Tag: David Hume
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Whose Racism? Which Enlightenment?
By Kevin Currie-Knight ___ Like so much else, the Enlightenment seems to be a flash point in the contemporary culture wars. Some, like Douglas Murray and Stephen Pinker, suggest that we are moving too far away from “enlightenment values” like liberty, equality, and the idea of a universal human nature (to which they oppose the […]
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Does Philosophy of Art-Criticism Rest on a Mistake?
by Daniel A. Kaufman §1. In “Does Moral Philosophy Rest on a Mistake?” H.A. Prichard observed that mainline moral philosophy is essentially an exercise in epistemology, since its primary concern is with providing proof of the soundness of our moral responses — our feelings of obligation and duty — and we might very well say […]
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Perception and “illusion” with Dr. Louise Moody
by Daniel A. Kaufman I talk with Dr. Louise Moody about perception, “illusion style” arguments, and J.L. Austin. Louise has a PhD in philosophy and is an independent philosopher and feminist campaigner. [Note: There are points at which Louise’s mic cuts out for a second, but it does not substantially interfere with watching the discussion.] […]
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Morality and Distance
by Daniel A. Kaufman ___ There are two conceptions of distance that I am interested in with respect to moral questions: Emotional distance: the distance from sentiments and feelings that results when one adopts a disinterested stance, in response to morally significant situations. Theoretical distance: the distance from the particularities of circumstances, people, and relationships […]
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Crispin sartwell: humans are animals. get over it.
by Daniel A. Kaufman ____ On the latest episode of Sophia, Crispin Sartwell and I talk about Crispin’s article for the New York Times, “Humans are Animals: Let’s Get Over It” (2/23/2021). https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/23/opinion/humans-animals-philosophy.html Topics include: Humanism and its roots; Racism; Hume’s Naturalism; and Normativity. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnvzCH1PqGM&t=26s&ab_channel=ElectricAgora 0:00 Crispin and Dan catch up after a hiatus 7:50 […]
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From Passion to Belief
by Daniel Tippens David Hume, the 18th century Scottish philosopher and empiricist, did not believe that there are any self-evident truths (beyond the trivial “relations of ideas”), nor did he believe that reason is what makes us confident in our beliefs. For him, all knowledge is acquired and justified by experience — observation of the […]
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The Analytic/Continental Split
by Daniel A. Kaufman My discussion with Crispin Sartwell on the Analytic/Continental divide. Originally aired on the Sophia program, MeaningofLife.TV., April 10, 2019.
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The Circle of Quality and Expertise
By Daniel A. Kaufman ___ My daughter Victoria just finished two weeks of a classical voice program at NYU. It was her first taste of the really big leagues. Until now, she has excelled in our small city in southwest Missouri as well as statewide. She is the top singer in her high school and […]
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Course Notes: A.J. Ayer, Language, Truth, and Logic
by Daniel A. Kaufman http://s-f-walker.org.uk/pubsebooks/pdfs/ayerLTL.pdf It’s finals week, which means that the semester is at a close (and that I’m grading my ass off), and I thought it a good opportunity to get another Course Notes in, before summer break begins. I’ll be talking about the final readings for my Introduction to Philosophy course, three […]