Category Archives: Ideas

The Ship of Theseus – a poem by Mina Aries

21 Thursday Mar 2019

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The Ship of Theseus

The tale of the ship of Theseus
There are some things one has to make clear
If it is one or two ships at a point of time
Depends on the view of identity one might decline.

A ship leaves the harbour to take a little tour,
A plank breaks, then three then four.

By the time it comes back, it is a new ship
Every single part of it has lived through a switch.

But someone collected all of the wood
And reassembled them under a hood
To exhibit a new ship in a museum
So lovers of Greek history can flock in to see ‘em.

Is it the one that lived through the history
The ship of Theseus, that is the mystery!

How many repairs can a ship survive
Without leading to its own demise?

Is it ship A or is it ship B, does that make them all ship C?
One thing is for sure, it can’t be all three.

Mina Aries
Philosophy, Politics, Economics

Philosopher Queens

20 Thursday Sep 2018

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Rebecca Buxton (ex KCL BA philosophy student, now working on a Dphil at Oxford) is co-editing a book on women in philosophy called The Philosopher Queens:

“For all the young women and girls sitting in philosophy class wondering where the women are, this is the book for you. This collection of 21 chapters, each on a prominent woman in philosophy, looks at the impact that women have had on the field throughout history. From Hypatia to Angela Davis, The Philosopher Queens will be a guide to these badass women and how their amazing ideas have changed the world.”

Click here to find out more and support this fantastic project!

 

Interviews with Artists – Centre for Philosophy and Visual Arts

17 Monday Sep 2018

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King’s PhD candidate Vanessa Brassey interviews artists on the CPVA website.

Here’s an excerpt from an interview with artist Nicola Durvasula

I’ve always been deeply interested in the nature of line. For instance, what went on in the head and/or heart of the very first man (or woman) –the Caveperson – when they created a line which had the ability to ‘stir’ another? I think this is fundamental to what drawing is, or can be. The way in which I draw is visceral, immediate and there is a certain sensuality in the curvilinear qualities of the lines. I’m quite intrigued by the idea that these could actually be connected to our sense of movement or other sensory capacities. That seems to make sense on one level. On another, it’s not as if I consciously hear sounds when I’m drawing.

Click here fore more.

David Papineau’s recommended books on Philosophy and Sport

09 Monday Jul 2018

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Five Books interviews David Papineau on his recommended readings on Philosophy and Sport. Of course, David has recently published his own work on the topic, Knowing the Score (2017), but here are his other picks:

  1. The Grasshopper by Bernard Suits
  2. Both Flesh and Not by David Foster Wallace
  3. Moneyball by Michael Lewis
  4. Basil D’Oliviera: Cricket and Controversy by Peter Oborne
  5. Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby

The whole interview can be read here.

Sarah Fine’s work on borders features in The New Yorker

05 Thursday Jul 2018

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The fraught political debate on immigration in the United States has led some commentators to look beyond orthodox positions and tired slogans. There is an increasing desire to question presuppositions on the topic, and re-examine the fundamental ethical principles that underlie existing policies.

In this context, Sarah Fine’s work on the right to exclude (explanatory podcast) has influenced one argument in The New Yorker explicitly in favour of open borders. Is political philosophy starting to make its way into political discourse and practice once more?

MM McCabe in conversation

07 Thursday Jun 2018

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MM has recently spoken at length with the Los Angeles Review of Books on the themes of her recent book, Platonic Conversations.

And she also has some insights into reading gleaned from the decades of reading ancient philosophy for The Reading List – as well as confessing to the the crime of marginalia writing!

Both interviews are well worth a read.

Colleagues in the Times Literary Supplement

02 Saturday Jun 2018

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The latest edition of the Times Literary Supplement features two of our colleagues:

The rest of this edition of the TLS can be found here.

Interview with Michael Beaney

25 Thursday Jan 2018

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The Irish Times: “Do you let clichés and slogans do the thinking for you?“

Joe Humphreys:

As the second World War approached, the British philosopher Susan Stebbing wrote of “an urgent need to-day for the citizens of a democracy to think well”. She said: “ Our difficulties are due partly to our own stupidity, partly to the exploitation of that stupidity, and partly to our own prejudices and personal desires.”

Her words are as relevant in 2018…