Philosophy Commons^™

Equipmentality As A Pharmakon, Sherif Khalil

Theses and Dissertations

One must lose the world to know himself, if in his attempt to know the world he lost himself.

In this thesis, I argue that equipment is a pharmakon in that its harm lies in the service it is supposed to provide. Through equipment one gets to have a practical sense of the world. But, the world in this sense is a world for everyone and for no one in particular, that is, it is made to the measure of the average person who has no aspirations to realize his authenticity. That is how equipment helps us practically make sense …

Understanding Ethical Leadership In Intelligence: Themes In Accountability, Self-Development, And Communication Among Cia Leaders, Caroline Walsh

Dissertations

This dissertation elucidates the concept of ethical leadership within the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Based on interviews with ten former senior-level officers from across different departments, the study analyzes how these leaders understand issues of accountability, self-development, and communication. The research also provides insights into their processes of sense-making and their methodologies for fostering ethical conduct amidst the complexities of intelligence operations.

Against the backdrop of the CIA's mission, structure, and norms, the study sheds light on the challenges and tensions inherent in the organization's operations. Through a thematic analysis of participant narratives, themes of moral cognition, personal values, and …

Mythos And Meaning: Medieval Appropriations Of Mythological Types In The Consolation Of Philosophy And Later Western Literatures, Francis J. Hunter

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Often referred to as the last Roman and first medieval, Boethius, author of The Consolation of Philosophy, has been widely received as an unoriginal philosopher who sought to preserve Platonic thought as the Western Roman Empire fell. However, this essay features an investigation into the literary originality of Boethius who initiates a line of Christian and Platonic literatures to follow in the medieval European tradition. Boethius demonstrates himself to be a poet who makes great use of philosophy rather than as a philosopher writing poetry. Boethius’ poetic influence is felt most strongly in major aspects of Dante’s Divine Comedy and …

Queerform/Ing, Matthew Solon-Lee Weimer

Art Theses and Dissertations

My artwork is situated within and around vessels and the Queer Homoerotic World and explores sexuality as a Demisexual within them. This is accomplished through the two processes of my creation, Minivague and Queerform/ing: balancing sexual tension and explicit expression, while subverting traditional norms and stereotypes with queerness to distance oneself from stereotypical Gay Art. Altering/emphasizing makes the artwork more romantic, lighter, whimsical, softer, and tender than the figure/s and the situations actually are. The process is also emphasizing what one sees or wants to be seen. The Pink Boy becomes a celebration of intimacy of any form. I discuss …

With Love, ; An Interdisciplinary And Intersectional Look At Why Creativity Is Essential, Theo Starr Gardner

Whittier Scholars Program

My Whittier Scholars Program self-designed major, Teaching Creativity, is a mixture of Art, Literature, and Education classes. My research and praxis classes have been focused on the ‘how?’s and 'why?’s of creativity, so it felt only right that my project should be a constructivist, generative project. The project I have been working on throughout my time at Whittier, and that has just fully come to fruition on April 11th, 2024, was a solo art gallery/open mic event entitled ‘With Love,’. With Love, was conceptually inspired by the research I’ve conducted on creativity and creative arts education over the past few …

Effects Of Language Status, Community Advice, And Parent Beliefs On Heritage Language Maintenance In The U.S.: A Scoping Review, Isabelle Trujillo, Jasmine Loeung, Carolyn Quam

Student Research Symposium

This scoping review of qualitative research examines effects of language status, community advice to parents, and parents' beliefs on heritage language maintenance within a U.S. context. The review was guided by three research questions: 1. What is the nature of the relationship between a heritage language’s (HL) status in society and language maintenance across generations? 2. How does information parents receive from community members (e.g., health professionals, teachers, friends/family) influence their beliefs about the HL? 3. How do parents’ beliefs about the impact of a HL on academic/career success influence HL transmission? Thirty-four articles met inclusion criteria. Three themes were …

Liberation Chronicles: Reformulating Black Liberation In The Face Of Persistent Oppression, Nia P. Gadson

Honors College Theses

Liberation movements for Black people have been prominent throughout American history. Chattel slavery and Jim Crow laws caused centuries of anti-black oppression. They continuously evolved into other anti-black structures – mass incarceration, predatory loan companies, and healthcare inequalities, to name a few – that require us to address these issues still today. The most recent Black liberation movement, Black Lives Matter, experienced a brief uptick in support after George Floyd’s murder but, overall, failed to address these issues. This thesis outlines three approaches to Black liberation in the U.S. to determine the most effective. First, drawing on Frederick Douglass’ autobiographies, …

Social Theory From The Second Person Perspective, Connor Cosgrove

Major Papers

This paper relies on the work of Charles Taylor, Rahel Jaeggi, and Harmut Rosa to develop a method of ‘second-person critique.’ This is developed in opposition to first-person critique, otherwise known as self criticism, and third-person critique, which I take to be representative of instrumental reason. I criticize instrumental reason from Taylor’s perspective, while also relying on Martin Heidegger and Martin Buber to do the same. To further develop Rosa’s theory of resonance, I rely on David Graeber. I conclude by suggesting that while phenomenology has long accounted for our embodied relationship to the world, a ‘resonant phenomenology’ that includes …

Powering Justice: Sketches For A New Ethos In Energy Policy, Erin Rizzato Devlin

Green Humanities: A Journal of Ecological Thought in Literature, Philosophy & the Arts

Energy politics lie at the heart of human activity. In a time of ecological and energy crisis, it is fundamental to realise that our reality systems are always open to change and that, in order to respond to the challenges of a changing energy landscape, we must explore the full possibilities of technology in a radical way. This research aims to consider the ethical implications of energy and technology, presenting an urgent case for cosmotechnical pluralism, that is the diversification of world-views, knowledges, technologies in the pursuit of energy justice in global politics. To reconstruct the world and its politics …

The Components Necessary In A Clinical Day Program For A Successful Transition To Traditional School, Erica Parker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to determine what components of academic and therapeutic clinical day programs ensure success for students with mental health diagnoses as they transition back to conventional educational settings. This study focused on the importance of developing students' capabilities to fulfill their own needs within Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs through coping skills, academic skills, and ensuring those skills transition to their traditional home school setting. The research questions guiding this study were: 1. How is “successful reintegration” defined for students with mental health concerns by the students, families, teachers, and other school staff? 2. What program …

Biological Teleology In The Modern World, Kathryn Siena

Honors Theses

In humans, the heart moves blood through the body. Does the heart therefore have a teleological explanation? Aristotelian teleology (described in Aristotle’s Physics) is the cause-for-the-sake-of-which, or the end towards which something moves. It is evident from current scientific knowledge that there is some sort of orientation of organisms toward an end. This orientation, following Aristotle’s definition of teleology, is conceptually distinct from efficient causation. This orientation is also metaphysically distinct from efficient causation because efficient causal explanations do not properly describe the orientation. However, two common ways of describing teleological explanations imply efficient causation as a metaphysical element. …

Humanity Amid Innovation: Exploring Our Relationship To Technology, Sarah Durkee

Senior Theses and Projects

This thesis examines the impacts of technology on fundamental aspects of human nature and experience. Drawing on the works from Kant, Turing, Arendt, Benjamin, and Freud, it explores how rapid technological change is redefining human reason, intelligence, and creativity in the digital age. The first chapter analyzes whether modern online communication platforms realize or undermine Kant's vision of an enlightened public sphere fostering free discourse and critique. It argues that prioritizing engagement over substantive debate, these digital realms corrode the depth of interaction essential for cultivating human reason. The second chapter explores the pursuit of artificial intelligence as a reproduction …

Cinema's Poetic Function: Creating An Amorous Distance, William Yonts

Film and Media Studies (MA) Theses

The aim of this thesis is to examine how cinema can embrace its poetic function to avoid its assimilation into preexisting hermeneutic structures, which would leave it vulnerable to myth as defined by Roland Barthes, and instead be a generative force, encouraging its viewer to engage with the full potential of the text. This mode of spectatorship is termed the “amorous distance,” which Barthes describes as his simultaneous fascination with the film and that which exceeds it. The amorous distance finds further articulation through the work of Roman Jakobson and Julia Kristeva. Jakobson’s schema of six language functions describes the …

Embracing The Wound Of Contingency: Transcribing Reality In Supernatural Horror And Found Footage, Mason Dax Dickerson

Film and Media Studies (MA) Theses

To counter both the form of critical thought first outlined by Kant that dispels absolute knowledge, as well as the dogmatic necessitarianism that asserts the universe must be one way for an absolute originary reason, Quentin Meillassoux argues for the “non-facticity of facticity” to implicate an absolute contingency or unreason structuring reality: in effect, anything could happen for no reason at all. Meillassoux suggests the trauma of the contingent event and the sudden impossibility of inductive science in its wake may be explored in an “Extro-Science Fiction” text (XSF) – but limits his examples to science fiction literature. Framing the …

Logical Sense In The Skeptical Self-Refutation Problem: Sextus Empiricus’ Logos And Pathos, Stacy E. Cunningham

Honors Theses

The self-refutation problem is an all too familiar objection to all varieties of skeptical arguments, in fact, it is as old as skepticism itself. My analyses will first focus on the arguments and objections to ancient Pyrrhonian skepticism. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy describes the goal of Pyrrhonian skepticism as “suspension of judgment as a way of achieving calm (ataraxia) in the face of seemingly intractable disagreement.” The position involves a series of arguments, or, “modes”, for evaluating claims in such a way that the evidence for and against accepting a claim are equally balanced, leaving the inquirer with no …

Pengaruh Pemikiran Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahhab Terhadap Kaum Paderi Di Minangkabau, Muhammad Afief Maulana, Letmiros Letmiros

Multikultura

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji keterkaitan antara pemikiran Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab dari Arab Saudi dengan kaum Paderi di Minangkabau. Pemikiran sang tokoh ini, akhirnya disebut dengan pemikiran Wahabi yang diterapkan kaum Paderi, terlihat dalam upaya kaum Paderi membasmi pemahaman TBC (tahayul, bid’ah dan churafat); usaha mengakhiri perang Paderi; serta dampak positif dari peristiwa tersebut terhadap masyarakat Minangkabau berdasarkan analisis teori kebudayaan C.A.Van Peursen. Metodologi yang dipakai dalam penelitian ini adalah metode penelitian kualitatif deskriptif yang menggabungkan antara teori penelitian sejarah dan teori penelitian kebudayaan. Peneliti mengumpulkan data, menganalisis data, melakukan interpretasi data, dan mengakhirinya dengan kesimpulan.. Dalam penelitian ini …

Etnis Tionghoa Dan Dinamikanya Dalam Kesuksesan Bulu Tangkis Indonesia, Michelle Ladykia Naftali, Albert P. J. Roring

Multikultura

Penelitian ini membahas tentang peran etnis Tionghoa dalam perjalanan kesuksesan bulu tangkis Indonesia pada tahun 1966-1998. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk menjelaskan etnis Tionghoa dari berbagai bidang dan dinamikanya dalam kesuksesan bulu tangkis Indonesia. Metode yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah metode penelitian kualitatif dengan pendekatan sejarah. Dalam pengumpulan data akan menggunakan teknik studi pustaka dan wawancara. Kesimpulan dari penelitian ini adalah sekalipun di tengah dinamika sosial dan politik pada masa Orde Baru (1966-1998) yang diskriminatif seperti kewajiban memiliki SBKRI dan adanya kekerasan rasial, tetapi etnis Tionghoa dari berbagai bidang tetap melakukan perannya masing-masing dalam kesuksesan bulu tangkis Indonesia …

Kenakalan Remaja Dalam Film Wij (2018) Karya Rene Eller: Sebuah Kajian Sosiologi Sastra, Godeliva J. R. Pardede, Barbara Elisabeth Lucia Pesulima

Multikultura

Film adalah salah satu jenis karya sastra yang digunakan sebagai media untuk memberi gambaran fenomena di masyarakat. Remaja merupakan bagian dari kelompok masyarakat yang tidak dapat dipisahkan. Kehidupan remaja di Belanda dituangkan dalam sebuah film berdurasi 100 menit berjudul Wij karya Rene Eller yang dirilis pada tahun 2018. Permasalahan yang dibahas pada penelitian ini adalah penggambaran kenakalan remaja dalam film Wij (2108) dan representasinya di masyarakat Belanda. Tujuan dari penelitian ini untuk memaparkan bentuk-bentuk kenakalan remaja dalam film Wij (2018) serta perbandingan penggambarannya dalam film dengan realita di masyarakat Belanda. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah deskriptif kualitatif dengan menggunakan teori …

Narasi Tentang Qatar Sebagai Tuan Rumah Piala Dunia 2022 Di Surat Kabar Bild.De, Bayu Trian Yulianto, Sonya Puspasari Suganda

Multikultura

Penelitian ini mengkaji dua teks mengenai pemberitaan Qatar selaku tuan rumah Piala Dunia 2022, yang terbit di surat kabar Bild.de. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk mengungkapkan narasi yang dibuat penulis berita atau wartawan pada surat kabar Bild.de dalam memberitakan Qatar. Penelitian ini menggunakan teori analisis wacana kritis dari Teun van Dijk (1988; dan dalam Eriyanto, 2001) dan ditunjang oleh teori dari bidang ilmu tekslinguistik dari Brinker (2010). Teori Brinker digunakan untuk menganalisis tataran bahasa pada teks berita. Ancangan yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah kualitatif. Kesimpulan dari penelitian ini adalah negara tuan rumah Qatar dinarasikan dengan kebencian dan ketidaksukaan. …

Respon Warganet Indonesia Terhadap Pelanggaran Turis Rusia Di Bali: Interpretasi Sakral Dan Profan, Arini Apriola, Mina Elfira

Multikultura

Penelitian ini membahas respon warganet Indonesia terhadap pelanggaran turis Rusia di Bali. Tujuan dari penelitian ini untuk mengetahui bagaimana warganet Indonesia memberikan respon dalam menanggapi pelanggaran Yuri Chilikin, yaitu unggahannya menurunkan celana di atas Gunung Agung, Bali. Penelitian ini menggunakan beberapa konsep, yaitu Sakral dan Profan, Pancasila sebagai ideologi. Metode penelitian yang digunakan yaitu Analisis Wacana Kritis model Norman Fairclough melalui tiga aspek, analisis teks, praktik wacana, dan praktik sosiokultural. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa respon-respon warganet Indonesia merupakan kekecewaan terhadap pelanggaran yang terjadi oleh Yuri Chilikin, namun tetap mencerminkan nilai-nilai kelima sila Pancasila. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian pula ditemukan bahwa adanya …