FACULTY OF HUMANITIES AND EDUCATION, The University of West Indies at Cave Hill

CONVERSATIONS I: CONCEPTUALISING PHILOSOPHY

University of the West Indies, Cave Hill, Barbados
March 31 - April 1, 2005

"The discipline called 'philosophy' encompasses not only different answers to philosophical questions but total disagreement on what questions are philosophical." (Richard Rorty)

Many would agree there is no single definition of 'philosophy'. The hallmark of the field is, rather, a diversity of conceptions, traditions and concomitant vocabularies, each assured of its own 'rightness' and distrustful (and, in some cases, dismissive) of other perspectives. The history of philosophy may be seen as a succession of disagreements and 'partis pris' due mainly to the incommensurable vocabularies of the parties involved.

Even a brief and simplistic survey of the history of philosophy in the Western world might lend credence to such a view. It is supported even more when one takes into consideration traditions in other parts of the world and in those regions touched by European colonialism. Africa, for example, seems to reproduce the supposed European division between Analytic philosophy in its English-speaking countries and "continental" in Francophone and Lusophone territories. Here in the Caribbean, where philosophy as a formal field of study is still, relatively-speaking, an emerging one, there is little consensus on what constitutes philosophy per se or, indeed, what might make philosophy specifically 'Caribbean' in nature.

For the inaugural meeting, devoted to the theme "Conceptualising Philosophy," we are looking for papers that seek to address the nature of philosophy written from a wide range of perspectives: Analytic, Continental, Pragmatist, African, South Asian, East Asian, Caribbean, African American, etc. We are also interested in papers that seek to conceptualise regional variations of the field: e.g. 'What is Caribbean [or Indian, or Chinese, etc.] philosophy?'. We would hope, in particular, to see answers to these questions framed by appeal to topics in the various sub-disciplines of philosophy so that panels may be constructed in which differing perspectives may be pitted against each other, or be shown to work collaboratively with each other. We are interested also in theoretical work in disciplines that share a boundary with philosophy (such as linguistics, critical theory, cultural studies, or political theory) and which reveals the way philosophy can contribute to the discipline itself.

In an effort to ensure well-prepared, quality presentations, abstracts (300-500 words) are due by November 30, 2004. Participants whose abstracts are accepted by the vetting committee will then be asked to submit their completed papers (5-7 pages, single-spaced) via e-mail as an attachment in either Word or Wordperfect by the firm deadline of February 28, 2005. These papers will then be posted on-line for other participants to consult prior to the conference.

DEADLINES

Abstracts:
November 30, 2004

Completed Papers: February 28, 2005

Registration:
March 21, 2005

CAVE HILL PHILOSOPHY SYMPOSIUM 2005

CONVERSATIONS I: CONCEPTUALISING PHILOSOPHY