Ryan Patrick Hanley

Ryan Patrick Hanley is the J. Joseph Moakley Professor of Political Science and courtesy Professor of Philosophy at Boston College. He previously held the Mellon Distinguished Professorship at Marquette University and has held visiting roles at Yale, Harvard, and the University of Chicago. His research focuses on Enlightenment political philosophy, particularly the works of Adam Smith, Rousseau, and Montesquieu, with a special emphasis on ethical theory and the intersections of religion and politics.

He earned a B.A. (Honors) from the University of Pennsylvania, M.Phil from the University of Cambridge, and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. His teaching includes courses on Enlightenment political theory, the political philosophy of 1776, capitalism vs. socialism, and the Catholic tradition in political thought.

His research explores themes like virtue ethics in Adam Smith, the rethinking of charity in modernity, and the political philosophy of Fénelon. Recent work emphasizes the evolution of love in social progress and the ethical frameworks of Enlightenment thinkers. His book Love's Enlightenment (2017) reinterprets charitable concepts, while Our Great Purpose (2019) examines Smith’s vision of human flourishing.

His articles analyze topics ranging from Montesquieu’s Persian Letters as political education to Rousseau’s revolutionary thought and Hume’s theories of passion. He frequently engages with cross-disciplinary debates about the Enlightenment’s legacy in modern political economy and moral philosophy.

His academic contributions span edited volumes on Adam Smith’s legacy, histories of love concepts, and translations of Fénelon’s moral writings. He collaborates with interdisciplinary teams exploring the intersections of philosophy, economics, and religious studies in historical contexts.