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THE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG

DEPARTMENT OF PHILOSOPHY

SENIOR SEMINAR

second semester 1999-2000

organizers: Tim Moore & Sally Perry

Outlines, Timetable and Venue

For whom?

The Senior Seminar was introduced for the first time in 1998-1999. It is intended for research postgraduate students who are in their first year of study, and third year undergraduates who have done specially good second year work and are invited to take part. Its format is likely to change from year to year.

Theme

This year's seminar has a central theme: "perspectives". We recommend each participant to give further careful consideration to this. There are "perspectives" or "points of view". The point for participants is not to display or expound a certain point of view or perspective, and discuss it or comment on it, but rather to discuss what we might call the theory of perspectives. How are they possible? How should they be explained or understood? Is someone's perspective on the world to be explained by reference to his or her socio-economic position in the history of our species (Marx), by reference to the person's language (Whorf), or by psychological considerations, or in some other empirical or metaphysical fashion? In what way and to what extent is it possible to go beyond a particular perspective? We have quite accurately reproduced your outlines of papers here: in some cases, you may wish to modify or polish them. Let us know, soon.

Text

Nagel lecturing at HKU in 1993

We have chosen Thomas Nagel's The View from Nowhere as a reference. The seminar is not about this book, but the book has a bearing, in various ways, on your various chosen topics. We are hoping to post shortly an audio-recording of a public lecture given by Nagel in 1993 at HKU. Watch this space.

Tasks

You should

write a draft paper on your chosen topic, and circulate it to all participants at least two days before the meeting on that topic
introduce the topic for discussion at that meeting (do not read out your paper: assume that other participants have already read it with care)
prepare for each meeting by using the reading-lists provided (as far as you reasonably can), as well as reading and thinking about, or discussing, the circulated paper
keep a journal of all the meetings, giving some indication of your own reflections about each one, and their relations. You have freedom to approach this task in any way you think fruitful.
after you have given your own talk, revise your paper into a final written form. There is no prescribed length: you should write as much as you think is needed and no more. But you can bear in mind 4000 words as a guideline.
submit your journal and your paper for assessment by ... [date to be determined]

Venue, Timetable and Outlines

The venue will be 132B Pokfulam Road from 5.30 pm to 7.00 pm, and the meetings (of which details follow) will be

Sally: Nagel
Yvonne: Nietzsche
Helen: Language
Nicole: Consciousness (William James)
Javis: Consciousness (Ned Block, et al.)
Winner: Marxist perspectives
Tim: overview (possibly)


18 February 2000	Sally Perry
The View from Nowhere	Thomas Nagel,The View from Nowhere

25 February 2000

Kwok Hang Wah

Nietzsche's

truth (objectivity/subjectivity)
morality
perspectivism
nihilism
comments

Deleuze, G; Nietzsche and Philosophy. London: The Athlone Press
Copleston, Frederick (1942). Friedrich Nietzsche: Philosopher of Culture. London: Burns Oates.
Hollingdale, R.J. (1997). A Nietzsche Reader. Penguin.
Hoover, A.J. Friedrich Nietzsche: His Life and Thought. London: Praeger.
Lowith, K. Nietzsche's Philosophy of the Eternal Recurrence of the Same. London: University of California Press.
For web-sites on Nietzsche, click http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/6041/links.html


3 March 2000	Lau Hiu Wai
Theories of Language Difference in two language leads to different theories of language. Since Chinese language is different from English language in terms of syntax, ways of representations of the world, etc. Therefore theories of Chinese language is different from that of English language. Different theories of languages lead to different philosophical traditions. We should not interpret one philosophical tradition, say Chinese thought by using our perspective, i.e. our own theories of English language. We should thus interpret Chinese thought by using their perspective, i.e. their own theories of Chinese language.	Hansen, Chad, Language and Logic in Ancient China Hansen, Chad, A Daoist Theory of Chinese Thought Graham, A.C., Later Mohist Logic, Ethics and Science

24 March 2000

Ho Pui Chong

William James on Consciousness

There are very different perspectives on consciousness. For instance, some think it as an entity while some think it as a function. Some think that animals do not have consciousness while some think that it is just a matter of degree. William James suggested that consciousness is a product of natural selection. He pointed out that every thought tends to be part of a personal consciousness. Within each consciousness thought is always continuous and changing. So that he always stresses that our consciousness is a stream or chain of consciousness.

James, W. (1890) The Principles of Psychology. London: Macmillan.
James, W. (1976) Essays in Radical Empiricism. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.


31 March 2000	Wong Kai Hang
Consciousness I don't want to focus on one philosopher's view on consciousness. So I have chosen some references that contained many philosophers' ideas and concepts. But, my intention is to focus on 2 main aspects: 1) What, if any, is consciousness (a) different definitions of different kinds of consciousness: phenomenal, monitoring, self-access etc. (b) can we prove the existence of consciousness by contemporary science? 2) the functions of consciousness	Block, N., Flanagan, O., Guzeldere, G., eds., The Nature of consciousness: philosophical debates, Cambridge, Mass./London: MIT Press, c. 1997 Lycan, William G. Consciousness and experience. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1996. Jackson, Frank, ed.. Consciousness. Brookfield, Vt: Ashgate, 1998.


7 April 2000	Wong Wing Na
Marx's Perspective Marx holds a different point of view in the way of looking the world. He values economy as the basis of all societies, that is, the means of production and the relations of production. He believes these can determine and design the form as well as the structure of society. These are be-named by Marx as the infrastructure. On the other hand, any political institution and morality are being constructed upon the economic basis of society, and thus they are the superstructure. As mentioned above, my topic will mainly focus on the rationale behind Marx's way of thinking. That is, I'll try to give reasons to elaaborate why economy seems so important to a society and in return, why others are kept secondary focus in a society. Then, I'll also try to give comments on this particular point of view when we try to understand the world.	Singer, Peter. Marx. Elster, Jon. An introduction to Karl Marx. Marx, Karl. Political and Economic Manuscripts.


14 April 2000	Tim Moore
Cultural Perspectives To what extent can we give any systematic account of different cultural perspectives? (The link to my paper can be followed only from within the University network; it is better viewed with Internet Explorer 5.0 or above, than with Netscape up to 4.7.)	Sperber, Dan. Explaining Culture: a naturalistic approach. Oxford: Blackwell, 1996

Bulletin Board If you want to talk about matters arising from the Seminar when no-one is around, you can use the course Bulletin Board.

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