CfA: 2nd Young Scholars Pragmatism Conference: Inquiry, Science, Truth (11-12 October 2021, Cambridge)
Keynote
speakers: Prof. Cheryl Misak (University of Toronto) and Prof. Hasok Chang
(University of Cambridge)
We invite submissions of abstracts for the second edition of the Young Scholars Pragmatism Conference. It will be a hybrid event with online and in-person talks (20-mn presentation / 35-mn discussion).
While pragmatist ideas and methods are present in a great variety of academic fields and subfields, pragmatism started as a theory of meaning and inquiry (Peirce, James, Dewey), and became (in)famous as a theory of truth. This conference seeks to explore these fundamental themes running from the beginnings of pragmatism to the present. Possible topics for submission include (but are not limited to):
· Meanings and concepts: what are our concepts for? How should we construe
the meaning of our terms? How are concepts formed, and how do they
evolve?
· The theory of inquiry and scientific or logical methods: is there a
scientific method? What is (or are) the method(s) of inquiry? How do we
evaluate these methods?
· Scientific practice: what does the study of scientific practice teach us
about traditional issues in philosophy of science and about the theory of
inquiry?
· Values: is there a fact/value dichotomy? What role do values, purposes and
normative assessments play in epistemic practices?
· Truth and warranted assertibility: can truth be a goal of inquiry? How
should it be defined? Can truth transcend experience or inquiry?
· (Anti-)realism and (anti-)representationalism: do ideas and theories purport to represent the world? How should global expressivists or anti-representationalists think about theories of inquiry and the philosophy of science?
We welcome
presentations of various forms, such as: theoretical papers defending
pragmatist accounts of X; historical, sociological or philosophical case
studies from a pragmatist perspective; studies of classical pragmatist answers
to contemporary problems in philosophy of science, epistemology, or philosophy
of language; exploration of pragmatist themes present in the philosophy of
science of non-(explicitly) pragmatist authors; critical assessments of the
scope and limits of pragmatism.
Submission guidelines:
· Conditions for submission: graduate (masters and doctoral) students and
early career scholars (up to 5 years after the completion of the PhD)
· Word limit: 500 words
· Format: PDF prepared for blind review
· Include a separate document with your name, contact information, title of your
abstract, and current academic position. You are also welcome to state your
preference for presenting online or in person.
· Deadline for submission: 15 May 2021
· Notification of acceptance: 7 June 2021
The organizing committee:
Céline Henne (Cambridge), Oscar
Westerblad (Cambridge), Bobby Vos (Cambridge)
The scientific committee:
Miguel Ohnesorge (Cambridge), Sarah
Hijmans (Paris 7 Diderot)