Philosophical Economics: Discussion Group

The Newcastle Philosophy Society is pleased to announce the creation of a new discussion Group: Philosophical Economics. And our first event:

Topic: Do we know what Money is? (or Towards an Ontology of Money)

Venue: Room 1 – Good Space – Commercial Union House (Floor two).

Date: Monday 17th September.

Time: 18:30-20:30.

Cost: Free; but a small donation of £2 is requested from those who can afford it to recoup the charity’s (NPS) costs.

In the post-2008 world we need a philosophical discussion of economics. We are barred by those in academic institutions, or think tanks, from knowing the intricacies of our own world – and this needs to change. We aim to give any interested individual the opportunity to present and discuss difficult topics in a group of like-minded people, with a view to look at the social impacts of belief structures that guide our age. Therefore, this is an attempt to work on the social, psychological, ontological and epistemological theories present in economics – to derive a philosophy of our world as it presently is. We aim to give those who attend the opportunity to learn and debate the systems that guide our modern world, as well as the theories that drove economics to successive heights. These groups are designed to be open to all and will commence with a talk designed to promote discussion and engagement with the theory. It should be stressed that this group will be discussing the theory of economics, not its practice, and thus should operate more like a philosophy/arts/humanities discussion than a debate on scientific principles.

This group will also be tailored by those who regularly attend, thus the topic for a meeting will be set at the one directly prior. If there is something you would specifically like to see, please come along. We are also open to a wide range of people giving talks, thus if there is something you are knowledgeable about, or want the impetus to research for a discussion, come to a group and request it.

Potential Topics:

* What is the Homo Economicus/Rational Economic Man debate?

* Should Economics become a more Sociological Discipline?

* Is there a space for Ethics in Economics?

* Are there inherent ideologies in Economics?

* What does a crypto-currency mean for the modern world?

* Also talks are planned for specific economic thinkers: e.g. Friedman, Marx, Hayek, Smith, Sen, etc..

* We are also open to discuss how cannon philosophers interact with economics (e.g. Deleuze, Foucault, Kant, Hegel, Plato, etc.) or the impacts of certain texts on philosophy (Wealth of Nations, Capitalism and Freedom, Road to Serfdom, Das Kapital, etc.).

Future Events:

It will mostly run on the third Monday of every month – there might be variation though, so if one wants to attend in the future it would be advisable to reach out to the facilitator to join the email list.

Facilitator of group and contact details: Hannes Ingo Torbohm – H.Torbohm@Newcastle.ac.uk