Our people - Thomas McNally

Dr Thomas McNally is a lecturer in the Faculty of Psychology. He teaches the following modules:

• Historical and Philosophical Foundations of Psychology
• Academic and Professional Development 1
• The Creative Mind
• Personality and Individual Differences 1

Thomas holds a PhD in philosophy from Trinity College Dublin, an M.Litt. from University College Dublin, and an M.Phil. from Cambridge University. His Ph.D. and M.Phil. were focused on the philosophy of language, while his M.Litt. was on Edmund Husserl’s phenomenology and philosophical psychology. Prior to working at Griffith College, Thomas worked as a lecturer and post-doctoral researcher at Trinity College Dublin.

His publications include the book, Wittenstein and the Philosophy of Language (Cambridge University Press). His article entitled ‘More Than a Feeling: Wittgenstein and William James on Love and Other Emotions’ was runner-up for the John Rogers Prize, awarded by the British Society for the History of Philosophy. His research extends beyond philosophy and psychology to literature, visual art, and film. He is the author and illustrator of two books on James Joyce’s final novel, Finnegan’s Wake, with the Lilliput Press. In more recent years, Thomas has been establishing himself as a filmmaker, with writing and directing credits on Comedians Anonymous (2023), Irish (2025), El Músico (2026), and The Pale Comedian (2027), as well as a producer on other filmmakers’ projects.

Links to selected publications: https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/wittgenstein-and-the-philosophy-of-language/AC9D61381CDBF5E19B60B762917C7DB8 

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09608788.2016.1146655 

https://www.lilliputpress.ie/products/the-mookse-and-the-gripes?srsltid=AfmBOopQ7Ki1JYCs-aMDiYxODF7qj1NK0PFVFgW2zTKZORh7TYVXuTge 

Website: www.thomasmcnally.net