Info: this online course is available in English & Portuguese, open to the general public.
Nota: este curso online será dado em inglês & português (ver horários diferentes abaixo).
Nota: este curso online será dado em inglês & português (ver horários diferentes abaixo).
COURSE Nr. 7 - "JUSTICE & CAPITALISM"
Description: In one of the masterpieces of world cinema, The Gold Rush, Charles Chaplin satirically addresses the contrast between the rich and the poor, the latter brilliantly portrayed. See the scene in which the characters of Chaplin and Big Jim find themselves in the cabin, in the middle of the storm, and have the brilliant idea of, to satisfy their appetite, cook a beautiful shoe. But this interpretation would be too simplistic for what Chaplin was looking for from the scene: its depth is much greater. The quality of the scene is in the representation of misery with a constant visual contrast between a meal for the rich and the poor: the elegant way in which the carachter sits at the table and literally cuts his shoe; shoelaces are treated like spaghetti; the nails as if they were chicken bones – the genius lies in presenting the formal similarity of such different elements. This unique scene serves as a philosophical image for the themes that will be discussed in this course: Justice and Capitalism. One of the most important components of Justice is correlated with the quality and development of capitalist economic systems, and there seems to be a relationship of bilateral affection between the levels of Justice, on the one hand, and the levels of financial stability or instability, on the other. Therefore, it is urgent to think about the possible relationships between the two concepts.
The goal of this Online Course nr. 7 is to discuss with the general public (and academics interested in the subject) three relevant topics of the contemporary society. The course in English will be given in several sessions. The First Session will discuss how Cinema, as Art, can help us in the rigorous philosophical reflection on the notions of Justice and Equality that we use in our daily lives; through several films, we will discuss how Justice is directly influenced by Capitalism and vice-versa (this session will have the participation of the philosopher Slavoj Žižek [session 1]. The Second Session we will consider various issues related to the fairness of Meritocracy and the possible legitimacy of the existence of Free-Riders through the Rawlsian lens [session 2]. Finally, in the Third and Final session, we will discuss various issues that arise when we propose the application of an Unconditional Basic Income - a fixed amount given to the entire population regardless of their working condition - to fight the levels of Poverty and Inequality in addition to facing the crisis of technological unemployment (this session will have the participation of the philosopher Philippe Van Parijs [session 3].
Professor: Steven S. Gouveia holds a PhD in Philosophy of Mind/Neurophilosophy from the University of Minho (Portugal), having been a visiting researcher at the Research Unit "Mind, Brain Imaging and Neuroethics" of the Royal Institute of Mental Health at the University of Ottawa (Canada), where he is currently a PostDoc Research Fellow. He is a member of MLAG, Institute of Philosophy at the University of Porto. He is the author and editor of 11 academic books. He has published several works on Political Philosophy, such as the book "Thinking Democracy (PT)" (ed.), "Philosophical Reflections: Art, Mind and Justice" (PT) or his most recent authorial book, "Homo Ignaus: Rational Ethics for a Irracional" (PT), which has a preface by Peter Singer and a postface by Viriato Soromenho-Marques. He hosts the international documentary about "The Age of A.I.: the Documentary" which has thousands of views. He has lectured around the world on topics related to Justice and Ethics, such as the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence (Messina Palaca, Valletta, Malta 2021). More information: www.stevensgouveia.weebly.com
Invited Professors:
- Slavoj Žižek is considered one of the most controversial intellectuals of our time, being known as the Elvis Presley of Philosophy but also as "the most dangerous philosopher in the world". He is Professor at the European Graduate School, a researcher at the Institute of Sociology at the University of Ljubljana and a visiting-professor at the University of Columbia, Princeton, New York and Michigan, in addition to being the International Director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities (University of London). He has published over 60 books translated into dozens of languages and is one of the most read intellectuals in the world. In 2014 he received the Medal of Honor from the Faculty of Fine Arts of Porto. Being a highly creative and original philosopher, he is the protagonist of several cinematographic works where he makes use of cinema to transmit and reflect several important philosophical ideas. Among his books we can count the most recent "The Pandemic that Shaken the World" (2020) or "How to Defeat Trum and Other Essays" (2018) and among his cinema works, we can count on "The Pervert's Guide to Cinema " (2006) or "The Pervert's Guide to Ideology" (2012). He regularly writes for magazines such as The Guardian or The New York Times.
- Philippe Van Parijs is a political economist and philosopher and Director of the Hoover Department of Economic and Social Ethics at the University of Louvain (Belgium). He was a Professor at Harvard University and Oxford University, and received doctorates in philosophy at Oxford and in social sciences at Louvain. He has been visiting-professor at the École Normale Supérieure de Paris, Yale University, the University of Manchester, the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, among others. He is a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences of Belgium, the International Institute of Philosophy and the British Academy. In 2001 he received the Francqui, the most prestigious Belgian scientific award. Since 2016, he is also a visiting-researcher at the European University Institute (Florence), where he co-organizes a series of "Conversations for the Future of Europe". He founded the Basic Income European Network (BIEN), and is considered one of the leading experts on the Basic Unconditional Income, an idea of Philosophy that is increasingly being taken seriously. He has published several books, such as "Basic Income. A radical proposal for a free society and a sane economy" (2017), translated into 8 languages.
Structure:
Session 1: Cinema & Justice with Slavoj Žižek;
Session 2: Meritocracy & Free-riders;
Session 3: Universal Basic Income with Philippe Van Parijs;
To Register:
Send First and Last Name to stevensequeira92 at hotmail.com, indicating your address and phone contact. The payment details will be sent after confirmation of receipt of the registration.
Registrations are open to have access to the recordings of the course (asynchronously) and an official certificate of participation (and book offer).
Online course recorded via Zoom.
© Steven S. Gouveia
