Luis Prenninger

I’m a graduate student reading for the MPhil in Politics (Political Theory). My research sits at the intersection of theories of discrimination and social metaphysics.

My MPhil thesis Discrimination, Causes, and Social Metaphysics examines what it is for something to be discriminatory ‘because of’ a trait. While much has been written about what makes discrimination wrong, little attention has been given to what discrimination is. In my thesis, I explore methodological questions in theorising about discrimination and bring into view ethical issues that arise at the level of method. A second aim of the thesis is to explore epistemological issues in social constructivism. In this context, I work on Sally Haslanger’s social metaphysics and, more broadly, on the politics of gender definitions.

Before joining Oxford’s DPIR, I graduated with a first-class BA in Politics and International Studies from the University of Warwick, where I wrote my undergraduate thesis on epistemological questions in theories of justice and disagreements concerning the permissibility of migrant resistance.

In 2025/26, I am co-organising the Oxford Work in Progress in Political Theory Workshop (OWIPT). I also serve as Section Editor (Culture and Ideas) for the Oxford Political Review.

I have held several research positions, including work with Ivan Krastev and Thomas Macho, during a fellowship at ECFR Paris, and most recently as a Junior Researcher at Logische Phantasie Lab.

Once upon a time, I worked as a chef. That past occasionally resurfaces in the form of food reviews.