David French, John Russon, Mike Milligan, Nick Fraser
January 24: Holy Oak Cafe–Welcome Back Chris Gale!
Chris Gale, John Russon, Chris Banks, Morgan Childs
January 23: The Central
Rebecca Hennessy, John Russon, Michael Herring, Blake Howard
David French, John Russon, Mike Milligan, Nick Fraser
January 24: Holy Oak Cafe–Welcome Back Chris Gale!
Chris Gale, John Russon, Chris Banks, Morgan Childs
January 23: The Central
Rebecca Hennessy, John Russon, Michael Herring, Blake Howard
I am deeply committed to the idea that philosophy is a cooperative activity and an inherently fulfilling one. For this reason, I encourage activities of philosophical study in which, through conversation, a community develops in which each participant experiences her or his thinking to be elevated beyond the level she or he could achieve alone, and in which study and social life are closely interwoven.
Since 2003, I have run an annual summer
seminar in philosophy. Each year, roughly
25 invited participants-primarily faculty members and Ph.D. students from
universities across North America-gather for roughly one week of intense, group
study of a major text from the history of philosophy. Participants meet twice daily for sessions of
highly focused discussion of the text and the issues it raises. When not studying in preparation for the meetings, seminar participants also socialize
together, generally taking advantage of Toronto's outstanding, multicultural
dining opportunities, and taking part in Toronto's vibrant and varied live
music scene. Participants in these
seminars consistently have the experience of growth in their conversation and
conceptual abilities, and typically leave with a transformed sense of the nature
and possibilities of philosophy.
Throughout the year, I also often lead smaller private seminars, specially oriented to graduate students, on various texts and topics in the history of philosophy.
Music, along with the other creative arts, is one of the most profound ways in which people express and define the distinctive character of human life. Composing, performing, and listening to music are some of the most fulfilling of our experiences. Listening offers us the opportunity for the sensuous pleasure of listening and moving (in dance), for emotional self-expression, and for bonding with others in shared enthusiasm. Performing brings with it the demands and rewards of communication and cooperation-with band-members and with audience-and supports the development and deployment of highly-refined bodily and expressive skills. Composing can be a powerful intellectual and cultural practice, offering one a route into participating in the rich historical and multicultural traditions of musical expression. Engaging with music, like engaging with philosophy, touches us in every dimension-bodily, emotional, intellectual, interpersonal, cultural, spiritual-of our experience.
I think of both philosophy and music as communal practices first and foremost, and I regularly try to design community activities involving either or both. Currently, I am organizing one series in downtown Toronto.
"Story and Song Night" is a once-a-month
event in which a speaker narrates one of the great stories from the world's
religious traditions. Stories are among
the oldest and most basic of our ways of telling ourselves and each other who we are as people, and the ancient stories that have been
handed down for generations remain powerful and provocative resources for
thinking about ourselves and our lives.
On the fourth Tuesday of each month, a speaker narrates a story she or
he has found personally meaningful, and this is followed first by group
discussion and then by a set of live music performed by some of the best of
Toronto's musicians. The event is hosted
by Naco Gallery Cafe (1665 Dundas
St. W.).