Ian Smith on why Ockham thought the Pope wasn’t a Catholic. William of Ockham is readily acknowledged as one of the most preeminent philosophers of the medieval period, and is known primarily for his work in metaphysics and logic. But in 1328 it was controversy over his political writings that forced him to flee Avignon, […]
William of Ockham: Defending the Church, Condemning the Pope Read More »
Three hundred and fifty years ago, Spinoza was excommunicated. This affords Peter Cave the excuse to remind us of this most tolerant philosopher – of his life, metaphysics and humanity. Spinoza’s name does not trip off the lips of many people, and those from whose lips it trips typically know only that he was a
Spinoza: Cursed be he by day; and cursed be he by night Read More »
Michael J. Brown finds assumptions challenged in his Philosophy Club. I had planned on five, perhaps six students showing up – nothing I’d have to prepare too much for; just a few extemporaneous remarks on philosophy and the usual haggling over scheduling a weekly meeting to talk about it. I was surprised, even panicked, when
Of Adolescents and The Aristotle Read More »
Grant Bartley lays down the law in favour of the ‘right’ sort of heresy. “Religions are kept alive by heresies, which are really sudden explosions of faith. Dead religions do not produce them.” Gerald Brenan Thoughts in a Dry Season. “A heretic is a person who offers too good a criticism of the authorities,” Brant
The Truth about Heresy? Read More »
Neel Burton asks why the master reasoner turned to launching legends. Perhaps the most famous allegory in philosophy is Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, in which Plato, via Socrates, compares people who lack philosophical training to prisoners who have spent their entire lives in an underground cave and don’t realise that there is a vast
Could advances in technology soon give us perfect knowledge of other minds? Bora Dogan investigates. I may not know what you’re thinking, but I know a machine that can – several, in fact. With names like Cerebus and BrainGate, these machines wouldn’t sound out of place in a sci-fi movie, but they’re real and they’re
Brian Breeze takes time to think. Everyone knows what time is: don’t they? But perhaps, when we look more closely, we will find that our initial confidence is not entirely justified. St. Augustine wrote around 397 AD: “What… is time? I know well enough what it is, provided that nobody asks me; but if I
Transcending The Moment Read More »
Dzifa Benson is compelled to consider the nature of performance. Shakespeare’s melancholic hero Jacques is a libertine-turned-philosopher. He has turned to philosophy in his quest for a new identity, and as a philosopher he questions much of what he sees around him, causing him to offer the soliloquy from which the above excerpt is taken.
Performance Is The Thing Read More »