defensive Force: Replies to Christie, Hecht, and Parry. Journal of Moral Philosophy. Vol. 20, pp. 461-482.
- Quong, J. (2022). On Flanigan’s Pharmaceutical Freedom. HEC Forum. Vol. 34, pp. 257-268.
- Quong, J. (2022). The Morality of Defensive Force: Replies to Otsuka, Frowe, Fabre, and Burri. Criminal Law and Philosophy. Vol. 16, pp. 555-574.
- Quong, J. (2021). On Laborde’s Liberalism. Criminal Law and Philosophy. Vol. 15, pp. 47-59.
- Quong, J. (2017). A Comment on Ripstein’s Reclamation. Journal of Applied Philosophy. Vol. 34, pp. 32-37.
- Quong, J. (2016). Agent-Relative Prerogatives to Do Harm. Criminal Law and Philosophy.
- Quong, J. (2016). Disagreement, Equality, and the Exclusion of Ideals: A Comment on The Morality of Freedom. Jerusalem Review of Legal Studies. Vol. 14, pp. 135-146.
- Quong, J., Stone, R. (2015). Rules and Rights. Oxford Studies in Political Philosophy. Vol. 1, pp. 222-249.
- Quong, J. (2015). Rights Against Harm. Proceeding of the Aristotelian Society, Supplementary Volume. Vol. 89 (1), pp. 249-266.
- Quong, J. (2015). Proportionality, Liability, and Defensive Harm. Philosophy & Public Affairs. pp. 144-173.
- Quong, J. (2015). Equality, Responsibility, and Culture: A Comment on Alan Patten’s Equal Recognition. Les Ateliers de l’Éthique. Vol. 10, pp. 157-168.
- Quong, J. (2014). Liberalism Without Perfection: Replies to Lister, Kulenovic, Zoffoli, Zelic, and Baccarini. Philosophy and Society. Vol. 25, pp. 96-122.
- Quong, J. (2014). What is the Point of Public Reason?. Philosophical Studies. Vol. 170, pp. 545-533.
- Quong, J. (2012). Liability to Defensive Harm. Philosophy & Public Affairs. Vol. 40, pp. 45-77.
- Quong, J., Firth, J. M. (2012). Necessity, Moral Liability, and Defensive Harm. Law and Philosophy. Vol. 31, pp. 673-701.
- Quong, J. (2012). Liberalism Without Perfection: Replies to Gaus, Colburn, Chan, and Bocchiola. Philosophy & Public Issues. Vol. 2, pp. 51-79.
- Quong, J. (2011). Left-Libertarianism: Rawlsian not Luck Egalitarian. Journal of Political Philosophy. Vol. 19, pp. 64-89.
- Quong, J. (2010). Justice Beyond Equality. Social Theory and Practice. Vol. 36, pp. 315-340.
- Quong, J. (2010). The Distribution of Authority. Representation. Vol. 46, pp. 35-52.
- Quong, J. (2009). Killing in Self-Defense. Ethics. Vol. 111, pp. 507-537.
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Administrative Appointments
- Director, 08/16/2025 – 08/15/2028
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Editorships and Editorial Boards
- Associate Editor, Free & Equal: A Journal of Ethics and Public Affairs, 2024 –
- Editorial Board, Political Philosophy, 2024 –
- Subject Area Co-Editor (Social and Political), Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2017 –
- Editorial Board, Law and Philosophy, 2014 –
- Area Editor, Pacific Philosophical Quarterly, 2013 –
- Advisory Board, Oxford Studies in Political Philosophy, 2012 –
- Editorial Board, Bloomsbury Research in Political Philosophy, 2011 –
- Associate Editor, Ethics, 2018 – 2025
- Associate Editor, Philosophy & Public Affairs, 2016 – 2024
- Editorial Board, Journal of Political Philosophy, 2017 – 2023
- Advisory Board, Social Theory and Practice, 2013 – 2018
- Associate Editor, Politics, Philosophy & Economics, 2010 – 2018
- Associate Editor, Australasian Journal of Philosophy, 2011 – 2016
- Associate Editor, Representation: The Journal of Representative Democracy, 2008 – 2014
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