Philosophy
Philosophy Discussion Group
This is a twice monthly philosophy discussion group, meeting on the 2nd & 4th Mondays of the month, from 10am to 12 noon, at the Burlington Hotel in Folkestone.
The topics for discussion are chosen by the group itself in advance in order that group members can think about the topic (and even do some research on it if they want) prior to each meeting.
The group leader, Stephen Welch, is not an expert in the field, but he does have a strong interest in it, and has volunteered to perform the admin and discussion moderator tasks for the group.
Such a discussion group can initiate some lively debates, and that is welcome. However, it should be emphasized that respect for the individual is paramount, even if someone’s opinion is disagreed with. Variety is the spice of good debate and we should, good naturedly, agree to differ where we have to.
This group started in April 2015
For our first full meeting we had a discussion on Epistemology (Theory of Knowledge, i.e. how do we give credence to what we think we know?) This was based mainly around David Hume’s “An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding”.
After that we discussed one philosopher per meeting working chronologically and covering: - Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, the Atomists and the Epicureans, Plotinus and Neoplatonism, St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas, Francis Bacon, Thomas Hobbes, Descartes, Spinoza, John Locke and Leibniz.
Then, while continuing to discuss individual philosophers chronologically, we alternated this with topic based discussions.
The other philosophers covered were: - Bishop Berkeley, David Hume, Thomas Reid, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Immanuel Kant, Jeremy Bentham, Georg Hegel, Schopenhauer, John Stuart Mill, Soren Kierkegaard, Karl Marx, Friedrich Nietzsche, William James, Edmund Husserl, Dr John Dewey, Martin Heidegger, Bertrand Russell, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Jean Paul Sartre, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, A.J. Ayer and, bringing us to the present day, Daniel C. Dennett.
As from our meeting on 26th February 2018 we will start watching a series of 36 half hour lectures from the DVD called The Big Questions in Philosophy (produced by 'The Great Courses' company). We will watch one lecture per meeting and then discuss it.
Note
This group is currently full. Please contact the Groups Coordinator if you want to add your name to a waiting list.