Melissa Merritt is a philosopher working primarily on the history of ethics. Her book, Kant on Reflection and Virtue (Cambridge University Press, 2018), examines how the Kantian idea of virtue is rooted in an account of the essentially reflective nature of the rational mind. Her current research examines the Stoic influences on Kant, particularly in ethics and moral psychology -- and from this historical foundation aims to reassess the possibilities of moral rationalism in contemporary ethics.
Merritt is currently an ARC Future Fellow working on a project called Reason, Value, and Virtue: Assessing the Stoic Legacy in Kantian Ethics (FT180100494, 2018-2022), and Senior Lecturer in the School of Humanities and Languages at UNSW.