Allen Ginsberg’s Howl
presented by Mitch Cunningham
Wednesday, May 26
4-5.30pm in ib3.307 on the Waurn Ponds Campus
This Wednesday (May 26) the Deakin Philosophical Society will discuss Allen Ginsberg’s Howl. Mitch Cunningham will present Woke on a sudden Manhattan, his analysis of Ginsberg’s contribution to American literature. Find a copy of Mitch’s presentation here. Ginsberg’s poem is also available online at http://sprayberry.tripod.com/poems/howl.txt.
If you are on campus, hard copies are nailed to the door of my office (ic1.211), which is in the dungeon of the Arts and Education building.
This Wednesday is also Philosophy Café night
Philosophy Café
Associate Professor Damien Kingsbury presents:
‘A Rational Approach to Achieving Peace: A Comparative Assessment of Aceh and West Papua’
Wednesday, May 26 from 7-9pm at The Barking Dog
126 Pakington st, Geelong West
Regards,
Dylan Nickelson,
President, Deakin Philosophical Society.
Literature and Comedy, Round 2
Dr Geoff Boucher on Literature and Comedy:
In Defence of Northrop Frye
Wednesday, May 19
4-5.30pm in ib3.307 on the Waurn Ponds Campus
This Wednesday (May 19) the Deakin Philosophical Society will go a second round on the topic of literature and comedy. Dr Geoff Boucher will defend Northrop Frye’s thesis that comedy, as a literary genre, is defined by reintegration more than humour. We’ll explore this thesis through an excerpt from AC Hamilton’s (1991) Northrop Frye: Anatomy of his criticism (1.5MB).
If you are on campus, hard copies are available at my office (ic1.211), which is in the dungeon of the Arts and Education building.
In other news, The MSCP has released its Winter School program:
The MSCP 2010 Philosophy Winter School
5-23 July
University of Melbourne
Week One (5-9 July)
Andrea León: Lévinas and Derrida: another time at the anarche of subjectivity (11am-1pm)
Mark Hewson: Maurice Blanchot: literature and the ambiguity of the negative (2-4pm)
Week Two (12-16 July)
James Garrett: Heidegger’s Aristotle (11am-1pm)
Martin Black: History of Philosophy II: Plato (2-4pm)
Week Three (19-23 July)
Jon Roffe: Spinoza’s Ethics (11am-1pm)
Dan O’Meara and Cameron Shingleton: Max Weber – Social Philosopher (2-4pm)
Each course consists of 5 x 2-hour seminars.
Fees begin at $80
Enrol now at www.mscp.org.au
The Melbourne School of Continental Philosophy is an independent teaching and research organisation made up of academics and graduates who share the goal of providing philosophy wherever it is needed. The MSCP runs 1-day free workshops in autumn and spring, and teaches a variety of courses at its annual summer and winter schools, and throughout the year in evening classes. Join the MSCP mailing list online to receive updates on mscp and associated philosophical activities. The MSCP is housed by the philosophy department at the University of Melbourne.
Regards,
Dylan Nickelson,
President, Deakin Philosophical Society.
Deakin Philosophical Society special event
Dark Knights: Exploring the Deceptive Heroics of Philosopher Kings, Princes and Übermenschen
Dr Kim Huynh, Lecturer in Political Science and International Relations
Australian National University
Wednesday, May 12 from 4pm in ib3.307
This Wednesday the Deakin Philosophical Society weekly meeting will be tranformed into a free film night followed by a guest presentation by Dr Kim Huynh from ANU. There will be a screening of Batman: The Dark Knight from 4pm in ib3.307 (the regular meeting time and place), followed at 6.35pm by Dr Huynh’s presentation: ‘Dark Knights: Exploring the Deceptive Heroics of Philosopher Kings, Princes and Übermenschen’. Here is a summary of Dr Huynh’s presentation:
Plato’s philosopher kings, Machiavelli’s prince and Nietzsche’s Übermensch (Over-man) are among the most infamous figures in Western political philosophy. Their shady reputations grow in large part out of a shared willingness to deceive. Philosopher kings deceive in order to maintain stability and virtue within the polis. From this perspective, society is underpinned by certain myths which, while not technically true, have nonetheless become imperative for people to prosper. Nietzsche’s Übermensch has also dispensed with comforting illusions, particularly of a religious nature. However, the Übermensch has an ambivalent relationship with truth. While believing that the vast majority of people are incapable or unwilling to grasp the ultimate vacuousness of human existence, the Übermensch retains an impish desire to puncture orthodoxies and thereby toy with the prospect of social disintegration. Machiavelli’s prince asserts that the ultimate amorality of politics makes it necessary for the prince to act immorally. The prince must lie and deceive in order to secure stability and glory for the city-state. Indeed, the honesty and virtue of all citizens rest on his capacity to be mendacious and cruel. This paper compares and contrasts these alluring figures in the context of contemporary Australian politics (including case studies of John Howard, Tony Abbott and Kevin Rudd) and popular culture (concentrating on the Hollywood action blockbuster Batman: The Dark Knight). By bringing together and analysing these individuals, ideas, stories and events, the paper considers the value of truth and honesty in politics.
This is a free public event.
Guests are quite welcome to arrive at 6.35pm for Dr Huynh’s presentation.
If you have any questions, send me a reply email.
Regards,
Dylan Nickelson,
President, Deakin Philosophical Society.
Matthew Sharpe
Comedy and literature
4-5.30pm in ib3.307
Wednesday May 5
Following our discussion of Hamlet and tragedy, this week the Deakin Philosophical Society will discuss comedy. Matthew Sharpe will lead the discussion.
The meeting will be based around two readings. The first is an excerpt from Alenka Zupančič’s (2007, pp. 200-211 inclusive) The Odd One In: On Comedy; the second is a paper by Matt and serves an as introduction to what Zupančič is talking about, and the position from which she is speaking. In his presentation, Matt will also link up some of this material to other attempts to understand comedy.
The title of the Zupančič excerpt translates from the German as (approximately) ‘Where is the phallus going in today’s times?’
Regards,
Dylan Nickelson,
President, Deakin Philosophical Society
