[PHILOS-L] Online Talk: The Divine in Iris Murdoch’s Novels (Molly Bellamy)
Ellie Robson
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The Divine in Iris Murdoch’s Novels
Molly Bellamy, University of Law, London
15th April 2026, Wednesday, 3pm - 4.30pm BST
Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/91391091203?pwd=wXUGpcGflTvlc5Gqvmb8yVK3JEUsAL.1
Abstract: The talk will be an exploration of the Divine in Iris Murdoch’s novels, as an element that characterises her literary work in ways that are both mystifying and illuminating. It will ask three questions: To what extent does the element of the divine provide a vector through which to unravel the ideal of rational man as the neutral subject of western philosophy, that ‘off spring of the age of science’ as she calls it, who is ’confidently rational but increasingly aware of his alienation’; that ‘hero at the centre of every novel’ whom she satirises in her own novels as irrational, irreverent and immoral. Does the divine foreground a political imaginary through which to undo the patriarchal philosophical logos of her age - after the feminisms? And, to what extent is Iris Murdoch evincing a philosophy of transcendence through an ethics of the Good (unselfing) – that makes the Platonic Tradition accessible to us? Or is she, like Socrates, presenting a metaphor for the soul - wherein art ( secret secret secret) and love ( a young boy on the way to the Sun) and nature (By Hera, what a lovely secluded spot!) give passage to the intelligible world? How does the divine engage and presage the political, the philosophical and the aesthetical for the Reader of Iris Murdoch’s novels? The talk will seek to flesh out the three questions with examples from the author’s novels as a springboard for discussion around her recourse to the Divine.
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Finally! A gentle reminder that: The Women in Parenthesis Call for Abstracts for its 2026-7 online Work in Progress series are currently open!
We welcome abstracts on topics within the Women in Parenthesis scope of interest. This includes the thought of its central figures - G.E.M. Anscombe, Philippa Foot, Iris Murdoch, and Mary Midgley - as well as the women’s intellectual environment, e.g. work by Dorothy Emmet, Mary Warnock, Susan Stebbing, Donald MacKinnon etc. See our website for more information, and our news section for details of previous talks.
The meetings will be held on Zoom, starting in October 2026 continuing every two months, with the last meeting in June 2027. Talks are expected to last around 45-50 minutes, followed by a 35-40 minute Q&A. Dates and times of the talks are to be determined.
Please send your anonymised abstracts of around 250 words (but we’re not fussed about length), with your details on a different attachment, to anabar...@me.com, by the end of 31st July 2026.
All the very best,
Ellie (and the Women In Parenthesis Board)
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