Guy Kahane (Uehiro Institute, Oxford): 'Why Want a World'
Abstract: The vast world that surrounds us doesn’t really need us. But what about us, do we need the world? Of course, we need the world even just to survive, and for many other things. But that’s compatible with seeing the entire external world as only mattering instrumentally, so far as our own good is concerned. On what I call Prudential Solipsism, the world is in principle redundant in this way—at least in theory, we could live the best possible lives whether or not there actually is a world out there. Prudential Solipsism is obviously entailed by hedonism. But I will show that most current approaches to well-being are unfortunately at least compatible with it. Yet many people, and at least some philosophers—these include Murdoch, Nozick and perhaps Hurka—think that there is special value to connecting with external reality. In this talk, I will develop and defend the idea that we need the (or a) world in this stronger sense—that the world plays an essential role in our personal good—that the self is not enough for itself.
Registration: If you do not hold a university card, please contact the seminar convenor or admin@philosophy.ox.ac.uk at least two working days before a seminar to register your attendance.
Workshop in Moral Philosophy Convenor: David Owens
