October 10, 2007
SIUC to host philosophy conference Oct. 12-13
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Philosopher and social theorist Hans Joas visits Southern Illinois University Carbondale with a keynote address beginning at 7 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 12, in the Student Center Ohio Room.
He will discuss "Trauma and Human Dignity: The Experience of Violence and the Genesis of Values." Joas, the director of the Max Weber Center for Advanced Cultural Studies at the Universität Erfurt in Germany, is also a faculty member of the Committee on Social Thought at the University of Chicago. His address is free and open to the general public. The Student Activity Fee through the Graduate and Professional Student Council pays for Joas' visit.
Joas' address is part of the 10th annual Building Bridges Graduate Student Philosophy Conference, taking place Friday Oct. 12, in Faner Hall Room 1004 and Saturday, Oct. 13, in the Kaskaskia Room at the Student Center.
The topic for this year's conference is "American and Continental Political Thought." The call for papers asked conference participants to compare different philosophic schools from American and 19th century Continental political thought. SIUC Department of Philosophy graduate students act as moderators for paper presentations. The purpose is to bring differing philosophical approaches into a sort of dialogue – a goal made richer by the presence of visiting graduate students who come literally from coast to coast for this conference. "Kinesis: Graduate Journal in Philosophy," a SIUC Department of Philosophy periodical, may publish some of the papers from the conference.
The interdisciplinary and intra-disciplinary design of Building Bridges conferences promotes multiple approaches to philosophical questions.