This is a small, friendly group – no previous knowledge of philosophy is assumed and new members are always welcome.
The usual format is that I present the issues but with lots of room for group discussion
Next Meeting: Tuesday 10 November. (There is no meeting in October as I am away.)
At the September meeting we had a new member as well as two returning members and so decided to carry on with further meetings. As previously agreed we discussed arguments in Pink’s A Very Short Introduction to Free Will. We agreed that at the next meeting we will look at Pink’s arguments that free will is necessary for morality and for other ways in which we ordinarily view ourselves. (There is a summary of Pink’s book available below under ‘Notes relating to some of our meetings’ – but I’ll not assume that anyone coming has read these.)
Topics for further meetings will be agreed at the next meeting. Perhaps do more on free-will, or an alternative suggested by the U3A National philosophy coordinator would be to discuss a question raised by the philosopher, Michael Sandel: In order to resolve the refugee crisis, should countries be paid according to the number they accept?
Notes relating to meetings
Click on any item below to access that item. Feel free to download or print out.
A very short Introduction to Free Will. Notes for the meeting on 14.7.2015
Earlier meeting documents
Links to these earlier documents have not yet been added. We need to determine how many of the older documents should be available on the new website.
Green, Funny and Cruel. Notes for the Meeting on 9.6.15
Two concepts of democracy. Notes for the meeting on 12.5.15
Biology and Mind – supervenience. Notes for the meeting on 11.11.14
Self, question, answers and problems. Notes for the meeting on 8.4.14
Traditional Arguments for the Existence of God. Notes for the meeting on 11.3.14
Problems in the philosophy of Science. Notes for the meeting on 11.3.14
Arguments for the Existance of God – Notes for the meeting on 11.2.14
Stoicism – Notes for meeting on 10.12.13
Philosophy and a paradox of morality – Notes for meeting on 8.10.13
Mental Illness – Notes for meeting on 10.9.13
Pragmatism – Notes for meeting on 9.7.13
Twentieth Century empiricism – Notes for meeting on 11.6.13
Empiricism and Hulm – Notes for meeting on 15.5.13
Rationalism and Descartes’ – Notes for meeting on 9.4.13
Could Computers be Conscious? Searle’s ‘Chinese Room’ – Notes for meeting on 12.3.13
Ethics
Is science more objective than ethics – Notes for meeting on 12.2.13
Fact/Value/Entanglement – Notes for meeting on 11.12.12
Just War Theory – Notes for the meeting of 09.10.12
Free Will – Notes for the meeting of 11/09/12
Philosophy of Science
Extracts from the argument of Hume’s
On theories of ethics
Utilitarianism – Part 1
Utilitarianism – Part 2
Summary of Kant’s Groundwork
Notes on Kant’s Ethics
Virtue Ethics
On theories of social Justice
Notes on the idea of justice by Amartya Sen
An outline of Rawls’ ideas on social justice
On Philosophy of Mind
Notes for Mind Body Relationship
