Friendship and Philosophy in Tumultuous Times

Iris Murdoch, Mary Midgley, Phillipa Foot, and Elizabeth Anscombe studied philosophy together at Oxford as one of the deadliest conflicts in human history was happening. How did these women use philosophy to grapple with the horrors of the Twentieth Century? How did their friendships and conversations shape and inform the ways they confronted these new realities? And what can we learn from them today about how friendship and conversation can help us navigate our place in a tumultuous world?

Over the course of six weeks we will explore the theme of philosophical friendship through the lens of these four thinkers. We will be looking at how they responded to questions like ‘what is goodness?’, ‘is war ever justified?’, and ‘what does it mean to be human?’. The emphasis will not be on finding complete answers to any of these questions, but on enriching our understanding about how enquiry and friendship can help us think about them. The course will involve online discussion sessions, with presentations and some writing/creative exercises. There will also be opportunities for optional reading and reflection activities in-between sessions.

There will be some material to look at before the first session. We will email you around one week prior to the course with information about accessing the course, including this material, on our online learning platform (Moodle).