William Sterling Gilbert

Department of Philosophy

Sogang University 서강대학교

35 Baekbeom-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul 04107

South Korea

willgil@sogang.ac.kr

will.gil.phil@gmail.com

ORCID: 0009-0001-5050-259X

Areas of Specialization: Korean Philosophy; Daoism; Comparative Philosophy

Areas of Competence: Confucian Ethics; Silhak (Practical Learning); Premodern Korean Religion and Intellectual History

Curriculum Vitae

이력서

Department of Philosophy, Sogang University · Seoul, South Korea · Last updated August 2026

AOS: Korean Philosophy, Daoism, Comparative Philosophy  ·  AOC: Confucian Ethics, Silhak (Practical Learning), Premodern Korean Religion and Intellectual History

Education Publications Employment Awards Presentations Outreach Teaching Service

Education

exp. 2027
PhD, Philosophy - Sogang University
Dissertation: "Korean Neo-Daoism in Goryeo Korea: Yi Gyubo and the Seven Worthies of the Eastern Land" · Supervisor: Prof. Halla Kim
2024
MA, Korean Philosophy - Sungkyunkwan University
Thesis: "Exploring Creator and Creation in Yi Gyubo: In Comparison with Daoist Cosmogony" · Supervisor: Prof. Sojeong Park
2019
BA, Philosophy - University of North Florida

Publications

Journal articles

"Religious Syncretism between Daoist and Shamanistic Imagery in Goguryeo Tomb Murals." The Review of Korean Studies 29, no. 1 (June 2026): 237-258. PhilArchive ↗

"Ordering Emotion through Sound: Ritual Music and Heart-Mind Cultivation in Korean Neo-Confucianism." European Journal of Korean Studies 26.1 (Research Note). Forthcoming, October 2026.

Manuscripts under revise and resubmit

"Yi Gyubo as a Korean Neo-Daoist" - Philosophy East and West

"Tasan & Modernity" - International Journal of Korean History

Manuscripts under review

Confucian approaches to care and public health

Fallout and aesthetic retrofuturism

Daoist elements of Korean Mountain Spirit worship

Rethinking the Bird Atop Baekje's Incense Burner

Public writing (invited / non-peer reviewed)

Gilbert, William, and André M. Penna-Firme. "Rediscovering a Neglected Tradition: Book Review - Korean Philosophy: Sources and Interpretations." Blog of the American Philosophical Association (Reports from Abroad), December 15, 2025.

Employment

Jul 2021 - Feb 2024
Graduate Research Assistant - Center for K-Academic Expansion in Philosophy
Co-produced and developed online courses on Korean philosophy and culture. Created lecture storyboards, edited scripts, appeared in filmed lectures, edited subtitles, and co-organized international conferences.

Grants, Fellowships & Awards

Grants and fellowships

2025
CSCS-ATI Summer School Fellowship, Hong Kong Baptist University
2025
Doctoral Research Capacity Enhancement Support Grant, Sogang University
2024
Research exchange program with Sophia University, Sogang University
2024
Sogang Global Fellowship (S), Sogang University
2020-2021
Brain Korea 21 Scholar, Sungkyunkwan University
2020
Graduate Program Scholarship for International Students, Sungkyunkwan University

Awards and honors

2024
Graduate School Student Outstanding Paper Award, Sogang University
2020
Annual Philosophy Department Paper Prize, University of North Florida

Presentations

Invited

Sep 2024
"Emotions, Sages, Principle: A Zhuangzian Approach to the Four-Seven Debate"
Confucian Culture Expo, Institute of Korean Confucian Culture, Nonsan-si, South Korea

Refereed

Apr 2026
"Toward Korean Neo-Daoism: Daoist Philosophy in the Writings of Yi Gyubo"
NAKPA Panel, APA Pacific Division Meeting
Aug 2025
"Reconsidering Korean Modernity: The Silhak Movement and the Legacy of Dasan"
2025 ISEAP Conference: Progressive East Asian Philosophy, National Chengchi University, Taiwan
Aug 2025
"Buddha-Nature as Soteriological Universal Potential in the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra and Wonhyo"
CSCS-ATI Summer School: "Buridan and the Buddha," Hong Kong Baptist University
May 2025
"Cosmogony and Korean Neo-Daoism in the Writings of Yi Gyubo"
四海为学 [Collaborative Learning "Works in Progress"] Academic Forum
Mar 2025
"Confucian Care Ethics in Pandemic Response: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives"
GWIKS 2025 Graduate Student Research and Publication Workshop
Feb 2025
"Religious Syncretism in Daoist and Shamanistic Imagery in Three Kingdoms Tomb Murals"
NAKPA Panel, APA Central Division Meeting
Nov 2024
"Confucian Care Ethics in Pandemic Response: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives"
Biennial Conference of the World Consortium for Research in Confucian Cultures, Seoul
Oct 2024
"Sacred Convergence: The Influence of Daoism in Korean Shamanistic 山神祭 [Sansin Rituals]"
SNU Center for Religious Studies 2024 International Conference, with NAKPA, Seoul
Aug 2024
"Exploring Creator and Creation in Yi Gyubo's Thought"
World Congress of Philosophy: Philosophy across Boundaries, La Sapienza University, Rome
Nov 2023
"Creator and Creation in Yi Gyubo's Thought"
Neo-Daoism in China and Korea: Weijin Xuanxue and Korean Syncretic Daoism, International Conference, Seoul
Mar 2023
"Introducing Yi Gyubo's Creator"
Zhuangzi beyond the Inner Chapters in Seoul, Graduate Student Session
Jun 2021
"Korean Religious Syncretism in Sanshin Paintings"
Introducing Korean Beauty in Music, Art and Literature, Sungkyunkwan University & Institute of Korean Philosophy and Culture

Comments

Sep 2025
Response to Mayuko Sasaki, "Philosophical Interpretation of Yi Gyubo's Theory of Creating New Meaning"
KAEP Korean Philosophy Research Symposium, Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul

Outreach

Online courses (co-produced)

Introduction to Korean Philosophy and Culture - Coursera, 2021

Korean Music, A Philosophical Exploration - Coursera, 2023

In Search for the Origins of Korean Philosophy - Coursera, 2023

An Introduction to Korean Buddhist Philosophy - KMOOC, 2023

Korean Aesthetics - KMOOC, 2023

Interviews & podcasts

"A Chance Encounter, A Lasting Connection: Will and Edward's Templestay at Jeondeungsa Temple in Ganghwado" ↗ - Templestay: Magazine of Korean Traditional Culture, vol. 59 (Summer 2026): 58-65

"Between Traditions: Korean Philosophy and the Limits of Universality" - Reports from Abroad, Blog of the APA, 2026

Sogang Story No. 115 - Sogang Gazette, 2025

"Taoism and the Creator" - Korea Deconstructed, ep. 77, 2024

Social media

Founder & Moderator, r/KoreanPhilosophy - 2024-present (828 members)

Teaching Experience

Guest lecture

Apr 2025
"Introduction to Korean Daoism"
Introduction to Korean Philosophy, Korean Studies Department, Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church in Hungary

Teaching assistantships

Spring 2025
History of Korean Philosophy, Sogang University
Spring 2024
The History of Pre-Qin and Han Dynasty Philosophy, Sogang University
Spring 2021
History of Korean Philosophy, Sungkyunkwan University
Fall 2020
Korean Thought and Culture, Sungkyunkwan University

Academic Service

2024-2026
Editorial Assistant, Oxford Handbook of Korean Philosophy (Oxford University Press, forthcoming), ed. Halla Kim
2024-2026
Editorial Assistant, Korean Philosophy: An Intellectual History (Routledge, forthcoming), monograph by Halla Kim
2025
Editorial Assistant, Oxford Bibliography: Korean Philosophy (Oxford University Press), by Halla Kim
2024
Co-organizer, "What Is Living and What Is Dead in the Philosophy of Kant Today," International Conference, Seoul
2023
Co-organizer, "Build Bridge: Korean Philosophy in the World," Conference, Seoul
2021
Co-organizer, "Discovering Korean Arts and Philosophy," International Workshop, Seoul
2020
Co-organizer, "Women, Family, and Korean Confucianism," Conference, Seoul

Memberships

North American Korean Philosophy Association (since 2019)

American Philosophical Association, Eastern Division (since 2023)

International Society for Philosophy as a Way of Life (since 2026)

Languages

Korean - intermediate

Classical Chinese - basic research proficiency