This project explores the object of the muse through the territory of feminist philosophy and the context of the Surrealist movement and its founder André Breton. I explore how the movement worked systematically to exclude women from the role of artist, allowing them only to be part of the movement only as muses, which are characterised by Breton as child-like and hysterical. I use the works of Catherine Malabou and Luce Irigaray to explore how this erasure can be looked at from a feminist philosophical point of view and later use the work of Simone de Beauvoir to suggest how women could possibly escape this erasure through transcendence. Leonora Carrington is used as emblematic of this escape in her autobiographical Surrealist novel The House of Fear: Notes from Down Below (1989) and I suggest that the only possible way for the female Surrealists to be seen as artists and not muses by the movement is by partaking in this journey Down Below and becoming new in this journey. Despite any progression in feminism since the Surrealist movement I argue that the place of women as muse remains largely unchanged and the systematic erasure and discrediting of women from art only continues as it had in the Surrealist movement.
Category: Stage 2
In general, over the past decade, there has been an increase in documentaries about serial murderers to the point where websites are suggesting the top ten to watch. This intrigued me to the point where I wanted to investigate further; I wanted to look at the point time when their morality and ethical viewpoint changed from what would be considered to be an average person to their infamous persona of the killer and assess this investigation through a philosophical point of view. The typical serial murderer is seen to be an intelligent white man from a middle-class background. Still, I wanted to know if I could prove otherwise by looking at people from poorer backgrounds, those of different ethnicities and differing genders. This was achieved by utilising the arguments of Aristotle. How people become virtuous, Luther and Erasmus on the debate of free will to determine whether these people acted of their own volition, and finally, Freud and his concepts of Trauma, Repression and Dream to see whether these influence the people in question too, or if they are born evil. Ultimately, I conclude that all of the areas discussed combined may cause the serial murderer, but trauma and the lack of virtuous people in their lives contribute more than the others. Equally, this has opened more questions regarding these people’s level of responsibility.
Anti-natalism and value creation: should humans continue to procreate?
It is not worth being brought into existence if one can potentially experience
any form of suffering. The philosopher David Benatar argues that whilst life can
consist of pleasures it also always consists of some form of suffering (making
living harmful for people and the world). “while existence brings pains as well
as pleasures, non-existence is a lack of pains and pleasures. While pain is bad,
absence of pain and pleasure is not bad, so it is always worse to be than not to
be” (Brake and Millum, 2021). It means that even if life consists of 99%
pleasure and 1% suffering then it still would have been better to have never
been.
As controversial and counterintuitive it may seem to desire to stop humanity
from bringing more people into the world, it also does not violate the moral
law to live. Kant conveys strong beliefs surrounding the idea of suicide but
never conveys it in a way that would take future generations into
consideration. Implying that as long as the individual had not yet come into
existence then one does not go against basic moral rights. It is not our duty to
consider the life of potential future generations, but it is our duty to live our
lives once we have been born (Philosophynow.org, 2019).
The arguments put forward by anti-natalists challenges common beliefs in
relation to procreation and examines the roots of where various normative
views stem from and whether they are adequate justifications for procreation.
Benatar, D. (2013). Better never to have been : the harm of coming into existence. Oxford, England:
Clarendon Press
Philosophynow.org. (2019). Philosophy Now. [online] Available at:
https://philosophynow.org/issues/61/Kant_On_Suicide.
My project dissertation focuses of a life-denying reading of Christianity. I argue, using a historical background provided by John Robertson, that early Christianity grew from the exploitation of the weak and continues to feed off inequality to this day.
Readings of Nietzsche’s primary literature details the values cultivated by Christian morality, those of ressentiment and the ascetic ideal, arguing that they stunt human being’s natural drive for the fullest possible life and negates our instincts for pleasure, growth, and development. Secondary reading provided by Deleuze helps rework Nietzsche’s argument, providing an understanding Nietzsche’s famous theory will to power, which I then consider in relation to the life-denying power of Christianity. Brain Leiter also tackles Nietzsche’s ideas of a higher man, allowing for a more critical reading which I explore and build on.
The life-denying values which prompted Christianity’s growth into a worldwide religion are perhaps best criticised in Nietzsche’s works, and I will argue that as Christianity has expanded, these values that have permeated the political and social space, must be understood and challenged.
We’ve had Athenian civilisation, we’ve had the Renaissance, and now our civilisation centres round the arse.
-Jean-Luc Godard, Pierrot le Fou
Since World War II, capitalist society has experienced a proliferation of consumer goods and items so vast that, according to Jean Baudrillard, they have come to take on the nature of flora and fauna. Our streets are lined with shops and restaurants, while our houses are filled with various nonessential items. For some, almost every moment in waking existence is related to consumption. For others, consumption is a type of leisure, a break from a life spent in an office doing paperwork. But how did we end up in this endless cycle of consumption? Why is consumption a lifestyle for so many people? How could such a large societal change be enacted in such a short space of time?
Judging by how quickly capitalist society has accepted and embraced consumerism, it would seem as though humans have an endless capacity to consume, and that consumer capitalism frees us to pursue this natural end. However, I will argue in this essay that consumerism is an oppressive identity and force that makes us desire its oppression. I will do so by opening the discussion of a consumer identity through Jean-Luc Godard’s 1965 film Pierrot le Fou. Following this opening, I will use Pier Paolo Pasolini’s critique of consumerism to show how consumerism acts as a force of social homogenisation, and also apply this critique to Pierrot le Fou. Then I will use the concept of the Young-Girl from Tiqqun’s book Preliminary Materials for a Theory of the Young-Girl to show how the consumerism as a form of social control has developed from the 1960s, and how it has created an identity that engenders more consumption, and therefore a degree of self-oppression. Finally, I will use Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari’s book Anti-Oedipus to show how the social and the political directly produce subjects and how desire comes to desire consumption, even if this leads to its own oppression.
The use of pain, violence and suffering is a huge pattern in the performance artwork of Marina Abramović. She pushes herself to physical and mental extremes, creating shocking self-sacrificial performances. Despite this, she is one of the most renowned artists in the world, and audiences of thousands gather to see her perform. This project will investigate the reasons for this great appeal of violence and aim to demonstrate that there is a more profound experience occurring during the observation of Abramović’s suffering. The particular philosophers I am using to investigate this are Georges Bataille, with major works Theory of Religion and Erotism: Death and Sensuality. Also Julia Kristeva, with her work Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection.
Aesthetic production is an innovative and important part of humanity that holds value. Using psychedelic drugs can increase human potential and possibilities in aesthetic production but outdated moral views on drug use are holding us back. Psychedelic drug use should not be dismissed as a means to facilitate creativity. The hermeneutic-interpretative approach is appropriate to develop this claim due to analysing Friedrich Nietzsche and George Bataille’s primary texts and secondary interpretations of them to formulate an argument. I shall critique the norms and axiology of contemporary culture to assess the moral views on drugs because it is an endeavour into what is worthwhile. This methodological approach is favourable over a historical contrastive method because this project is interested in the concepts of transgression and enhancing creativity not in changing attitudes towards drugs over time. For clarification psychedelic drugs can be defined as a group of substances that can change or enhance thought processes, sensory perceptions and energy levels. They are known informally as hallucinogenic drugs and are used recreationally to heighten one’s state of awareness and induce mind-altering experiences. The most common psychedelic drugs used are Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD/ Acid), Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), Mescaline and Psilocybin (magic mushrooms), these will be referred to in abbreviated form. All of which are naturally occurring substances found in specific plant species, fungi or mould.
It is crucial to certify that aesthetics is a fundamentally important element of existence that is worth enhancing. Aesthetics attends to the nature of beauty, artistic experimentation and an extensive list of art forms that embody free creative human expression. Different modes of being and doing manifest themselves in aesthetic creation along with diverse ways of thinking that encompass emotion. Art is a precious component of human existence, and the process of aesthetic experience should have room to transcend and realize itself beyond the sphere of human understanding, if we can enhance it further, we ought to.
My project explored how responsibility should be attributed to individuals in the face of large-scale atrocities.
In my project, I researched Hannah Arendt a German-born holocaust survivor and political philosopher who explored her idea of the ‘banality of evil’ and applied it to the case of Adolf Eichman a Nazi leader whose role was the transportation of political prisoners to the concentration camps.
The banality of evil is described by Arendt as this unique inability in her writings ‘Thinking and moral considerations’ where Arendt used this term to portray how normal people were able to commit evil acts challenging the traditional notion that inherently evil people commit evil crimes. Arendt holds great importance on intention due to this inability to think but still believes responsibility should be attributed to those who commit the act regardless of the intention behind the action. Other secondary sources on the banality of evil were used to fully put forward the argument this project provides, although an intention for action in the face of large-scale atrocities does hold importance responsibility should nevertheless be attributed to the individual who committed the act.
In the project, the Windrush scandal was used to portray how this banality of evil is present in all societies.
the project uses Kant’s categorical imperatives to provide other alternative ways of attributing responsibility to an individual in the face of large-scale atrocities.
The project uses Hans Jonas ‘The Imperative of Responsibility to assess the large-scale atrocity which is the deterioration of the natural world to prove how we must create new ethical imperatives to combat this unprecedented acceleration of industry and technology and how we all have a responsibility to do this.
Ultimately these sources are used in the project to argue that intention in an action holds great importance but it does not take away the responsibility which should be attributed to the individual who commits the act in a large-scale atrocity
Climate change has, and will continue to have, a huge effect on all of our lives. It is an inescapable fact that we will all have to live with the effects of ever changing global climates and so the way in which we decide to react to this is extremely important. Simone De Beauvoir’s existentialist thought in her book, the Ethics of Ambiguity, outlines the importance of willing the freedom of others in order to be truly free ourselves. Therefore, her book provided the perfect stepping stone for exploring the role individual and collective freedom plays in helping to mitigate and adapt to climate change.
My project is based on the question ‘Are women a priority in medical care? A theoretical analysis of endometriosis and the menopause.’ This question therefore looks at women’s general treatment as well as the specified problems their sex goes through and how the medical system impacts their life as it perpetuates the patriarchal norms in society. The dominant philosophy integrated through this work is the philosophy of Simone de Beauvoir and her concept of the woman as the other as she highlights women as a second to men and thereby put as a lesser priority which is a common theme when discussing how the medical system treats women. The first section discusses Beauvoir and the relation to women’s medical care as well as thinkers such as bell hooks, Judith Butler who analyse the problem of intersectionality for women who have other struggles than just being a woman such as women of colour and transgender women who both face problems white cisgendered women face. In the second section ‘women as the body’ I discuss how women’s body is significant due to their reproductive ability. Here discusses how those who suffer with endometriosis are only cared for in the case of fertility rather than for pain. In the section of the ‘aging woman’ Beauvoir’s concept of the third sex is discussed as it explains women’s break away from her reproductive system and into a sex that is no longer considered ‘woman’.
This Essay is an examination of the ideological duality of Animal Crossing. This is a popular video game created by Nintendo, which has had several instalments over the last 20 years. The game involves the player moving to a new town, full of anthropomorphic animal characters. There are many clearly capitalist aspects at play within the game, with the necessity to get into debt, and or the pressure to consume is quite apparent if one wants to progress. However, it is clear that the game does not conform to the usual principles seen within capitalism and exhibits distinct ideological ambiguity through the processes involved within this game, like not charging interest on debt, but also through the intentions of the programmers regarding how one plays this, through measures to slow completion and general gameplay.
With particular reference to Francis Bacon’s use of red in his Three Studies for a Crucifixion, do the existentialists give a more satisfying account of the effects of colour than earlier thinkers?
My paper will explore the ongoing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the global population, with a focus on its effects on the UK. During the pandemic, there were multiple lockdowns, inflicted by the government, that changed the way we lived drastically. Research shows the rise in levels of stress, anxiety and, depression with an overall decrease in the population’s mental health. My research aims to explore the social and psychological impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on the population. The philosophical concepts that will be used, will provide a baseline and foundation into why the expected freedom and typical normalities of day-to-day life, that were taken away from us during the pandemic, were so important in our human understanding and human agency. Incorporating evidence from personal correspondence, statistics, alongside Philosophical concepts, this research will demonstrate that there has been a drastic social change in society. I will be arguing two theses in this essay that I believe to be extremely important to consider and explore. Firstly, the regulations during the pandemic have distorted social relations and affected our human understanding about ourselves and the society we live in. Additionally, we have not yet returned to the same place we were in as a society before the pandemic hit. These claims are particularly clear throughout the research involved within this essay.
The purpose of my project is to engage with the question ‘is there an ethical relation in art?’ as posed by Emmanuel Levinas in Reality and its Shadow. My aim is twofold, first to demonstrate my belief, using Levinas’ ethico-phenomenological framework, that in the performance of improvised music, at least between bandmates, we find an ethical relation consistent with the one that Levinas outlines in his work. Thus, finding Reality and its Shadow to be inconsistent with Levinas’ system.
My second aim is to expand on this inconsistency to critique Levinas’ system more broadly, outside of his framework and using Maurice Blanchot’s notion of community to do so – the aim of this is to further the case for the ethics, or at least ethical potential, of art as well as a more positive role of art within a community. To do this requires making apparent, what I see as, the shortcomings of and stifling nature of Levinas’ ethical theory.
This project will explore the object of the runner’s high within the territory of Phenomenology, in particular, the work of Maurice Merleau-Ponty in The Phenomenology of perception and the work of Martin Heidegger in Being and Time. The runner’s high is generally understood as acute and positive mood changes that occur with running and jogging over long distances, that can be explained by the scientific endorphin hypothesis. However, this project aims to show that this is limited as it does not provide an account of our actual human experience of the runner’s high. It draws on literature and blogs that describe the author’s personal experience of the runners high in order to analyse this phenomenon as it actually appears to us. The application of phenomenology is significant in proving an account of this as it includes the way things are experienced by humans and treats this phenomenon as real and significant. To an extent, this project argues that Phenomenology can provide a valid account of the runner’s high as the application of Heidegger’s work partially provides an explanation of key factors in our experiences of the runner’s high. However, the application of Merleau-Ponty’s work provides a more sufficient account.
This project examines where one should draw the line between obeying and disobeying the law, specifically focusing on the Colston statue controversy in Bristol, UK. It investigates the role of civil disobedience in the removal of the statue. The legitimacy of the actions taken by the Colston Four are considered, who were charged with criminal damage and brought to trial for their role in the statue’s removal. The perspectives of political philosophers John Locke and John Rawls on civil disobedience are utilised, with a view towards how their theories might relate to the Colston statue case.
It also considers the legal framework governing civil disobedience in the UK, examining the Colston Four’s legal defence and the judge’s ruling that they could not rely on a human rights defence. It questions whether the current legal system adequately protects individuals’ rights to civil disobedience and whether greater protections should exist. Ultimately, I argue that the Colston Four’s actions were justified as a form of civil disobedience aimed at rectifying a historical wrong and that the law should allow for greater latitude in cases of civil disobedience where the individual’s actions are aimed at challenging injustice and promoting equality.
The emotional release that is often felt by spectators when observing cinema is an interesting focus in the context for Freud’s catharsis, as early cinema was still developing as an art form when he wrote his various works. He extensively discussed the psychic mechanisms at play during dreams, fantasy and even when telling jokes yet applying his theories of repression and the unconscious to cinema specifically has produced insight into the unique experience of being a spectator to cinema.
This dissertation explores the role of catharsis in cinema, focusing on the 2016 television series ‘Fleabag’ and analysing the psychic mechanisms at play during such catharsis. My object therefore is Cinema and Fleabag and the territory is catharsis.
Cinema is referenced through a variety of secondary sources and Fleabag is referenced through Phoebe Waller- Bridge’s original scripts- The Scriptures (2020).
Aristotelian Catharsis is reference through his Poetics (1995) which influenced Freudian catharsis as demonstrated in Breuer and Freud’s Studies in Hysteria (2004) which describe a therapeutic technique which harnesses the process of catharsis to treat neurotic patients. Finally, I discuss the feminine experience of catharsis with reference to the popular culture term dissociative feminism, relating it to Simone de Beauvoir’s The Second Sex (2011).
By the above primary thinkers, my project demonstrates that the process of cinematic catharsis is purgative because it facilitates a processing of unconscious conflict, even if we are unaware of it.
Hannah Arendt’s philosophy on ‘the banality of evil applied to racism.
This paper examines whether the exponential growth in the usage of social media is influencing the construction of our identity, with a specific focus on Facebook. The object of my project was to investigate whether there was a correlation between the exponential growth of social media and identity. The interest for this was stemmed through reading a variety of articles claiming the negative impacts social media obtains, because social media platforms exposes us to a variety of different cultures, opinions and perspectives, this ultimately must have some influence over identity composition. This project examines David Hume, ‘Treatise of Human Nature, specifically, book 1, part IV ‘Of Personal Identity’. Soren Kierkegaard’s ‘The Two ages: A literary review and lastly, Zygmunt Bauman’s book ‘Identity’. Engaging with these different texts concerning identity, provides a variety of different theories of how one forms identity. Analysing these philosophers works, highlighted that there are three main themes which contribute and can impact identity. The three main themes explored within this paper are: choice and experience, communities and collective identity and lastly, liquid modernity and capitalism. Investigating these main themes, enabled the conclusion to be reached that social media does influence the construction of identity.
A current and stimulating insight into the question of whether criminals should be allowed to have children. With staggering statistics such as ‘online grooming crimes have risen by more than 80% in four years’ (NSPCC, 2022 raising important philosophical questions about whether it would better for society if criminals were prohibited from having children. Understanding the many moral dimensions to such a complex question is key in the debate of whether criminals should be allowed to have children.