Philosophy of Macbeth

Transcription

1 r Philosophy of Macbeth Start date 23 November 2012 End date 25 November 2012 Venue Madingley Hall Madingley Cambridge Tutor Dr Craig Bourne & Dr Emily Course code 1213NRX045 Caddick For further information on this course, please contact Linda Fisher, Academic Programme Manager on Sandy Haylock, Administrative Secretary on To book See: or telephone Tutor biography Craig Bourne is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Hertfordshire. Craig studied at Pembroke College, Cambridge, taking a BA ( ) and MPhil ( ) in Philosophy, followed by a PhD on the philosophy of time ( ). Before joining Hertfordshire in 2007, he was a Research Fellow at St Catharine s College, Cambridge ( ), a Lecturer in the Cambridge Philosophy Faculty ( ) and a College Lecturer in Philosophy at Pembroke and New Hall, Cambridge ( ). Craig s research interests are in metaphysics, logic, philosophy of science and philosophy of language. His publications include A Future for Presentism (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 2006), which sets out his account of the nature of time, and Philosophical Ridings (Oxford: Oneworld Publications, 2007), an introduction to philosophical issues such as death, punishment, the status of animals, obligations to the environment, and the value of life. Emily Caddick is Academic Director and Teaching Officer in Philosophy at ICE, and is affiliated with the University of Cambridge Faculty of Philosophy. Emily completed her BA in Philosophy at Newnham College, Cambridge in She stayed at Newnham to take an MPhil (2007-8) and PhD ( ). Alongside her work at the Institute of Continuing Education, Emily currently holds a Jacobsen Research Fellowship at Birkbeck, University of London, based in the Institute of Philosophy. Emily s research interests are in aesthetics, metaphysics, logic and philosophy of University of Cambridge Institute of Continuing Education, Madingley Hall, Cambridge, CB23 8AQ

2 language. Her work focuses especially on the nature of fiction. Craig and Emily are currently working together on Time in Fiction, a book about the representation of time in fiction, which is forthcoming with Oxford University Press.

3 Course Programme: PLEASE NOTE WITH EFFECT FROM NOVEMBER 2012 DINNER WILL BE SERVED AT 7.00 PM BOTH FRIDAY AND SATURDAY EVENINGS. Friday 23 November 2012 Please plan to arrive between 4:30 and 6:30. You can meet other course members in the bar which opens at 6:15. Tea and Coffee making facilities are available in the study bedrooms pm Dinner 8.30 pm pm Fate, freedom and foreknowledge pm Terrace bar open for informal discussion Saturday 24 November am Breakfast 9.00 am am Representing Macbeth s future am Coffee am pm Is it a dagger which he sees before him? Hallucination and perception 1.00 pm Lunch 2.00 pm Free 4.00 pm Tea 4.30 pm 6.00 pm Special guest lecture: Shakespeare and Philosophy. Professor Colin McGinn, University of Miami pm Dinner 8.30 pm pm Representing illusory experience pm Terrace bar open for informal discussion Sunday 25 November am Breakfast 9.00 am am Shakespeare s culture and the philosophy of literary interpretation am Coffee am pm Macbeth s downfall: understanding and enjoying tragedy 1.00 pm Lunch The course will disperse after lunch

4 Course syllabus Aims: 1. To give students an understanding of the philosophical issues which lie behind the story of Macbeth. 2. To introduce philosophical ideas about the nature of representation, in order to help establish what the play represents. 3. To enable students to begin developing their own ideas about these philosophical issues. 4. To make students familiar with some relevant recent research. Content: Macbeth is a play which hinges on philosophical issues. By focussing on specific aspects of Macbeth, we ll see how philosophical reflection helps to reveal what the play is about and how the play helps illuminate solutions to philosophical problems. Sessions 1 and 2 explore what it would mean to say that Macbeth s future is fixed, that the witches have seen it, and that there is nothing he can do about it. We ll investigate fatalism, inevitability, moral responsibility and the relations between the three. Then we ll explore how the way Macbeth is constructed creates certain impressions perhaps false impressions concerning the fictional future. In session 3 we begin to focus on how Macbeth represents hallucination. Using work in the philosophy of perception, we ll introduce a framework for thinking about types of hallucination and how they compare to more trustworthy experiences. It s no surprise that philosophical themes are central to Macbeth. For Shakespeare is a deeply philosophical writer, as we ll see in Session 4: a guest lecture from Professor Colin McGinn, the author of Shakespeare s Philosophy. In Session 5 we return to our work on hallucination. Combining it with philosophical ideas about the representation of experience by fiction helps reveal what should be made of Macbeth s floating dagger, Banquo s ghost, and Lady Macbeth s bloodied hands. Finally, we ll consider Macbeth in light of questions about the nature of literature and theatre, in Sessions 6 and 7. Are Shakespeare s beliefs and culture a good guide to what the play represents? Is there anything wrong with anachronistic interpretations of Macbeth? We ll end by exploring tragedy, examining some theories of what it is and attempting to solve the long-standing puzzle of how it can be so negative and yet so enjoyable. Presentation of the course: The course will be delivered through interactive sessions, and will include PowerPoint presentations and class discussion. We will use clips from film versions of Macbeth to illustrate and prompt philosophical ideas.

5 Outcomes: As a result of the course, within the constraints of the time available, students should be able to: 1. Understand the philosophical problems which are central to Macbeth, and why they are important for a full appreciation of the play. 2. Reflect on their own engagement with Macbeth in light of these philosophical issues. 3. Use the philosophical material discussed to begin forming views about what Macbeth represents. Reading and resources list Listed below are a number of texts that might be of interest for future reference, but do not need to be bought (or consulted) for the course. Author Title Publisher and date McGinn, Colin Shakespeare s Philosophy New York: HarperCollins, (Paperback 2007, Harper Perennial.) Le Poidevin, Robin The Images of Time Oxford: Oxford University Press, Note Students of the Institute of Continuing Education are entitled to 20% discount on books published by Cambridge University Press (CUP) which are purchased at the Press bookshop, 1 Trinity Street, Cambridge (Mon-Sat 9am 5:30pm, Sun 11am 5pm). A letter or confirming acceptance on to a current Institute course should be taken as evidence of enrolment. Information correct as of September 2012