Facts and fictions of Renaissance architecture

Posted on: March 23rd, 2023 by mlpMemberAdmin

The Renaissance is widely considered to be one of the most fascinating and productive periods in European history. In the domains of philosophy, law, science and art, great strides were made in the pursuit of excellence. The physical and intellectual legacy that this era has left behind is staggering. What could have motivated it?

Historically, the Renaissance bridges the Middle Ages with the Enlightenment. It facilitated the seismic shift from religious feudalism to humanism and rationalism. The distinction between periods, however, may not be as clear cut as people might think.

With a particular focus on the architectural styles of the period, Frank Vigon will question what we’ve come to define as being ‘of the Renaissance’. Can a building be adequately categorised by its style, period or the ethos under which it was built?

Without losing the sense of wonder that these structures elicit, we’ll examine the nature of architectural styles across Europe. We will try to identify the similarities and, more importantly, the differences between the competing power bases.

Join us as we strive to uncover some of the most remarkable testaments to human genius. In doing so, we will come to terms with the socio-historical context from which they emerged.

Getting back to moral basics

Posted on: March 23rd, 2023 by mlpMemberAdmin

Studies have shown that children develop an innate sense of fairness and justice from a very young age. But if you look around the world today, you’ll find little evidence that this carries over into adulthood. So, can we really claim to know the difference between right and wrong, to know what is just and what isn’t?

Seemingly not.

Ethics and its social application, political philosophy, have been areas of philosophical study for thousands of years. In the 1970’s, however, the moral philosopher John Rawls came up with a very simple, effective and influential idea for assessing what’s fair. In doing so, he developed a robust theory of justice. After many decades of increasing inequality in our society, could his theories provide us with an ethical antidote?

We will be looking at the age-old concept of justice through the lens of egalitarianism. This philosophical approach attempts to reduce the impact of social inequalities to ensure a fair distribution of resources.

Good to know: We take pride in putting the fun back into serious philosophy through our friendly and respectful discussions involving different levels of experience of philosophy. Collectively exploring interesting and exciting ideas from different viewpoints is what the Lit & Phil Philosophy Forum is all about.

Please read John Pickersgill’s focus paper Getting Back to Moral Basics before the 30th of May to enrich and guide our discussions. Don’t worry if you find some of it difficult, ethics is a minefield!

We are usually oversubscribed, so if you book but find out later that you cannot attend, please cancel your ticket to free up a place for someone else. Thank you.

Pandemic as portal: remembering Covid, re-imagining society

Posted on: February 28th, 2023 by mlpEditor

Did the Covid pandemic change anything? And what will its legacy be?

In an influential essay published at the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the novelist and activist Arundhati Roy described Covid-19 as a “portal” and an opportunity to re-imagine society and the sort of planet we wished to leave to our children.

But three years on, Roy’s vision of social, spiritual and planetary renewal looks increasingly utopian. Rather than being a “great leveller”, as some experts had hoped at the outset of the pandemic, Covid exacerbated pre-existing inequalities and accentuated political divisions.

On top of that, the pandemic didn’t result in the promised “great reset” in living and working conditions. Nor did it galvanise the world to finally address climate change.

In this talk, Dr Mark Honigsbaum will look at the history of pandemics, examining when and how they have acted as catalysts for social and political change – and when they haven’t ­. He will then assess the impacts of Covid-19 and its likely historical legacy.

*The Percival Lecture* – Technology: a tool and a mirror

Posted on: February 27th, 2023 by mlpEditor

How has human behaviour influenced and transformed computer technology?

In the 75 years since the invention of The Baby – the world’s first stored programme computer – technology has transformed our lives. We often think of it as something ‘other’ than us – mathematical, logical, objective. In fact, our minds map themselves on to the technology we make in unexpected ways, not just at the user interface, but right down to the computer processor.

Understanding why this happens and how to capitalise on it is crucial to our ability to innovate effectively.

The ultimate power of this knowledge is exhibited in the Principle of Locality, which states that the information we need next when running a computer program is located near in space and time to the information we are using currently.

Whilst this rule is seen almost ubiquitously in computing – supporting everything from system architecture to web browsing – its origins, in computer scientist Peter Denning’s years of painstaking empirical work observing how programmers work, are rarely discussed.

Caroline Jay has spent the last 20 years studying the relationship between humans and machines. In this talk she will explore the complex and often hidden process of creating technology, and demonstrate, starting with Denning’s early work, how an understanding of human behaviour and society is just as crucial to its success as the use of logic and mathematics.

 

Event schedule

Drinks reception for members and special guests: from 6.00 pm

Talk starts: 6.45 pm

Event ends: 8.00 pm

Tour of ‘Golden Mummies of Egypt’ exhibition at Manchester Museum

Posted on: February 21st, 2023 by mlpEditor

We have arranged a special, members-only tour of the Golden Mummies of Egypt exhibition at Manchester Museum by expert Curator Dr Campbell Price.

After a hugely successful tour across the USA and China, this stunning exhibition offers unparalleled access to the museum’s world-class Egypt and Sudan collections.

Featuring more than 100 objects and eight mummies, Golden Mummies of Egypt presents a rich perspective on beliefs about the afterlife during an era when Egypt was part of the Greek and Roman worlds.

The exhibition is held in the museum’s brand-new Exhibition Hall, which has been created as part of a £15 million transformation.

We will meet inside the building, by the main entrance of the gallery on Oxford Road. Welcome refreshments will be served by the pop-up café, next to the museum’s Exhibition Hall, from 2.30pm. The tour will start promptly at 3.00pm.

Good to know: Places are very limited. If you manage to book a place, please arrive in good time to enjoy the full experience.

The Self – body, mind or illusion?

Posted on: February 15th, 2023 by mlpEditor

The most essential and intimate puzzle of our lives – what is the self? What is our nature? Are we just a body with a brain as its central controller? Can we think about our self in the same way as we think about the rest of the universe? Or is the self a ghostly manifestation of the brain’s workings, a secret ‘soul’ which only we know?

Why do we feel that we are one thing, one person, one self? Perhaps instead are we like an orchestra with many different parts, each coming to the fore at different times … but hopefully in harmony?

Can we ever know our self? Many philosophers, both Eastern and Western, consider the self as an illusion. But are they saying we are not really here?

This month the Forum takes a selfie.

Good to know: We take pride in our friendly and respectful discussion involving different levels of experience of philosophy. This session will be based on a focus paper The Self – body, mind or illusion for reading before the event. Don’t worry if you find some of it difficult … everybody does!

We are usually oversubscribed, so if you book but find out later that you cannot attend, please cancel your ticket to free up a place for someone else. Thank you.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof – by Tennessee Williams.

Posted on: January 24th, 2023 by mlpEditor

Come along to the Manchester Lit & Phil’s Theatre Group visit to ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’ at the Royal Exchange Theatre.

A Pulitzer Prize winning classic, CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF is a turbulent and brutal comic drama from legendary playwright Tennessee Williams (A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, THE GLASS MENAGERIE) and is directed by the Royal Exchange Theatre’s Joint Artistic Director Roy Alexander Weise (THE MOUNTAINTOP).”

Members and friends are invited to book their seats directly with the theatre for the matinee performance (2.30pm) on the 19th April. Visit the theatre’s website to book your ticket(s).

After the show –

There will also be a post-theatre meal at Cote Brasserie in Manchester at 5.30pm. This will be an opportunity to share our views about the play in a relaxed atmosphere. We have reserved a private room at Cote just for our party, and numbers are limited to 13.

Please email the organiser, Joanna Lavelle, if you would like further information or if you would like to join us for the meal.

Good to know: There will be an online discussion before the play on April 3rd at 6.30pm (details below)

Can routine screening for Downs Syndrome be ethically justified?

Posted on: January 10th, 2023 by mlpEditor

Do screening programmes for pregnant individuals prevent or cause harm?

We often assume that increasing the number of screening programmes in pregnancy is a good thing.  These programmes are frequently justified as a way of empowering women (and others who are pregnant) with information about the foetus they are carrying, enabling more informed choices about their pregnancy.

In this talk, Professor Rebecca Bennett will argue that the routine nature of these screening programmes means that they put pressure on individuals. Not only to accept screening but also to consider termination of pregnancy.

If we are committed to respecting the autonomy of individuals, then this gives us good reasons to support any sufficiently autonomous choice to choose termination.  However, Rebecca will argue that the pressure involved in routine screening programmes undermines rather than empowers autonomous choice.

Further, if screening programmes are justified as an attempt to prevent harm, then a strong argument can be made that they are counterproductive. Not only in terms of harm to pregnant individuals but also in terms of reinforcing negative attitudes around conditions such as Downs Syndrome.

Collecting and interpreting ‘Ancient Egypt’ at Manchester Museum

Posted on: January 10th, 2023 by mlpEditor

Manchester Museum holds one of the UK’s largest Egyptology collections. What’s the story behind this fascinating collection?

This talk coincides with the return to Manchester Museum of a major international touring exhibition, ‘Golden Mummies of Egypt’. With the expert help of Dr Campbell Price, we will examine the emergence of interest in Egyptology in Manchester in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.

Which key figures kick-started the collection’s creation?

Cotton industrialist Jesse Haworth became fascinated with Pharaonic culture after reading Amelia Edwards’ book ‘A Thousand Miles up in the Nile’, in the late 1870s. He subsequently visited Egypt in 1880.

Inspired by what he saw, he invested significant sums of money into excavations in Egypt. These excavations were led by British archaeologist William Matthew Flinders Petrie. And this partnership shaped the rich collection of Egyptian antiquities that formed at Owens College. – which later became the Manchester Museum.

Petrie’s excavations at the important site of Hawara, near the Faiyum lake in Egypt, were instrumental in setting tastes and expectations among the museum-going British public. Hawara was a major cemetery site of the Graeco-Roman Period. During this period, Egypt was ruled successively by Greek kings called Ptolemy and Roman emperors.

The funerary art of this time, between around 300 BCE and 300 CE, shows a multicultural attitude to death. The objective of mummification was more about the transformation of the deceased into a god, rather than simple preservation of the flesh, as so often assumed.

A heady combination of gold, art, sex and death ensured the continued popularity of the Museum’s displays for over a century. In this talk, Dr Price’s closer examination of reactions at the time will reveal more about us than about the ancient Egyptians.

The philosophy of emotions and the elephant in the room: ‘free will’

Posted on: January 10th, 2023 by mlpEditor

What role do emotions play in our lives?  Are they purely subjective and thus beyond the reach of science? Can we control our emotions?  In which case, what is the interplay between emotions and rationality?  And where does ‘free will’ fit into the picture?

Consultant psychiatrist Professor Bob Johnson (a member of the Lit & Phil who has far more letters after his name than in it!) will lead us into this philosophical jungle.  Dare you enter with him?

Our friendly and respectful discussion will be based on a focus paper – The Philosophy of Emotions – written by Bob, and for reading before the event.

Good to know: If you book but find out later that you cannot attend, please cancel your ticket to free up a place for someone else.  Thank you.

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