Big Ideas: Nihilism: What's Behind the Brexit Vote and the Rise of Donald Trump? (Finsbury Park)
When:
—
Venue:
External
No booking required
Join us for Big Ideas at City & Islington College's Centre for Lifelong Learning, and come prepared for interesting discussion and fascinating research!
Birkbeck's Big Ideas is a series of thought-provoking free public lectures, designed to inspire and bring world class Birkbeck academics to the local community, with this latest installment from Professor Ken Gemes, of Birkbeck's Department of Philosophy.
This talk diagnoses a particular conflict between our will to truth and our will to meaning. This conflict constitutes the central crisis of modernity. The will to truth prevents us from constructing the types of mythological narratives (e.g. narratives of God's providential plan) which formerly served to give meaning to existence; hence the need to find existence meaningful remains unfulfilled. This leaves us with two possibilities: Dispense with the demand for existential meaning or create new narratives that can somehow either evade or be reconciled with the demands of the will to truth. This dilemma helps illuminate our Brexit situation and the rise of Donald Trump.
Here a podcast with Professor Gemes here: https://soundcloud.com/birkbeck-podcasts/nihilism-trump-and-brexit-britain-professor-ken-gemes
The event is FREE and open to all, but please note that seating is allocated on a first come first served basis. Registration and refreshments start at 6pm and the talk will commence at 6.15pm.
We look forward to welcoming you to this Birkbeck's Big Ideas event!
Contact name:
Widening Access Team