PHILOSOPHY PATHWAYS Issue 204

III. 'Desensitization from a Gra(e)y Morality: A Rejoinder to Ole Martin Moen's Philosophical Review of 50 Shades of Grey' by Ivan Brian L. Inductivo

Morality and the mind, very profound topics for philosophical investigation and reflection, indeed for this issue of Philosophy Pathways we have one essay on the philosophy of mind and two essays to do with morality, all of which are from three very capable philosophers and from differing angles. When academic thinkers have something of an intellectual sparring match between each other on a given subject, it is always interesting to obtain a third party opinion on the crossing of swords of such erudite champions. Interesting because, depending on whether this third party opinion is lent in support of one or the other champions, does much to truly offer some sort of extra layer of well-informed judgement on why one champion or the other is striking, parrying well enough or... isn't [...]

James Ross's argument from determinacy to the immateriality of some aspects of thought, is an oft-neglected member of the family of arguments which draw immaterialist conclusions about the nature of the mind. Rather than seeking an immaterialist account of 'qualia' (i.e., the non-quantitative aspects of the world), or of intentionality (the capacity of thought to be "about" something else), Ross's argument focuses on the 'determinacy' of thought- its capacity to think about and carry out particular formal functions. His argument that thought is determinate where no physical system can be has roots in classical Platonist and Aristotelian accounts of the intellect, but Ross motivates his argument by reference to modern sceptical puzzles. This paper will set out the argument and affirm Ross's conclusion. Two main objections by Peter Dillard to Ross's argument will be considered: first, that Ross does not show formal thinking to be necessarily determinate, because alternatives are possible; second, that Ross has not shown thought, even if it is 'indeterminate,' to be genuinely sui generis and thus Ross does not demonstrate that thought is immaterial. I argue that each of these arguments fails [...]

In recent years numerous questions were raised about the morality of killing and eating animals. Do animals have right to live and not made to suffer? Should people stop eating animal meat? Should laws be enacted to protect animal rights? This essay suggests the following two theses. 1) Animal rights arguments are not logically conclusive, 2) Someone may develop reasons in the future, but for now, there is no morally compelling reason to stop eating animal meat. I shall address various major arguments for animal rights and their weaknesses [...]

III. 'DESENSITIZATION FROM A GRA(E)Y MORALITY: A REJOINDER TO OLE MARTIN MOEN'S PHILOSOPHICAL REVIEW OF 50 SHADES OF GREY' BY IVAN BRIAN L. INDUCTIVO

50 Shades of Grey has provided the public a "peep" on the enterprise of BDSM (Bondage and Discipline with Sadism and Masochism). Print and big screen depiction of BDSM is not an entirely novel as a topic for quite a many as interminable as other morally disturbing dilemma and realities. However, it has become a recent hype which tends to question the way we look, understand, and even subtly or largely accept this theme. As Prof. Ole Martin Moen's statement, "it seeks to challenge common stereotypes". Although at the end, he revoke by stating that it is yet to be made clear. Nonetheless, it triggered the way many of us think of convention, power neutrality of relationships, moral and psychological perception to deviancies, just to name a few. But what is more alarming and why philosophers ought to poke their noses on this topic are the ethical implications of the public's reception of the story, i.e., how the story may potentially desensitizes the public from BDSM. This paper intends to be a rejoinder, not much of a reply to an argument but a continuing philosophical review initiated by Prof. Ole Martin Moen on his article on 50 Shades of Grey [..]

On 3rd September, the following announcement was posted on the Philosophy e-list Philos-L moderated by Professor Stephen Clark at Liverpool University:

     I am pleased to report that 'Ask a Philosopher' launched in
     1999 is still going strong. We are currently looking for new
     panel members.

     Panel members become authors of the Ask a Philosopher blog
     at:

     https:---

     You will need to have, or create a Wordpress account. Once
     you have joined the blog, you are free to post answers at
     any time.

     One nice feature of this system is that you can reblog your
     answers on your own Wordpress blog.

     Questions can be accessed by solving a simple puzzle here:

     https:---

     When you have got past our spam filter, click the link
     'View Questions'. You can bookmark this page so that it
     isn't necessary to repeat the process ad nauseam.

     That's all there is to it. Questions and answers are
     moderated. We are not above ruffling a few feathers or
     causing moderate offence, but generally a polite response
     to what might seem a silly or badly thought out question
     usually works best.

     I look forward to hearing from you!

     Geoffrey Klempner
     Director
     Pathways to Philosophy
     https:---

In response to the Philos-L post, three academic philosophers have joined the Ask a Philosopher Panel:

Paul Fagan holds a PhD from the University of Hull. His interests include political philosophy and environmental philosophy. He is a member of the Society for Applied Philosophy. Prior to becoming a philosopher Paul worked in business.

Sara L. Uckelman is a lecturer in philosophy at Durham University. Her research interests include logic and philosophy of language.

Billy Wheeler is currently Teaching Fellow in the Science and Technology Studies department, University College London, and Head of the Department for Philosophy and Religion at King Edward VI Grammar School, Essex.

I very much hope that more will join Ask a Philosopher. The normal minimum qualification is a BA in Philosophy. There is no maximum qualification!

In the light of the high quality of the University of London International Programme for BA (Hons) in Philosophy, students who have successfully completed at least one year of study are also welcome to apply to join the Ask a Philosopher Panel.

Please write to the moderator of Ask a Philosopher, Geoffrey Klempner, at klempner@fastmail.net.

Following the publication of Philosophizer on Kindle (http:---) announced in Issue 203 of Philosophy Pathways, two more Kindle eBooks by Geoffrey Klempner have appeared:

First published in 1994, Naive Metaphysics tackles one of the fundamental questions of philosophy: what kind of fact is it that I am here, now, in a world Ñ when I (seemingly) might not have existed at all? What is it to be a subject facing out onto a world which contains other similar subjects?

Submitted to the University of Oxford for the D.Phil in 1982, The Metaphysics of Meaning is still arguably ahead of its time -- in its radical critique of theories of meaning and the proposal of an alternate 'dialectics' of language, its interpretation of the philosophies of Kant and Wittgenstein, and the treatment of realism about truth and meaning as a 'metaphysical illusion'.

Meanwhile, reviews of Philosophizer by Philosophy Pathways contributors D.R. Khashaba and Richard Schain have appeared on Amazon UK and US.

     Here is philosophy with a difference. At the heart of
     Klempner's amazing book is the problem of problems: What is
     it to be? Parmenides some twenty-six centuries ago summed up
     all we can say about Reality in the little word esti, it is.
     Klempner formulates the problem in the quaintly sounding
     'What is is?' Here then we have the gist of all
     metaphysics. But rather than a cold, parched sequence of
     deductive arguments we find ourselves regaled with live,
     throbbing confrontations with the puzzles of being in
     contemplations, thought experiments, and reminiscences. I
     pick up a few of the chapter headings to indicate how
     variegated the approach is, how rich the fare. 'I exist
     therefore what?', 'The dark side of life', 'Return of the
     evil demon', 'Photography as metaphysics' (which I
     particularly found inspiring), 'Herr Doktor Faust', etc.,
     etc. The reader is not faced with finished doctrines or
     theories but is constantly challenged to wonder and to
     puzzle, which is the best a philosophy book can do.

     This writing represents an entirely new way of presenting
     the perennial 'questions' of philosophy. It might be
     compared to James Joyce's impact on literature with the
     publication of 'Ulysses,' Jack Kerouac with 'On The Road,'
     or even Plato's use of dialogues to express his ideas. The
     work is presented as a stream of consciousness stemming
     from Klempner's interior self searching for 'reality'
     (truth, meaning). As he himself proclaims, he 'is singing
     his heart out.' Given the author's vast erudition in
     philosophy, his experiences as a teacher and editor, and
     his participation in a diverse range of arts such as
     photography, music, and more, the end result of his writing
     is quite remarkable. No one who is familiar with Geoffrey
     Klempner's past career would have expected him to produce
     such a barrier-breaking work. Moreover, the style is
     consistent and larded with restrained humor; he handles the
     most abstruse philosophical topics in a manner accessible to
     general readers. However, it needs to be read slowly in
     order to intelligently absorb the contents. A familiarity
     with the icons of western philosophy is helpful.
     'Philosophizer' illustrates a principle I have maintained
     for years, that philosophy is an art form where the ideas
     are the art. Klempner shows himself with this book to be a
     master of the philosophic form of literary art.

-- Coming from Independent Philosophers for whom I have the highest respect, these responses are extremely gratifying.

If you would like to receive a free review copy in MOBI or PDF format of any of my three Kindle eBooks, please write to me at klempner@fastmail.net.

www.geoffreyklempner.net

klempner@fastmail.net

International Society for Philosophers

Wisdom begins with wonder