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Philosophy reading reccomendations on "Notion of freedom and humanity"

Cogentesque — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 03:40:14 -0800

A friend of mine recently quit his job and has found himself with a lot of free time. As a method to explore his mind and world he has set himself a task to write an essay on : - "The Notion of Freedom and Humanity" I am no philosophy veteran but I am sure that there must be some great texts already dealing with this subject. What research and reading material can I recommend my friend for his essay?

I simply KANT write my thesis...help me?

zinful — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 01:54:40 -0800

I need advice on how to finish this master's thesis that is consuming me with guilt, anxiety and helplessness I should be writing my thesis, like right now, but something in me just can't. I was supposed to get 30 pages to my advisor a week ago, but I only have 10 of this chapter, 20 of the overall thing (70 ish pages total is the goal). There's just something stopping me, every time I sit down to work on it. I panic about it every second that I'm not writing, but when I finally try and work I get exhausted almost immediately, I feel like I'm in a test and can't think, my notes seem like total nonsense...I'm a mess. I saw the advice everyone gave RogerB here , but I'm not being a perfectionist (though I have the same problem of being a habitual writing procrastinator), I just almost physically can't force myself to do it.

This is a really horrible open ended question, but I need help. I feel like I bit off more than I can chew as far as writing for my topic (a feminist interpretation of Immanuel Kant's ethics, using DeBeauvoir and Iriguray to analyze the metaphysics, if anyone's curious), but if asked to TALK about it, I can go for hours. The writing part is just glacially slow, and I'm really running out of time, since my defense is in 2 months. It's not possible to get an extension any more, I'm already graduating in summer and my department will be gone by next academic year (hooray for cuts in higher education). I should have been working more on it for the past 4 months, but it just kept getting pushed to the back burner, between other school work and teaching. Beating myself up over past procrastination has been my favorite activity for the past week or two, and I need to stop that since it isn't helping me.

My committee is generally disinterested and under educated about my topic in general, but they're the best I got since my Kant specialist was denied tenure last semester, and after all that he totally checked out. I can't talk to anyone about it in specific detail because it's so goddamn specialized. I need general writing help, general advice on how to overcome my anxiety about writing that is preventing me from writing, and any other advice about thesis writing that might be helpful. I'm so stuck and it's eating me alive.

Memail me if you'd like to see the google doc of what I've got so far, I guess.

Where to publish essay on meaning of meaning in psychology?

shivohum — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 08:52:27 -0800

What's a good venue to publish an essay on the notions of meaning and explanation in psychology (broadly defined)? I'd like to find a venue that would address both scholars in various fields as well as writers, artists, and the intelligent laymen who might be interested in these issues. I'm thinking approx. 8-10,000 words. It's going to be an essay that sketches out (a few of) the different notions of explanation and meaning that are predominantly used to address human psychology in science, explain why they are unsatisfying, and advocate for an alternative approach that is more literary in nature.

The essay would be semi-scholarly: it would be more informal, eclectic, and focused on its original ideas than on explaining its evolution from an existing academic discourse.

/ \

past — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 11:46:56 -0800

Identify triads in writing? Please identify for me notable conceptions of triads in works of writing, I just say writing because genre is not so important.

Triad I mean rather inclusively, so related geometrical shapes like pyramids and triangles are fine. It does not matter if the triad is abstract or physical, and I am interested in the construction, formulation, and deterioration of triads; it does not matter if the triad is ever completed.

Mostly I am interested in works which implicitly or explicitly use the triad as a major conceptual identifier.

I am asking because there is this work I am writing in which the triad resonates strongly, and I would like to see the ways others have used it.

Thanks for reading this!

GIF Archaeology

0bvious — Mon, 16 May 2011 07:17:15 -0800

I'm writing a paper on (animated) GIFs and am trying to track down some of the most (in)famous. I suppose I am talking memes, but I'm more interested in the GIF as an archaeological reference point. I frequent sites like dump.fm, tumblr etc. so am quite tuned in to the glitchy/kitschy side of GIF culture. How theoretical have people got on these wonders of the web? How does one trace the history of an animated GIF? I have a personal take on this (my paper is only short), but would love to find some well recognised, well lauded or completely briliant, unknown theoretical essays on the subject.

When I ask for (in)famous GIFs I am really trying to track down GIFs that spawned a long running meme. There are LOTS of memes out there, and many of them have been turned into GIFs, but which memes specifically came from the GIF culture? Has anyone traced these lineages? How would one go about examining a GIF archaeologically (if that is at all possible)?

Cheers

How do I do a good literature review?

superiorchicken — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 09:20:07 -0800

How do I do a good literature review for a research paper in philosophy? I have access to good resources, but I really want to make sure that I cover everything that's been written on the topic. How can I put myself at ease while making sure I don't miss a beat? I'm a 2nd-year philosophy undergrad, and I'd really like to start doing research before I get anywhere near graduate school. But I've been struggling to get started, since I have no idea when I can say I've read enough to say something substantial about a topic.

My interest lies mainly in the history of philosophy. Right now, I'd love to do a paper on Kierkegaard. I've scoured SEP, JSTOR, the Philosopher's Index, and the academic library at my institution. I've found and indexed all of the papers/books I have free access to. But how do I make sure that I'm covering all my bases? I simply can't tell whether or not, even if I read much of this material in a guided fashion, I will yet be able to write a good paper on anything in specific. I understand that I can't possibly read or find everything, but how do I alleviate these fears?

I'm especially worried that I'm missing books that have been written on the topic, for example. I don't mind not having a paper or something, as long as I know information about it that an index like Philosopher's Index can tell me. But such resources don't generally index books, and I know that my academic library doesn't have nearly all of the books there are to be found. Interlibrary loan takes a long time, and I'm not sure what assurance WebCat can give me about my field of research. So a second question: how do I make sure I'm covering all of my bases when I dont' have access to a specialized library on a thinker or a topic?

All of these concerns are generally the same, though. So to put it bluntly: when I do research in philosophy, what kind of wrangling is required with my resources before I can be confident enough to write something about my topic?

Any advice on writing research papers in philosophy is welcome. Thanks!

One Organizationl System to rule them all/ One System to find them/ One System to bring them all/ and in the madness bind them

DetonatedManiac — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 18:40:18 -0800

Organizational Filter: Looking for core Systems/Philosophies and "build-around" tools to radically self-organize my Personal Life & Creative Projects. I am looking to achieve 3 interrelated goals/questions, simultaneously:

1) What are a cohesive set of GTD/Orginzational/Prioritizing/Scheduling/Ideation-capture/Actualization Philosophies, Mantras, Habits, systems, Frameworks, what-have-you for my endeavors? Basically a personal, practical "Think, Plan, Create (for fun & for money)" Zen.

2) Find tools that Utilize #1, primarily, to bring my vast, varied, ambitious and only Quasi-Technical/money-seeking projects to fruition (or at least document them so I can put them on the shelf for later) . Interests are eclectic but will focus on journalistic-anthropology/film-making/writing. Also help keep my life in balance: reading, note taking, journaling, working, creating, having fun etc.

3) Apply #1 to my very technical corporate job. But don't REALLY care, I'll probably be leaving in 6-12 months anyway. So focus is on #1 and #2. I view this as merely a proving ground to make sure my system stands up to some "real world" deadlines.

Right now I am adopting Mark Forster's AutoFocus as my GTD base (realizing it needs a lot of tweaking). For Idea capture and rapid project ideation development I have devised some home-brew Composition/Moleskin(TM) books with tons of embedded sticky notes(TM) and tabs adhered inside of them. I am going to keep a mini composition book with me at all times for a thoughts, tasks, checklists, ToDo etc. But there is still much that needs a system or something to manage to SOME degree!

I also want to keep my system mostly mobile (fit into a backpack) so I can go nomad for long stretches at some point (research). That said, I'm about to move into a new apartment soon and, aside from my living room, I want to make everything creative/productive central. I'm toying with the idea of making custom magnetic/whiteboard painted, wall sized, detachable panels for my apartment (more for fun than REAL productivity). But if you have any living arrangement organizational ideas (like functional Feng shui) I'm interested.

As you can see, I am eschewing digital for core analog solutions because focusing on the "perfect digital tool" has caused failure for me in the past, and digital is not reliable. Also, my creativity is very kinesthetic, and keyboards are not able to access it in the same way. I want the core systems to be something I can re-create with just a pen and enough paper if needed. Of course the only tool one ever has ubiquitously is one's mind, but I'm not expecting answers THAT fundamental... But like I said, if you have any good "zen productivity" authors, I'm all ears.

That said, I obviously plan on leveraging digital tools once the core system is in place. Already Have iPhone, will replace desktop with laptop, interested in other cloud based software/services etc. Once I get my system setup I do plan to digitally reinforce it into a cloud based TiddlyWiki, but the one problem I'm considering is analog to digital translation and also content storage/cataloging/archiving (both digital and my composition books). I don't pretend I will log and digitize EVERYthing I write, but I need some way to review which stuff to backup/upload and which can continue to stew in composition-book form and get the best "bang for the buck".

So... this is my trajectory. I know at the moment it looks like:

Step 1) AutoFocus + Zen + Composition books
Step 2) ?
Step 3) PROFITS

So, please, help me fill out "step two" with any ideas you have and what has worked for you, or really cool tools that might fit into a system like this.

To recap:
Have Creativity
Craving Organization
Want focus driving me to project completion = Productivity
Will leverage large amounts of chaos if needed
Focus on Analog, not digital
Want tools as mobile as possible (limited home basing)
Cheap is good, free is better
Looking for CORE tools, systems or philosophy

Thanks Hive Mind!

A pub[lishing] quiz

crazylegs — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 14:38:14 -0800

I am looking for journals and periodicals that would be appropriate for submitting interdisciplinary articles in the humanities. I have a PhD in Art History. My dissertation, however, was only nominally in this field. It actually involved bits of philosophy, French literature, Buddhism, comparative religion, and smatterings of other fields, while being largely focused on Surrealism and French modernism.
As a result of this training, and my natural inclinations and interests, I'm realizing that the writing that I want to do really can't be called "Art History" at all anymore. I'm at the very beginning stages of working out a project that is broadly going to be about the historical shift from an integrated and constricting art/society framework towards a more fractured and individualist culture. Without going word-crazy here, suffice to say it's probably going to involve a whole lotta stuff, from medieval history to William Morris to Borges to Duchamp (and will probably never be finished). Also, I would like to write it in a style that would probably be called more visionary and poetic than academic. It may even end up in the form of a pedagogical novel.
I would like to publish bits and pieces of this project as articles along the way. What suggestions would you have for journals, magazines, or periodicals, peer reviewed, popular, or otherwise, that might be interested in publishing such things? Also, suggestions for book publishers who might be interested in the final project are welcomed.
Thank you!

De-constructing 'code' (picking apart its assumptions)

0bvious — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 06:35:13 -0800

De-constructing 'code': I am looking for philosophical (from W. Benjamin through to post-structuralism and beyond) examinations of 'code'. That both includes the assumptions contained in the word 'code' and any actual objects or subjects that code is connected to - including, but not limited to: computer programming, cyphers, linguistics, genetics etc. I am looking to question the assumptions of 'code'. Perhaps a specific example of a theorist de-constructing the term.

I am currently knee deep in an examination of certain practices and assumptions that have arisen from digital media/medium and digital practice (art and making in the era of data packets and compression-artefacts for example). Through my analysis I wish to investigate the paradigms of text and writing practice (the making of textual arts).

A simple analogy to this process would be looking at dialectic cultures (speech based) from the perspective/hindsight of a grapholectic culture (writing/print based). In a similar way, I want to examine writing, film and their making with the hindsight of digital paradigms.

I am aware of the works of Deleuze, Derrida, Barthes, Genette, Ong, Serres, Agamben etc. but any of their works that deal specifically with 'code' would be very very useful.

I look forward to any pointers you can give me

What is an extended abstract?

JoshSmith — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 21:04:39 -0800

What should an extended abstract (in the humanities) look like? This is for philosophy in particular, though I assume it might be a similar style for other disciplines. I'm responding to a CFP which asks for both an abstract and an "extended abstract." I'm unfamiliar with extended abstracts in the humanities, and most resources online are directed towards science writers.

To be clear, the CFP requests that applicants submit both an abstract (< 100 words) and an extended abstract (1,000-1,500 words). The papers themselves are expected to be under 7,000 words.

What all should be included within an extended abstract? References? What level of detail is usually expected? 1,200 words comes to about 2-1/2 typed single-spaced pages, and I'm well aware this is not a lot of space to go into extensive argumentation.

Any direction anyone can provide would be fantastic. Thanks in advance!

New theories of Mimesis (in digital/hypertextual/hypermedial cultures)

0bvious — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 07:09:48 -0800

I am looking for writings on mimesis in regards new, digital, hypertext and hypermedial technologies and cultures. I am following the redefinition of mimesis. From Plato's disregard of oral culture, through his mimesis of Socrates' dialogues in writing. Following Plato, Aristotle's theory was always a written mimesis, thus the order and processes of representation and mimicry were fundamentally written.

In essence, I am interested in how the artefacts of oral culture differed in their mimesis to written culture, and thus, how our modern move from a written to a digital/hypertextual culture will similarly impact on mimetic embodiment.

(I am also concerned with the terms 'digital' and 'hypertextual' - perhaps they are too narrow. Oral, written cultures and then XXXXX? The terms 'Cybertext' and 'Ergodic' do not seem to cover the ground wide enough.)

I have been reading Marshall McLuhan, Jacques Derrida, Paul de Man and Gunter Gebauer's and Christoph Wulf's Mimesis: Culture--Art--Society. I am looking for writings on digital, hypertextual mimesis, and how it differs, how it has altered, the theoretical embodiment of representation in thought, artefacts, language and culture.

Your help, ideas and advice are much appreciated, as always

The phenomenology of text

0bvious — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 07:21:33 -0800

The phenomenology / ontology of text: has anyone examined this issue directly in philosophical, literary and/or critical terms? I am interested in the experience and perception of text, both within readership and on an abstract (more holistic level perhaps) as the archetypical mediator and virtual-archive of human culture. I wish to explore it via its mediums (e.g. book, computer screen), its modes (e.g. semiotics, translation) and its means (e.g. poetry, fiction, encryption).

I came at this problem through Heidegger (most specifically in his re-appropriation of the term 'techné'), looking at text as a technology.

I have since come upon the writings of D.C. Greetham and a couple of other bits and pieces.

I feel that this is an area not much covered by the critical fields, especially in these times of ever encompassing digital/web-based mediums. I'm interested in following through some of this to a PhD proposal.

What paths should I be taking?

Your help, as always, is much appreciated.

What should I do with my life?

Anonymous — Thu, 08 May 2008 18:12:06 -0800

20-something INTP, bored to death in his corporate gig, asks: What should I do with my life? I'm in my mid-20's. I studied philosophy at a very good school. I'm now working in a corporate job that would probably be a great job if I didn't completely hate it. It's well-paying, humane, and I'm surrounded by smart people. I think the problem is just me. I find I'm unable to work hard on stuff that I don't find intrinsically interesting. I get bored quickly, and I'm not motivated enough by money or approval to overcome it. Some people are able to profitably rent out their minds; I'm not.

I spend most of my time reading papers on the Internet, dwelling on philosophical, social, and scientific problems, and writing lengthy emails to friends and acquaintances about Big Ideas. I don't purport to claim any of this is productive or valuable. But what's clear is I'm not a good fit for my employers, my employer isn't a good fit for me, and I'm just wasting everyone's time and money. It's been this way in my last two or three jobs as well. The stuff I'm good at -- deep thinking, complicated problem solving, coming up with new ideas and working out their implications -- just doesn't seem to overlap much with the job requirements of most jobs.

The question is what to do instead. I've applied to law school for the fall and have gotten into some great programs. I think I'd be good at law. I'm an analytical thinker and I actually take pleasure in working through dense thickets of language. But I'm afraid if I wind up in law, I'll run into the same problems I face in my current job, only worse: I'll be stuck in an office all day (and all night), working on problems I don't find interesting, wishing I could just write and think and work on interesting problems instead. I don't know though -- if I totally hate the practice of law (I'm pretty sure I'll like law school), I could always practice for a few years, pay off my loans, then get out, with a lot more "options" available to me than I have now.

Alternatively, writing/journalism and academia both seem like decent choices. At least with those, I could write, think, and have a lot more control over my work day and the projects I pursue. But they both have their drawbacks: while I'm not out to get rich, I don't look forward to a life of instability, unease, and relative penury that seem to await many people in those fields. I do value security and comfort.

As you can see, I also tend to talk myself out of things. I'm a thinker and an over-thinker. In the process of trying to figure everything out, I just wind up taking the path of least resistance. Hence my current situation. So, before I plunge $180k into debt, please advise me: what should I do with my life?

I want to write for interesting online magazines

0bvious — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 03:16:42 -0800

I am looking for online magazines to submit art/literature/experimental/fun articles to. I think 'The Believer' magazine is a good example of the type I crave. UK based would be best, but not completely necessary. Any ideas?

Help me persuade a small philosopher's 'circle' to use the Philosopher's Research Network to distribute papers given at our annual meeting.

anotherpanacea — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 13:14:06 -0800

Help me persuade a small philosopher's 'circle' to use the Philosopher's Research Network to distribute papers given at our annual meeting. Objections include:
1. Young scholars cannot risk the loss of reputation associated with a flawed article appearing publicly. (Possible answer: papers are vetted by older scholars at the acceptance phase, the circle as a whole during their reading, and anyway, need not be posted until they are judged ready by the author and the circle.)
2. Online publication of drafts will decrease the likelihood of publication in a peer-reviewed journal.
3. Online access promotes plagiarism.

Anyone who has used any part of the SSRN or other online draft repositories successfully, I'd appreciate your anecdotes and advice on swaying the group. I'm especially hoping for refutations of the above points, and anyone who can say that SSRN-like sites have helped their careers or scholarship.

How Things 'Become': The Infinity of Definition

0bvious — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 09:18:41 -0800

I am looking for writings on the infinity of definition. I am interested in the exponentially divergent curve that is definition.

We create writings and art to better define the world, yet true definition is infinite.

We mediate the universe by erecting borders of definition, i.e. all striped, four-legged, hooved mammals are probably zebras. We categorise the universe into hierarchies, but the more we examine the more pronounced and expansive these hierarchies become.

Language is our greatest defining tool. Yet, the metaphors we evolve to expand the potential of language can themselves only be made to refer back to the language which created them. An infinite loop emerges in most definition.

As new technology emerges we use it to 'add' meaning to artifacts which are already partly defined. By looking at the world with ever more refined microscopes we bring reality into greater clarity. This metaphor can be expanded to refer to texts, art, archaeology, culture etc.

Who has written on the problem of definition? What critical theory has been written on the emergence of infinity?

This question adds on to past questions I have asked at MeFi including (in reverse order):

- Art and artifacts experienced through technology
- The mimetic and narrative capacities of artefacts
- Examples of 'The Infinite' in Myth and Their Effect on Conditions of Truth

Here's hoping you have some ideas...

The mimetic and narrative capacities of artefacts

0bvious — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 15:58:58 -0800

I am interested in the mimetic and narrative capacities of artefacts, how cultural remnants transmit information through time and how meaning is translated once an artefact is re-appropriated or examined from a new perspective. I have several avenues of study at the moment (a list in extended explanation), but would like some more ideas. Areas of critical theory, linguistics, evolutionary psychology and poetics are all relevant. I want to show that the narratives and metaphors which can be understood as the architecture of our brains are somehow mimetically present in the physical, cultural and linguistic artefacts which surround us.

Here are a few of the readings I have gathered so far:

- Anthropological and evolutionary studies into the nature and transmission of narrative by Michelle Scalise Sugiyama (in particular her essay 'Reverse-Engineering Narrative' from the book 'The Literary Animal').
- Mikhail Bakhtin's 'Discourse in the Novel' (where he talks about language as having 'genres' or 'tastes' which can transmit as much meaning as the words themselves).
- Michael Shanks and Lynn Hershman Leeson's conversation at Seed Magazine on 'Presence' in art and archaeology and how new technologies affect it.
- Susan A. Stewart's book 'On Longing'.
- Gaston Bachelard's book 'The Poetics of Space'

Thanks in advance!

All Day I Dream About The two-foldedness of the essence of the active concept of free will.

tmcw — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 13:29:44 -0800

I need to write a paper about Hegel. An eleven-page paper. I have the knowledge, I have the skills, and I sort of have the time. But what about? I've read Lord & Bondsman, Philosophy of Right, and some of Sense-Certainty. I've even understood a bit of it. But I can't seem to find any part of his works that really inspires a paper topic. So, anyone who knows about this area of philosophy, can you lend a hand? I'm also open to linking him to Fichte, Kant, Spinoza...

In short - not looking for anyone to write me a paper, or a thesis, or anything. Just trying to figure out what's interesting and 'arguable' in these intensely tough texts.

Thanks for any help

Should I rewrite my undergraduate thesis?

Anonymous — Sat, 30 Dec 2006 11:20:26 -0800

I studied philosophy in college. By my senior year I had decided that I wanted to pursue a career in academia. I had co-founded a conference. I was writing a thesis. I had intentions of applying to graduate schools. However, during my last semester I experienced a crisis of faith and delayed my thesis for six months, eventually earning a "C". I want to go back and do the job right, but I don't know how. The thesis was a disaster in part because I had not developed the necessary skills to conduct basic academic research independently. My college is exclusively seminar-based and most of the "research" I used in my papers was gleaned from my participation in class. Paper-writing for me was typically an intuitive affair wherein I would try to come up with complex interpretations of the materials provided in class rather than seek out new information from new sources. This approach gave me a false sense of security in my supposed ability to find connections between anything, conveniently ignoring the fact that all of the materials were connected by virtue of their inclusion in the course. Nonetheless I succeeded in my endeavors and held excellent academic standing until my last semester when I crashed on the thesis. Suddenly I wasnt being handed assignments anymore and I began to doubt the relevance and quality of my work. I fell into the rut of deleting chunks of text and rewriting everything until it became dense and esoteric. I was also reading hefty courseloads of Heidegger and Wittgenstein at the time and I precociously felt inclined to emulate their writing styles in combination, which further drove me into protective esotericism. I eventually abandoned my bibliography altogether, instead opting to rely upon the whimsy of my own thoughts as the basis of my research. My advisor was aloof throughout this catastrophe although in hindsight I probably should have been more insistent on demanding his time. When I finally handed in a stack of papers six months after the original due date it was clear that the project was a failure. I immediately moved from NYC to Providence and began an entirely unrelated creative project that is just now, one year later, beginning to wrap up.

Now I want to go back, write the thesis properly and start working towards graduate schools or at least to just write productively in any context, but I don't exactly trust my workflow management, research methods or organizational techniques. I also have less of an advisor than I did the first time. WHERE TO BEGIN?

The Flâneur exposed

0bvious — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 16:38:54 -0800

'The Flâneur': What fascinating titbits can you add to my knowledge about this concept? Art, history, philosophy and literary theory links all welcome. Walter Benjamin wrote on them; Edgar Allan Poe supposedly utilized the concept in his story 'The Man of the Crowd'; the 19th century Parisians relished them. Art, literary theory, have been altered irrevocably since.

Insights please!

Thanks

Help me find an obscure R.A. Lafferty quote.

rwhe — Mon, 28 Aug 2006 06:53:41 -0800

Help me find an obscure R.A. Lafferty quote. Just saw Little Miss Sunshine and was struck by its message of embracing one's own utter dorkiness. It reminded me of a quotation by SF writer R.A. Lafferty about finding or inventing for yourself a field of knowledge or an art form so unique (excuse me; you know what I mean) that you will be the first to study it and create in it, and since the first, therefore the best. Knowing Lafferty's inclination to use Biblical allusions, Adam may have been mentioned in there as the first to do a lot of things.

Lafferty has always been an inspiration to me. Ghod knows he certainly lived his advice, and didn't just spout it. Can you help me find it?