ANU Thursday Seminar -- October 30th

[n.osma...@gmail.com]

Hello Everyone,

This week, the Thursday Seminar Series welcomes Tim Scriven, who will be presenting on October 30th, at 3:30pm, in the RSSS Auditorium (room 1.28). Title and abstract are below. 

Other events in the day include: 

- A grads-only pre-talk session with the speaker in room 6.68 at 2:00pm;

- Afternoon tea in the School of Philosophy tearoom at 3:00pm;

- Drinks at Badger & Co at 5:00pm;

- Dinner at TBD at 6:30pm, half-subsidized for grad students (put your name down here if you would like to join).

Title: Left-wing is best wing? The meaning and justification of political orientation.

 

Abstract: Political philosophers rarely analyse the categories of “left” and “right” in their own right, yet these labels structure much of public political debate. This talk, framed as a response to Joshi’s 2020 paper, What Are the Chances You’re Right About Everything? An Epistemic Challenge for Modern Partisanship, considers three questions. First, is there a shared justificatory and motivational core that unifies otherwise disparate left-wing (and right-wing) positions? Second, if such a core exists, can one be justified in endorsing a political orientation as such, rather than only particular policies? Third, are there arguments that favour the left, considered as a family of positions, beyond case-by-case evaluations? I argue (1) that there is a common justificatory and motivational basis across standard left positions; (2) that this basis supplies moral reasons to align with the left and makes it more likely than not that left positions will be correct on a randomly selected political question; and (3) that engaging these orientation-level questions can reconnect political philosophy with the concerns of practical politics.

[Note: All visitors (faculty, graduate students, undergraduates) are welcome to join for dinner. Faculty dine at a rate of ~$30.00 AUD, and graduate students and undergraduates at a rate of roughly $15.00 AUD.]

Best,

Osman.