2013-2014 PhD Seminar: "The Inessential Indexical"; Herman Cappelen (University of St Andrews) & Josh Dever (University of Texas, Austin)

PhD Seminar: "The Inessential Indexical"
Professors: Herman Cappelen (University of St Andrews) & Josh Dever (University of Texas, Austin)
Days: from 30/06/2014 to 04/07/2014.
Schedule: 11-13:00.
Location: Room 411, 4th floor, Faculty of Philosophy, UB

What is the philosophical significance of the first person perspective (the so-called ‘de se’) and indexical thought more generally? It is often assumed that the de se has an important explanatory role in philosophy. It is assumed, for instance, that it enters into accounts of rational agency, immunity to error, theories of perception, and theories of meaning. Others go further: it is central to an understanding of rational inquiry, of ethics and of consciousness, and self-awareness. Many of these assumptions trace back to work of John Perry and David Lewis on the essential indexical. The goal of this course is to critically examine the Perry-Lewis tradition. The central text for the course is The Inessential Indexical (OUP 2013) by Cappelen and Dever.