16 Jun
2025
16 Jun
'25
6:32 p.m.
Dear all,
The PACE and KiC Projects cordially invite you to the next talk of the Metaphilosophical
Talk Series by
Catarina Dutilh Novaes, VU Amsterdam
Title: Synthetic philosophy and the social epistemology of argumentation
Date: June 25th, Wednesday
Time: 16:45-18:15
Location: SE 2H, Neues Institutsgebäude (NIG/2. Stock)
Abstract:
A methodological orientation that has gained some traction within philosophy in recent
years is so-called ‘synthetic philosophy’ (Schliesser 2024). It is characterized by
extensive engagement with research in relevant (empirical and conceptual) disciplines to
inform philosophical inquiry, and by the attempt to formulate unifying explanations for
findings coming from different fields. Thus understood, I have myself been deploying the
synthetic method for many years (Dutilh Novaes, 2012) (Dutilh Novaes, 2020), even if not
using the term itself (which I adopted circa 2018). Other self-declared synthetic
philosophers include Philip Kitcher (Kitcher 2012) and Neil Levy (Levy 2021).
In this talk, I will present and defend the synthetic philosophy orientation, illustrating
it in particular by means of my research project on the social epistemology of
argumentation in recent years. The foundational idea of this research, i.e., the ‘glue’
that allowed for synthesis, is a conceptualization of argumentation as a form of
_epistemic exchange_. On the basis of this conceptualization, I engaged extensively with
research on exchange in the social sciences (in particular sociology and anthropology) to
inform my inquiry into the socio-epistemic mechanisms at play in argumentative processes,
and in particular the role of power relations therein. The presentation will include a
brief preview of my forthcoming monograph _Reason and Power in Argumentation_, which
summarizes the main findings of the project.
We look forward to seeing you!
Best wishes,
The PACE/KiC organising team
https://pace.phl.univie.ac.at/
https://www.knowledgeincrisis.com/