Aktuelle temaer i filosofi

Emnekoden FIL4010 brukes for å kunne tilby seminarer ut over det ordinære emnetilbudet på masterprogrammet i filosofi. Innhold, undervisningsform og vurderingsform vil variere fra semester til semester. Våren 25 omhandler emnet følgende:

Pleasure and Pain:

The experience of pleasure and pain goes to the core of what it means to be a human being and directly shapes the quality of our lives. In this class, we will examine the nature and value of pleasure and pain. In particular, we will be looking at what their place in a good life is.

Are pleasure and pain sensations, feelings, representational states, or propositional attitudes? Why do we take painkillers? Is happiness just a surplus of pleasure over pain? Can we draw a qualitative difference between lower and higher pleasures-as the ancients and John Stuart Mill thought? What can addiction and depression teach us about the good life and its affective dimension? Can pleasure and pain be measured objectively or scientifically? Would a life without grief be a better life than a life with grief? Can non-human animals experience pleasure and pain in the same way in which humans can? And if so, what does this mean for our treatment of animals?

To tackle these and other questions, we will draw on the history of Western and Eastern philosophy (in particular Plato and Buddhism), contemporary analytic philosophy, and empirical psychology. We will strive to foster a dialogue where the history of philosophy, contemporary philosophy, and empirical science can meet and inform each other.

Throughout, our approach is unapologetically Socratic: in exploring these questions, we aim not only to gain philosophical understanding but also to apply these insights in ways that might enhance our own pursuit of a good life.