Boredom and Alienation have become common symptoms of capitalism and can be found in workplaces all across contemporary society. In this project I set out to identify jobs in which these tendencies are most prevalent and to look at how and why this situation has arisen and what can be done to alter this damaging situation that we now find ourselves in. Case Study: Call centre workers workers are more satisfied at work when they: ‐ have a variety of tasks to complete ‐ are not just taking calls all day ‐ have more control over their methods used during conversations ‐ are provided with training to develop their skills. However, due to capitalist demand for the best possible profits from the least possible expense of resources mean that such conditions are not considered to be important and therefore call centre workers are often bored and frustrated with their jobs. Alienation: The philosophical concept of alienation denotes the state in which a person feels foreign to the world around them. This can occur, according to Marx, when labour no longer belongs to a worker but becomes a commodity to be bought and sold by the ruling classes who dominate the working class. Is Postmodernity to blame? Habermas believes that the fragmentation which has occurred in postmodernity is to blame for the crisis in communication. He claims that the ‘unfinished project of modernity’ needs to be completed by uniting all the different language games, created by the capitalistic colonization of knowledge as a commodity, by striving to reach consensus through negotiation and thus progressing towards Modernity’s goal of universal emancipation. This could be achieved, Habermas argues, through his theory of communicative action, which envisages a set of ideal conditions for genuine communication which could be used as a reference to ensure that negotiations were just. In essence, the breakdown in genuine communication and the instrumentalization of reason have led to people being dominated in a way which renders them un‐free. Therefore, if people could communicate in a way that was mediated by what is just and what is fair then people could break out of the shackles that their employers put them in and act in a way which is responsible and free at work.
Category: Abstracts
SHOULD WE AS ADULTS STILL FIND MERIT IN THE MORAL LESSONS FOUND IN FAIRY TALES? KANT: The rise of Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales also coincided with the rise of Kantian thought, which taught us of the autonomous self. Anderson had switched the audience of fairy tales from both adults and children to just children. At the same time, Immanuel Kant was writing to argue for the autonomy of rational agents. The co-incision of the two shows a relationship that I shall investigate as it seems to be more than a coincidence that the two coincide. HAPPILY EVER AFTER? We have seen that the ethical value of fairy tales can either be embraced or dismissed depending upon which theory of morality you decide to follow, however is there anything else fairy tales can teach us? One of the most valuable things that fairy tales in their original form gave their audience was hope. MACINTYRE: One person in particular who would not agree with Kant’s opinion is Alisdair MacIntyre. MacIntyre’s theory of ethics and morality focuses on what is virtuous. ‘Virtue ethics’ is a type of moral philosophy that centres around a person’s character rather than rules or consequences. MacIntyre felt that the language and concepts of modern ethical theory are inappropriate as modern ethics are fragmented from so many different traditions or theories. A fairy tale is a piece of fiction that usually features characters found in folklore such as witches, trolls, fairies, and ogres. The phrase is also used as an adjective to describe something blessed with unusual happiness, for example, a fairy tale ending or fairy tale romance. But because not all fairy tales, especially in their original translation, necessarily end happily, it has also come to be used to refer to any far-fetched story, which may or may not include actual fairies. It is also worth noting that originally, fairy tales were told for the entertainment of adults as well as children.
Objectives: The main objectives for this project are to address the nature of children’s rights and whether anyone has rights over children. This shall be done by looking at different types of family structures, particularly those involving adoption and in-vitro fertilisation. The initial territory for this project is the Novel My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult (picture to the left). In which the main character Anna was genetically created in order to keep her sister, whom has leukaemia, alive. It follows the ongoing struggle Anna has with her parents and her conscience as she files for medical emancipation from her sister, which will allow her to be free of ever having to donate to her sister again. Concepts: I shall be looking at the ethical implications of adoption and IVF for children, the notion of children as property which extends to the exchange of children as commodities and finally whether children can or do actually belong to anyone. Sources: • Jones, P. (1994) Rights THE MACMILLAN PRESS LTD. • Locke, J. (1976) The Second Treatise of Government. Fletcher & Son Ltd. • Knox (1952) Hegel’s Philosophy Of Right. Oxford University Press. • Winston, R. (2006) A Child Against All Odds. Transworld Publishers.
Aims. The main aim of this project is to look at the topic of capital punishment and determine if it is a viable form of punishment or if it is simply inhumane. I will look at and consider the methods used and look at religion and determine if a society is responsible for allowing or not allowing capital punishment as a method of punishment. I will also look at how society has changed over the years and determine how this has influenced the perception of capital punishment. Concepts. Primarily I will look at the topic of capital punishment and I will consider the work of Durkheim and his views on society. I will also use Nietzsche as my secondary philosopher and I will consider his works on ethics. Although ethics will not be the main focus of this project I feel that I am unable to discuss capital punishment without using ethics in some part. I may also use some Enlightenment work to justify or oppose the use of capital punishment. Sources. I intend to use a wide variety of sources for this project including both primary and secondary texts. I will use both Durkheim’s, ‘The Division of Labour in Society’ and Nietzsche’s ‘On the Genealogy of Morals’ and ‘Beyond Good and Evil’. I will also use some journals and also look at works by Rousseau, Rawls, Lyotard along with Roger Hood’s book, ‘The Death Penalty: A Worldwide Perspective’. The internet will also provide invaluable when researching capital punishment.
The philosophical basis of this project will be focused predominantly on the works of Bataille and Sade including Sade’s 120 Days of Sodom and Bataille’s Eroticism. This project aims to investigate eroticism and taboo in terms of the sexually grotesque in order to explore the place of erotic transgression in past and present society. I will do this by elaborating on key themes such as death, sexual perversion and cruelty. Chuck Palahniuk’s Guts represents a modern comparison to Sade’s text, using Bataille’s reflections from Eroticism I will conclude by assessing the significance and purpose of taboos within our society today.
My Aims: • To research the advertising sector in relation to its effects upon the public and their perception of themselves. • To study and investigate certain philosophical concepts, both obvious and obscure, which can be connected with such research. • To contact individual advertising companies, both profit and not-for-profit, in order to ascertain any differences in their agendas. • To briefly survey the public as to their thoughts on the subject, a questionnaire was circulated among different groups of society. • Through study of philosophical concepts I hope to be able to develop my argument. • To briefly investigate whether we do indeed live in a culture of consumerism and its connections with advertising. • I hope to be able to conclude that advertising and the new consumerism leaves the individual in a state of confusion and identity uncertainty, with a particular focus on youth. Sources: I shall be focusing on one key thinker; Charles Taylor and his work: “Philosophical Arguments and Papers”. However, I shall also be focusing in a more general sense upon other individual works; • David Wiggins; “Sameness and Substance”. • Richard Sennett; “The Culture of the New Capitalism” and “The Corrosion of Character”. • Anthony Giddens; “Modernity and Self-Identity”. I shall also be using internet resources, research data, and contact with advertising companies and questionnaires to aid my project conclusion.
Aims: The main aim of this project is to explore the changes in the way in which religion has been viewed from the early 1800’s (from Nietzsche to Foucault) to the present day, and the way in which these ideas of Christianity have affected people’s perception of sexuality and the repercussions this has on society. Questions which need addressing: • Does religion affect your concept of understanding sexuality? • Are there boundaries as to what is acceptable when expressing sexuality? • Has the steady decline of Christianity among modern society affected our perceptions on sexual desires and sexuality in general? Key Sources: ‘Thus Spoke Zarathustra’ – F. Nietzsche
Detournement provides a creative outlet that is free from commodification. A subversion of form as a negation of the Bourgeois values they originally represented. The only historically justified response tactic to the propaganda of state is innovation. The situationists disbanded following the riots and occupation of Paris in May 1968.
I have chosen the subject for several reasons. Apart from being able to investigate the journey of the development of democratic ideas in Europe, I had a chance to review the history of my own country and therefore present its difficult and passionate strife for the things that the Western part of Europe has taken for granted for so long. The picture below represents the unity and devotion that were the main accelerators in achieving what are now 3 proud independent democratic countries. It is a picture of the events of 1989 August, when people of all 3 Baltic states (Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia) gathered together and joined hands across the 3 nations ( 650 km, more than 400 miles) in order to demonstrate their opposition to Soviet rule. Somewhere in that live fence stood myself, a five year old, expressing my right to be free. Philosophical Concept: I investigate the ways freedom can be manifested in a society. My main sources are Mill’s “On Liberty” and Rousseau’s “Social Contract” that represent the discussion between collectiveness and individuality that is crucial in defining the principles of any form of government, especially democratic.
Since the beginning of man, the question of what happens to us when we die has been one of the fundamental questions of ‘life’. It seems to be up to the individual as to what one believes the answer to the question is, and these beliefs vary widely. From those who believe in a definite happening after we die, to those who believe nothing happens, from those who believe we can’t possibly know, to those who believe we could find out before we get there. In this project I will look at different beliefs in the afterlife, whether religious, atheistic, or agnostic and try to see how possible it is to know what happens to us when we die, and whether people’s beliefs are based on fact, fantasy or faith. I will discuss a number of different views of the afterlife, outlining the fundamental attributes of each belief, and evidence for holding such beliefs. I will also discuss the ritual surrounding people’s death and how important these are to the loved ones of the deceased and how they vary depending on what one believes happens after death. I will also examine why people hold these views of the afterlife and how strong these views are and how they affect the lives and deaths of the believers.
My objective within this project from the outset has been to use the inspiration I got whilst doing volunteer work in Africa to look at how the West deals with AIDS and to what extent global charities have really made a difference in tackling it. I decided therefore that Kenya will be my territory and that I will need an in-depth understanding of the cultural, political and economic aspects of Kenya to form a basis for my project. I will also consider how Kenya has changed over the past century with a consideration of pre-colonial times and its subsequent struggle for independence. My object within my project will be the issue of AIDS itself. I will focus upon the raw statistics of AIDS and how it affects people in Kenya; I will also use my own experiences to give a wider understanding to the lives people with AIDS lead. I will then consider AIDS within the West and whether events in the media such as ‘Live 8’ and ‘Project (RED)’ have done little more than to globalise the issue, and the resulting consequences of this. • The main concept of my project will focus on cultural differences. • The philosophical side of my project will focus upon cultural relativism juxtaposed with cultural realism. I will use the works of Quine in his discussion on language to try and reconcile Western attitudes to AIDS with that of African attitudes. I will look at the work of Trigg in regards to realism to understand the different perceptions of AIDS from the global media to the Third World. I will also consider the work of Adorno to support the idea of the globalisation of AIDS through his ideas regarding media as a social phenomenon. His ideas on human suffering will also be useful in explaining the reality of AIDS in Kenya. • I will conclude my project with an understanding as to whether the West can really help stop AIDS through globalisation in the media, and whether this is more effective than direct government intervention.
The perspectivism that allowed modernists to enlarge and emancipate ideas within one single and complex reality has been lost to a fragmentation of many realities that both coexist and collide within a single framework. Where, on one hand, modernists can be accused of using individual ideals to achieve communal emancipation, the postmodernist shift has meant that these have become so fragmented and ambiguous as to be lost within their numerous realities. We are experiencing a “crisis of Enlightenment thought” the very notion from which it was born. Either Postmodernism exists as a radical break from Modernism, or it is simply a revolt within itself: to a particular type of high Modernism. Questions whether it has revolutionary potential by virtue of its juxtaposition to all forms of meta-narratives, or if it is simply the commercialisation of Modernism. The central aim in my project is to use architecture as a metaphor for understanding the current shifts in the subject and knowledge. I will use Jameson to underline the Marxist structure of commoditization and fetschization of architecture, countering that with Derrida and Deconstruction. Primarily I want to attempt to understand the shift which has occurred within the subject within its global capitalist surroundings. Thinkers: Habermas, Lyotard, Jameson, Derrida, Deleuze
I am beginning my personal project by studying the Harry Potter books by JK Rowling as my territory. More Specifically my territory is the first book by Rowling; Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. I will consider some of the facts within the novel such as its characters, the plotline and how both of these aspects of the novel fit into my main focus of the Harry Potter books i.e. the concept of good versus evil and indeed whether or not humans are free to choose to follow good or evil. As I mentioned my concept that I have chosen to study is are humans free to follow good or evil. As a philosophical framework for this concept I will compare the Christian theological position of St. Augustine and Pelagius with the work of the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. As far as St. Augustine and Pelagius are concerned I will explore aspects such as the human will, human nature, freedom, free will, original sin, predestination, and the grace of God. With the above issues I will consider where St. Augustine and Pelagius agree on these points and where they differ. From this position I will compare the Christian attitude to Nietzsche’s attitude to whether humans are free to follow good or evil. I will consider aspects of his philosophy such as God is dead, free will as an illusion, there being no such thing as morality and good versus evil, the significance of power defining how successful a person is, the will to power, and Nietzsche’s argument against authority. Having gone through my philosophical framework I will compare Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone to a parallel territory. For this I have chosen Homer’s The Odyssey. I will compare how stories were told in ancient Greece to how stories are told now. I will also compare why the Stories were told in both territories and for what purpose the stories were told. I will ask how has story telling changes and why? What implications that has on the respective societies? Finally I will consider how the change to stories, their content and the way they are told affect us today in the way we live our lives.
Territory: The Collapse of the Soviet Union. Theorists: Kant, Hegel and Fukuyama. Philosophical Concepts: Universal History, End of History and Progress. Within this project I have discussed the idea that the collapse of the Soviet Union has brought an end to history. This was the theory put forward by Francis Fukuyama in his 1989 Article ‘The End of History.’ This idea is rooted in the idea of a universal history, it does not suggest that there is an end of events, it suggests that the development or evolution of society has reached its final phase with the Capitalist Liberal Democracy. Fukuyama relies on Hegel for much of his inspiration, the evolution of society follows Hegelian Dialectics, essentially a thesis being overturned by an antithesis, then a synthesised thesis is produced until another antithesis is created. For Kant history is bounded in morality, progressing from a state of nature towards a universal cosmopolitan state. Kant believes that man’s asocial sociability forces the individual to develop towards civilised society, ultimately allowing freedom under external laws within a republican constitution. I have looked at this idea of Kantian Progress in relation to Gorbachev’s restructuring (Perestroika) of the Soviet Union. Progress can also be seen looking at the development of political systems, towards a system which values the autonomous individual, and believes in representative rule of the people.
Territory: Beer advertisements. Object: Carlsberg advertisements. Aim: The aim of my personal project is to show the changing attitudes and social values of the early 20th century society as opposed to our contemporary society. I have decided to show this using the marketing of beer. I also intend to point out how these represent the introduction of “Lad Culture” which became apparent in British society during the 1990’s along with ‘lads’ magazines such as maxim, FHM and Loaded as well as TV shows such as ‘men behaving badly’. It also shows a distinct change in attitude towards the consumption of alcohol in general; the development of the binge drinking culture that is so prevalent in today’s youthful society. I also believe these adverts show a distinct decline in the strong family values that we saw in the first half of the 20th century. I will thus talk about Hegel’s view of family values and compare them to that of a lesser known modern philosopher, David Cooper’s, works called ‘The death of Family’.
The aim of this project is to explore the belief that music can work as a healing or soothing mechanism for people suffering from cases of mental illness, bereavement, and any other personal problems. Music as a form of therapy • Although a relatively new form of practised therapy, music has been used as a way of helping people for hundreds of years; whether it be in calming physical disabilities, helping people to express repressed emotions, dealing with unconscious fears. • The British Society for Music Therapy was founded in 1958 by Juliette Alvin. It now treats a number of people, from adults to children, suffering from bereavement to illnesses such as cerebral palsy. Even though some illnesses are incurable, music is used as a way of providing joy and creating bonds between patient and client, and also between clients. Historical value • In Ancient Greece, it was commonly believed that music providing a form of communication with the gods. • The belief was still held in the Middle Ages, that music also symbolised a link with Satan, often being associated with the work of witches. Expressionism • Expressionism saw the emergence of pieces of music composed through unconscious emotions, rather than like previous decades of music which conformed to forms, strict melodies, rhythms and timbres. Aspects of Nietzsche’s theory of dualism emerged in many expressionist works. • Key figure was Schoenberg, who wished to see the elimination of the conscious will in expressionism. • Leads to exploring Freud and Hegel’s theories on consciousness and unconscious; overcoming problems which lie in the unconscious by realising and thus being able to treat them. The Enlightenment • The avant-garde movement had key figure Andre Breton, who developed his theory of automatism; this can be related to the way music is now used to help release emotions without the interference of thought processing. Foucault • Studies in madness; Foucault recognised the effects music could have on those suffering from forms of madness.
Territory: Current debate about religion in modern British society regarding the rise in faith schools (a third of all new ‘City Academies’ will be in the control of Evangelical Christians or Christian organisations) and what this means in regards to curriculum, equal opportunities and tolerance towards those of other faiths or none. I wish to examine what form religion should take in a British child’s education. Thinkers: Richard Dawkins in chapter 8 ‘What’s wrong with religion? Why be so hostile?’ and chapter 9 ‘Childhood, abuse and the escape from religion’ from his highly controversial book ‘The God Delusion’. Andrew Wright in ‘Religious Education in the Secondary School’. Also secular, religious and government reports and media. Central Themes: – Are Faith Schools ‘fair’? Is it right to discriminate against a child by refusing them entry to a local school on what is essentially the basis of their parents religion? – Do Faith Schools provide an ethos of tolerance and understanding or do they exaggerate current cultural and religious divides? – Should religious theories be taught in schools alongside science, e.g. Intelligent Design and Evolution? – Should religion be ‘public’ or ‘private’? – Does it matter? A study showed that only 12% of school leavers from a Catholic school saw themselves as being Catholic and many rejected most of the doctrinal teachings. – Where is the state/religion divide in our society?
CONCEPT: We live in uncertain and chaotic times. As globalisation propels us forward, it is undoubtedly provoking a unique identity crisis, at the level of both the individual and the society. The vast displacements of persons during the twentieth century has demographically revolutionised the Western nation-state; multiculturalism and diversity have already been engrained into the social fabric. Concurrently, technology is creating the framework for a new culture, firmly rooted in aesthetic ideals, quickly dismantling traditional borders while subtly performing an institutionalisation of the individual. Marcuse’s “One-Dimensional Man” has come about. METHOD: The project aims to investigate such factors as the erosion of the nation-state, the “deterritorialization of culture” and the technologies of alienation in order to demonstrate how an extreme individualism, bred in Nietzsche’s shadow, is engulfing our society into new degrees of superficiality. MAIN TEXTS: Various works of Friedrich Nietzsche, Culture and Imperialism, by Edward Said, Civilisation and its Discontents, by Sigmund Freud, Culture, Globalisation and the World-System, edited by Anthony King, and One-Dimensional Man, by Herbert Marcuse.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is an inspiring novel by Kevin Kesey which brought to attention the shocking treatment of the mentally ill in the old gothic asylums of the early Twentieth Century. My aim for this project is to… • Learn how the mentally ill have been treated through history. • See how things have changed and see whether this change has been positive or negative. • Use literature like One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest and Human Traces (by Sebastian Faulks) to analyse the changes. • Pinpoint which treatments work and do not work in modern day times. • Try and see different ways we can move forward in helping the mentally ill to be more accepted in society.
Territory: I have chosen to investigate the ways in which capitalism and modern consumerism have changed and shaped our concept of moral values. I will focus on the way in which consumerism manipulates and controls our society and whether the values of modern Britain are gradually being eroded. Questions that need addressing: I wish to discover why there has been a shift in the material condition of humanity in the west and how the post-modern power structures have changed us. This shift to a capitalist world with the significance of materialistic values is a model that I wish to dissect with the purpose of unveiling the mechanism of change that brought it about. The outcome of this will be the ability to grasp the shift from the old centralised ideology of value systems to the material values which are fashionable and sought after today. Additionally, I hope to discover whether the decline in religious belief in Britain is associated with the erosion of moral values. Key thinkers and sources: The main sources of my research will lie within the philosophical thought of Max Weber and Friedrich Schiller. I will also be drawing upon the ideas of Karl Marx and the modern sociologist Mike Featherstone.