Summer Seminar 1995
Individualism & Civilization
The 1995 Summer Seminar in Philosophy was held at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison from July 8-15. The topic was "Individualism and
Civilization" and 114 people participated in the Seminar.
Table of Contents
The scholarly core of our program is a series of lectures at
the forefront of philosophy. Lectures on the first two days deal with social influences on
character and the political order of a civilized society. We then turn to intellectual
history--four lectures that deal with the various ways in which seminal thinkers shape a
culture. On the final two days, we consider ethical and aesthetic issues. Each morning,
David Kelley gives a short presentation putting the lectures in context. Each afternoon,
panel discussions allow exploration of each topic at the depth of a graduate seminar.
- Susanna Fessler, Confucius and Christ: Individuality in
Japanese and American Culture
Is modern Japan less
individualistic than America? Prof. Fessler explains why the Confucian influence makes
Japanese culture less altruistic than America (with its Christian heritage) but more
duty-bound.
- Lester Hunt, Is Liberalism Possible?
Prof. Hunt examines the conflict in modern welfare-state liberalism
between its belief in personal freedom and its belief that individuals are molded by
society.
-
Fred Miller, Theories of Rights
Can the obligation to respect the rights of others be derived from
rational self-interest? Prof. Miller traces recent attempts, beginning with Ayn Rand, to
provide a rational foundation for individual rights.
- Randy Barnett, Natural Rights and the Constitution
Prof. Barnett reviews the concept of natural rights and the ways by
which these rights can receive protection under the United States Constitution.
- Susan Dawn Wake, Aristotelian Longevity: John Locke and
Oxford
Aristotelianism was an important, active,
and unavoidable presence as late as the 17th century. Prof. Wake examines this
intellectual influence at Oxford and its effect on John Locke.
- James Lennox, William Harvey: Renaissance Aristotelian
Prof. Lennox presents a case study of the positive influence of
Aristotle's philosophy on the scientific revolution: How William Harvey, discoverer of
cardio-vascular circulation, was influenced in his philosophical approach to biology by
the Aristotelians at the University of Padua.
- George Walsh, The Enlightenment
Prof. Walsh analyzes the central doctrines of Enlightenment culture,
their spread among the educated classes, and weaknesses that led to the disintegration of
the movement.
- James Lennox, Causality and Responsibility in the History
of Ideas
How does a new idea in science or
philosophy arise, become accepted, and influence our thought and action? Prof. Lennox
discusses the method of establishing causal relationships in the history of ideas and
assigning responsibility to individual thinkers.
- Anne Wortham, An Individualist Approach to Sociology
Prof. Wortham presents a view of social theory that is grounded in a
realist epistemology and regards the individual as the basic unit of analysis, but that
understands society as a necessary condition for human flourishing.
- Kirsti Minsaas, The Moral Function of Art
What is the moral function of art? Ms. Minsaas compares Ayn Rand's
view with other theories, from Aristotle to the present, emphasizing the moral complexity
of characters in Rand's novels.
- Neera Badhwar, Self-interest and Altruism
Prof. Badhwar explores the concepts of self-interest and altruism and
their relationship in modern ethics, including Objectivism.
- David Kelley, Benevolence and Civility as Objectivist
Virtues
Dr. Kelley analyzes benevolence, civility,
kindness, and generosity as moral traits: Can they be anything more than minor virtues in
an ethic of self-interest?
- Phillip Smith, The Theatrical Director: Invisibility is the
Key
Prof. Smith discusses the director's role in a
theatrical production, including the interpretation of the script, the actors' movements,
and other topics.
- Joan Mitchell Blumenthal, The Ways and Means of Painting
Ms. Blumenthal discusses how the painter--through choices in
composition, line, color, texture, and light--transforms the subject into a visual image
that we do or do not like.
- Allan Blumenthal, The Piano Concert
Dr. Blumenthal offers an informal discussion and solo recital. The
program is typical of the 19th and early 20th centuries, and includes works by Handel,
Bach, Mozart, Brahms, Schumann, Rachmaninoff, and Chopin.
- William Clark, A Theory of Musical Structure
Mr. Clark discusses a classical but neglected theory of musical
structure, that may provide a missing piece in the aesthetics of music.
- Kirsti Minsaas, The Visual Power of Ayn Rand's Fiction
Ms. Minsaas discusses the visual appeal of Ayn Rand's fiction, showing
how her novels invite the reader to contemplate the events as if they are taking place
before his eyes. The lecture focuses on Rand's visuality in descriptions of setting,
character appearance, and action, offering in-depth analyses of selected passages from her
novels.
- John Gillis, Prairie School Architecture: a mini-tour
On this bus tour of architectural sites in the Madison area, Mr.
Gillis discusses the artistic and philosophical significance of works by Frank Lloyd
Wright and Louis Sullivan. Although the tour has not been finalized, it is expected to
include the Johnson Wax Building, Wingspread, and the Madison Unitarian Church.
Each of these lectures provides a systematic overview of a
major topic in Objectivism, presenting key concepts, principles, distinctions, and
arguments, and contrasting the Objectivist position with other major viewpoints. The
lectures presume some knowledge of Objectivism; they are comparable in level to an
intermediate undergraduate course. They will be valuable both for new students and for
those who wish to refresh their knowledge.
- Stephen Hicks, Egoism and Altruism
Prof. Hicks defines egoism and altruism, explores the different
assumptions they make about human nature and economics, and develops a rational conception
of self-interest.
- W. Richmond Minto, The Concept of God
Mr. Minto shows why a proper understanding of existence and causality
rules out any conception of God, miracles, or a supernatural realm.
- Carolyn Ray, Friendship and Love
Ms. Ray discusses personal relationships as selfish values, showing
why humans need both to love and to be loved, and what obligations flow from these facts.
- Susan Dawn Wake, Honesty and Integrity
Prof. Wake reviews the nature of honesty and integrity and the reasons
why they are virtues, contrasting the Objectivist view with that of the Christian
tradition.
- Stephen Hicks, Equality and Egalitarianism
Prof. Hicks shows how altruism leads to socialist or egalitarian
demands for equality. Distinguishing the different meanings of "equality"--in
ability, opportunity, rights, and outcomes--he defines the type of equality appropriate to
rational, free individuals.
in alphabetical order
Neera Badhwar, Ph.D., is a professor of philosophy at
the University of Oklahoma. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Toronto. She has
published articles on friendship, virtue, and other topics and has edited Friendship: A
Philosophical Reader (Cornell, 1993).
Randy Barnett, J.D., began teaching in 1982, after
serving as criminal prosecutor in Chicago, and is currently a professor of law at the
Boston University School of Law. He is the editor of Assessing the Criminal
(Ballenger, 1977), and of The Rights Retained by the People: The History and Meaning of
the 9th Amendment, (GMU Press: Vol. 1, 1989; Vol. 2, 1993).
Allan Blumenthal, M.D., is a graduate of the
University of Toronto School of Medicine, a diplomate in Public Health, and a graduate of
the Royal Conservatory of Music, Toronto, Canada. For a time, he combined both careers,
practicing medicine, teaching piano, and appearing in recitals and as a soloist with
orchestras throughout Canada. He lectures on both music and psychology. For the past
thirty-five years, he has been practicing psychiatry in New York City.
Joan Mitchell Blumenthal is an accomplished artist who
has exhibited her work for the past thirty years. She has also taught painting and
published numerous articles on art.
William Clark is a graduate of the San Francisco
Conservatory of Music. He has taught piano, theory, and composition privately for over ten
years. Currently he is pursuing a Ph.D. in philosophy at the University of California at
Davis.
Susanna Fessler, Ph.D., is professor of East Asian
studies at the State University of New York at Albany. A specialist in modern Japanese
literature, she received her doctorate from Yale University in 1994.
John Gillis is an architect registered nationally,
whose practice is located in New York City. He attended Frank Lloyd Wright's School of
Architecture, Taliesin, in Wisconsin and Arizona. In addition to his architectural design
work, he writes on architecture and the arts.
Stephen Hicks, Ph.D., is chairman of the philosophy
department at Rockford College, and has also taught at Georgetown University and Trenton
State College. He earned his Ph.D. at Indiana University. A specialist in ethics, he is
currently working on a book on business ethics.
Lester H. Hunt, Ph.D., is Professor of Philosophy at
the University of Wisconsin - Madison. He is the author of Nietzsche and the Origin of
Virtue (Routledge, 1991) and numerous articles on ethics and politics.
David Kelley, Ph.D., is Executive Director of the
Institute for Objectivist Studies. He has taught philosophy at Vassar College and Brandeis
University. He is the author of The Evidence of the Senses (LSU Press, 1986) and The
Art of Reasoning (Norton, 1988), a widely used college textbook in logic. He has
written numerous articles on social issues for Barrons, Harpers, REASON
and other publications and is frequently asked to address business, professional and
academic groups throughout the United States and abroad.
James Lennox, Ph.D., is Professor and Chairman of
History and Philosophy of Science, University of Pittsburgh, specializing in ancient
philosophy and science as well as recent history and philosophy of biology. He is
co-editor of Philosophical Issues in Aristotle's Biology (Cambridge, 1987) and Self-Motion
from Aristotle to Newton (Princeton, 1994) and has published numerous papers on
Aristotle, Darwin, teleology, and environmentalism, among other topics.
Fred D. Miller, Jr., Ph.D., is Professor of Philosophy
and Executive Director of the Social Philosophy and Policy Center at Bowling Green State
University. He teaches ancient Greek philosophy and modern political philosophy and has
published extensively on these subjects. He is associate editor of the journal Social
Philosophy & Policy, and co-editor of A Companion to Aristotle's Politics.
His book Nature, Justice, and Rights in Aristotle's Politics is scheduled for
publication in May 1995 by Oxford University Press.
Kirsti Minsaas is a doctoral candidate in English
literature at the University of Oslo, Norway. She is a specialist in ethics and literature
and is currently preparing her doctoral thesis on the topic of Aristotelian ethics and
Shakespeare's tragedies.
W. Richmond Minto is a doctoral candidate in
philosophy at the University of Western Ontario. He is working on a thesis on the
metaphysical foundations of science, and has taught logic and introduction to philosophy.
Carolyn Ray is a doctoral candidate in philosophy at
Indiana University. Her dissertation topic is "Identity from a Conceptualist Point of
View." She has taught courses in ethics and logic.
Phillip Smith has over thirty years of theatrical
experience as an actor, director, and producer in the educational, equity stock, and
off-Broadway arenas. He has also been a Broadway investor and theater manager. Currently
he is a professor of speech/theater at Brookdale College in New Jersey and a speech-skills
consultant for AT&T.
Susan Dawn Wake, M.A., is a professor at Saint Mary's
University, where she teaches courses in logic, rhetoric, and the history of ancient,
medieval and early modern philosophy. Her research focuses on the influence of
Aristotelian-Scholasticism during the 17th century, a topic on which she has frequently
lectured at academic conferences.
George Walsh, Ph.D., is Professor of Philosophy,
emeritus, at Salisbury State University. He has lectured frequently at Objectivist
conferences, helped found the Ayn Rand Society of the American Philosophical Association,
and has published works on Herbert Marcuse, Alfred Schutz, and John Rawls. He is preparing
his lectures on the history of religion for publication by the Institute for Objectivist
Studies.
Anne Wortham, Ph.D., is a professor of sociology at
Illinois State University, having taught previously at Harvard University and Washington
& Lee. She is the author of The Other Side of Racism (OSU Press, 1981), as well
as numerous essays on individual rights, civil rights policy, and the politics of
victimization.
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