"The
Primacy of the Imagination"
Ever
since Plato, there has been a tradition in western philosophy of placing
reason at the very core of the mind’s cognitive faculties, while
disparaging the powers of the imagination as irrational and disordered.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, philosophers such as Hobbes, Leibniz,
and Kant began to treat the imagination seriously, but interest subsequently
lapsed. Recently however, some philosophers (notably Colin McGinn) and
psychologists have renewed the study of the imagination’s cognitive
as well as creative powers. In this talk, Richard Ogle will explore
some of the new ideas currently being developed on this topic, including
several drawn from his forthcoming book, The Mind Out There: Creativity
and the New Science of Ideas.
Dr.
Ogle has a Ph.D. in Linguistics from UCLA, and currently resides in
Camden, Maine. His book will be published next year by Harvard Business
School Press.
9:30
- 10:30 Coffee and Bagels
10:30
- 12:30 Morning Session
Richard
Ogle (Linguistics, University of Essex)
“The
Primacy of Imagination”
Respondent:
Natika Newton (Philosophy, NCCC)
Moderator: Russell Wiener (Philosophy, SCCC)
12:30
- 2:00 Lunch (Faculty Dining Room, Babylon Student Center)
2:00
- 4:00 Afternoon Session
Debra
Bergoffen (Philosophy, George Mason University)
“The
Embodied Imaginary and the Patriarchal Real:
Women’s Bodies, Men’s Desires"
"The
Embodied Imaginary and the Patriarchal Real:
Women’s Bodies, Men’s Desires"
In reformulating the Heisenberg principle of truth to read: Our
experience of reality is always an experience of the matrix of
the imaginary and the real, I argue that we must abandon the common
sense distinction between reality and fantasy to discover the
ways in which our ideas of subjectivity and able bodies are the
effect of distinct patriarchal imaginary. Simone de Beauvoir and
Luce Irigaray are my partners in this exposé of the material
effects of the patriarchal imaginary. They are also my allies
in arguing that disabling this patriarchal imaginary is necessary
for the pursuit of gender justice.
Debra
Bergoffen is professor of Philosophy and affiliated with the Women’s
Studies and Cultural Studies programs at George Mason University.
She is the author of The Philosophy of Simone de Beauvoir:
Gendered Phenomenologies, Erotic Generosities.
Respondent:
Gertrude Postl (Philosophy, SCCC)
Moderator: Mary Streit (Psychology, SCCC)
4:00
– 5:00 Afternoon Tea (Maurice Flecker Memorial Gallery, Southampton
Building)
All
activities located in the Mildred Green Lounge, Babylon Student Center
(unless otherwise noted)
Department
of Philosophy
Suffolk County Community College
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* PHOTOS FROM THE CONFERENCE * *
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