Medway

Philosophy

Group OrganiserTed Bower
VenueMember House
Meeting Days2nd Thursday of the Month (pm)
Group Vacancies? No

The Philosophers meet on the second Thursday of the month at the Borstal Institute where we try and make sense of a confusing world and try to discover some pointers as to how we got into this mess anyway.

A topic is chosen and all the members do research which they discuss with the group. We limit the group to eight members to make sure that everyone gets the chance to present their ideas and observations which are then discussed.
Philosophy is a huge subject and, rather than adhering to a rigid chronological schedule which would exclude newcomers, we agree a programme which may include a group or individual philosophers or a topic presenting ethical/moral dilemmas.

In the past ‘Academic Year ‘ we discussed amongst others:-
Jean-Paul Sartre and existentialism--difficult to pronounce and even more difficult to understand.
Philosophical Paradoxes with Zeno positing that if Achilles gave a tortoise a start he could never run past it.
Karl Marx observed that the workers earned it while the capitalists spent it.
Logical Positivists of the Vienna Circle were largely scientists who insisted that if a proposition cannot be tested empirically it is nonsense thus dismissing rationalist philosophy. Their ideas ran into deep do-do when scientists started talking about quarks and dark matter which are necessary conjectures.
The Pre Socratic Heraclitus could not step into the river of reality twice because it is always changing. Parmenides countered with the thought that nothing comes from nothing therefore reality must be eternal and unchanging.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau produced a succession of infants who were all dumped in orphanages while he went on to lecture the world on education.
Niccolo Machiavelli advised that a successful ruler should not keep promises or be restrained by Christian ethics since morality and politics don’t mix.
Could it be that here, in the UK, the leaders of the two main political parties are guided by Jean-Jacques and Niccolo???

We continue to try and ‘set the world to rights’ and we look forward to the New Year when we will discover yet again how much we don’t know.The group meets on the 2nd Thursday each month at 2.00pm.

For further information please contact Ted Bower

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Art and Chat Art Appreciation
Ballet Appreciation Board Games
Book Group 3 Book Group 4
Book Group 5 Bridge Group 1: Beginners
Bridge Group 2: Acol Beginners Chatham Book Group (1)
Chatham Book Group (2) Classical Music
Click IT Coffee and Cake Club
Coffee Club Cooking for Pleasure
Creative Knitting & Sewing Creative Stichting
Creative Writing Crochet
Current Affairs 1 Current Affairs 2
Dutch Conversation English Country Dancing
Explore by Bus Folk Group
French (Conversation) French Beginners
Fun Photography Gardening
Geography Geography UK
German Conversation German Intermediate
Guitar Group History 2
History 3 Italian Conversation
Italian Improvers Italian Upper Intermediate
Jazz Appreciation Latin 1
Latin II Latin III
Local History (Rochester) Local History 2
London Studies 1 London Studies 2
Lunch Club 2 Lunch Club 4
Lunch Club with a Difference (LC 3) Mahjong
Mahjong (2) Members on Their Own
Modern Classical Music Music Players
Mythology NRI Archive
Philosophy Photography
Play Reading Play Reading 2
Poetry Principles for a Better Future
Quizzing by Zoom Rummikub
Scrabble Seriously Funny/Laughter
Shakespeare Studies Singing for Pleasure (aka Acorn Singers)
Spanish Advanced Spanish Beginners
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Strollers & Slow Walkers Table Tennis - Cliffe
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