Philosophy PHIL

Philosophy Senior Presentations

Sponsored by:
Philosophy
PHIL 0710 students will share their work on diverse topics. Please visit the Philosophy Department website for a full list of titles.

Twilight 302

Open to the Public

The Philosophy of Oral History

This conversation will explore oral history and its role in producing empathy and compassion in its audience. The structure will allow Professor Lorraine Besser of the Philosophy department and Professor Don Wyatt of the History department to discuss these issues as they see fit and in accordance with the flow of the conversation. Possible topics will include Martha Nussbaum’s writing on emotional refinement, the limitations and danger of sentimental education, and the methods by which oral histories may best be leveraged to produce social good.

Virtual Middlebury

Open to the Public

Racialized Forgiveness

Sponsored by:
Philosophy
A talk by Myisha Cherry, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Riverside.

The problem of racialized forgiveness includes instances in which: (a) Who is forgiven and not is determined by the race of the offender; (b) Praise and criticisms of forgiveness are determined by the race of the victim; and (c) Praise and criticisms of forgiveness are, at least implicitly, racially self-serving.

Virtual Middlebury

The Ethics of Climate Change: A Panel Discussion with Bill McKibben, Rupert Read, and Kim Cobb

This event will feature an hour and a half panel discussion on the ethical and psychological dimensions of climate change: What are the responsibilities of those who know about the extent of the threat? Are they obligated to trumpet it at every opportunity, and/or massively alter their normal mode of living? How does one manage the anxiety and despair that attends an understanding of the bleakness of the science? How do we address not just scientific denial but emotional disavowal of climate reality?

Wilson Hall, McCullough Student Center

Open to the Public

What Are Novels?

Sponsored by:
Philosophy
Prof. Ned Markosian, University of Massachusetts Amherst will speak about viewing novels (and poems and perhaps musical compositions) as abstract or concrete artifacts.

Axinn Center 219

Open to the Public

Pantet

Sponsored by:
Philosophy
The event begins with a performance from local improvising ensemble Pantet (comprised of several faculty, staff, and local community members), and ends with an open discussion about the philosophical foundations of freely improvised music.

Twilight Auditorium 101

Open to the Public