Teleology and Goodness

Ryan Anderson sends along this conference announcement:

Teleology and Goodness: Metaphysics, Mind and Action
A summer graduate philosophy seminar sponsored by the Witherspoon Institute from August 5--10, 2007 on the campus of

Princeton

University
http://www.winst.org/thomisticseminar/index.html

Faculty 

Anselm Muller,

University

of

Trier

David Oderberg,

University

of

Reading

Gyula Klima,

Fordham

University

Robert Koons, University of Texas-Austin
David Gallagher

Description

"The good" – that which is desirable or to be done – and "teleology" – action for the sake of an end – are interrelated notions which have been perennial subjects of philosophical enquiry. They are implicated in questions about causation, natural kinds, cognition, intentional action, as well as a host of other key philosophical issues. Although a strong theme in modern philosophy has been the deflation of their status as genuine aspects of nature, recent philosophical work in metaphysics, philosophy of mind, and action theory has flouted this trend by offering robust accounts of teleological realism and natural goodness. Such accounts characteristically find inspiration in the philosophical tradition founded by Aristotle and developed by his successors, among whom Thomas Aquinas is preeminent.

It is against this background that the 2007 Thomistic Seminar will be devoted to exploring the nature of and relationship between teleology and goodness as they figure in metaphysics, mind, and action according to Aquinas. The Seminar will focus on an accurate explication and assessment of Aquinas' views, with a special interest in how they might engage with contemporary positions on these issues within the tradition of analytic philosophy. Specific issues will include:

efficient, material, formal, final causation
form and matter
substance and accident
actuality and potentiality
being and goodness
substantial identity
the relationship between description, modality, and normativity
rationality, normativity, and self-consciousness
practical knowledge
practical and theoretical irrationality
constitutive aim theories of action
the relationship between theoretical and practical reason
actus humanus and actus hominis

The Seminar's discussion will anticipate the (tentative) 2008 theme, which will be devoted to teleology and goodness as they arise in ethics, politics, and legal theory.

More Information

Applications must be submitted by May 1, 2007.  Please visit http://www.winst.org/thomisticseminar/index.html
or contact [email protected] for more details.